CA Prison Death Linked To Inmate From IE: CDCR

SACRAMENTO, CA — An inmate with a violent history who was sentenced out of the Inland Empire is suspected in a prison attack last week that left one dead.

Jake T. Kennedy, 32, is suspected in the fatal Feb. 23 attack of 39-year-old Jonathan D. Rude at California State Prison Sacramento.

According to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Kennedy did not act alone. On the afternoon of the alleged killing, officers at the prison saw Kennedy and 30-year-old inmate Tyler L. Yates attacking Rude in the institution's main exercise yard.

"Staff immediately responded, quelling the attack by firing a warning shot. Officers immediately initiated life-saving measures and activated 911. Rude was taken to the prison’s triage and treatment area where emergency medical personnel continued administering lifesaving measures. A paramedic pronounced Rude deceased at 1:43 p.m.," according to the CDCR narrative.

Prison officials recovered "two improvised weapons" at the attack scene, CDCR reported.

No other injuries were reported.

Yates and Kennedy have been placed in restricted housing pending an investigation by prison officials and the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office. The Sacramento County Coroner will determine Rude’s official cause of death.

Rude was most recently received from Butte County on Sep. 30, 2024, to serve four years for vehicle theft with prior vehicle-related theft convictions.

Kennedy was most recently received from San Bernardino County on Feb. 6, 2020, to serve six years for carrying a concealed dirk or dagger as a second striker. On Jan. 9, 2023, he was sentenced again to four years for assault by a prisoner.

Yates was received from San Diego County on Oct. 9, 2017, to serve eight years for first-degree burglary and assault with force likely to produce great bodily injury as a second striker. On Feb. 2, 2024, he was again sentenced to life with the possibility of parole for first-degree murder as a second striker, an in-prison offense.

California State Prison Sacramento opened in 1986 and houses more than 2,100 medium-, maximum- and high-security inmates.