ORIENT, Ohio — One person was killed Tuesday afternoon following a shooting incident at a prison training facility in Ohio.
The incident occurred shortly after 11 a .m. at the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction (ODRC) training range in Orient; that’s in Pickaway County, about 20 minutes south of Columbus.
The range was being used by a special prison response team, according to the Licking County Sheriff’s Office, who had a deputy also at the range, as well as the Pickaway County Sheriff’s Office.
Lt. Rodney Osbourne was shot in the chest and transported by a personal vehicle to Mount Carmel in Grove City before medics could arrive on the scene. CPR was in progress, according to first responders. He was pronounced deceased at the hospital.
Osbourne was an employee of the state and was an “exempt” employee, which means he worked in supervision of correctional officers; he was assigned to Lucasville.
“Lt. Osborne was a beloved 13-year employee at SOCF. He was on SOCF’s honor guard, SRT, and the statewide STAR team. His SOCF family named him their employee of the year just last week,” said ODRC Director Annette Chambers-Smith. “The Ohio State Highway Patrol Member Support Team and the ODRC Employee Support Teams have been activated and have been with our staff throughout the day. This appears to have been a tragic accident, and the Ohio State Highway Patrol is investigating.”
Ohio Highway Patrol said they were unable to release the events that led to the shooting.
“The Patrol, having jurisdiction on state property, is investigating the incident and that investigation is ongoing at this time. The Patrol does not have any additional information to release at this time,” said a spokesman.
The situation is developing, and further details will be provided as they become available.