A man already locked up on a second-degree murder charge is now accused of stabbing a fellow inmate eight times in the face, head and body inside a dayroom at East Baton Rouge Parish Prison. The victim had reportedly warned deputies days earlier that he feared for his safety and asked them to keep an eye on the surveillance cameras.
According to The Advocate, 26-year-old Jermaine Savoy allegedly attacked the other inmate with a pointed metal object during an incident corrections deputies say occurred on October 20 in the dayroom of a housing area at the parish prison. The victim was hospitalized for two days afterward, the outlet reports.
Per the arrest affidavit cited by the newspaper, the victim told deputies before being transferred that he did not feel safe and asked them to watch the cameras. He said he had no gang ties himself, but that family members did, which he claimed led to multiple threats from other inmates, the affidavit states.
Savoy Already Facing Murder Charge From 2023 Case
Savoy was rebooked into the parish prison on October 28 on charges of aggravated battery and possession of a concealed weapon by a person convicted of certain felonies, the same report notes. He was also already being held on counts of second-degree murder, simple battery and disturbing the peace.
The murder charge stems from the 2023 death of 37-year-old Joshua Phillips, who was found dead on North Boulevard on October 25, 2023, according to wbrz.com. An autopsy found that Phillips suffered multiple injuries resulting in his death, the station reported. Detectives said Savoy was arrested in connection with Phillips's killing.
A Pattern of Violence Behind Bars
This is not the first stabbing reported inside the parish prison in recent memory. In September 2025, an incarcerated gang member was hospitalized with multiple lacerations and non-life-threatening injuries after being stabbed, wbrz.com reported at the time, with the inmate taken to the hospital shortly after 4:30 p.m.
The prison has long drawn scrutiny over safety and oversight. Between 2012 and 2016, the facility had a death rate more than twice the national average, according to a Reuters analysis cited by Bolts Magazine, and the outlet reports that there have been 59 fatalities in custody at the prison since 2012. Activists, politicians and sheriff's department officials alike have described the facility as antiquated and dangerous, per the same report.
Federal authorities have also taken action tied to the prison's track record. The U.S. Department of Justice announced in June that a federal grand jury returned a 17-count indictment charging four former East Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office employees assigned to the parish prison with civil-rights violations involving inmate assaults.
What Louisiana Law Says About the Charges
Under Louisiana law, a conviction for aggravated battery can carry a fine of up to $5,000, imprisonment with or without hard labor for up to 10 years, or both, according to the Louisiana Legislature. Savoy still faces that charge in addition to the concealed-weapon count and the pending second-degree murder case tied to Phillips's death.
