Officer Dies After Assault by Inmate at Minnesota Prison

BAYPORT, Minn. (AP) _ A corrections officer has died after he was assaulted by an inmate at the Stillwater state prison, prompting a lockdown at Minnesota's prison system.

The Minnesota Department of Corrections says Officer Joseph Gomm was attacked by an offender at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday and was pronounced dead at a hospital.

Gomm was a 16-year veteran of the department. Authorities say he was attacked in an industry building, which houses a welding shop and carpentry programs.

The inmate was serving time for homicide. State Corrections Commission Tom Roy declined to identify the inmate.

Roy says ``the corrections family is reeling'' from the death.

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension has arrived at the prison to investigate. Roy said the prison had 1,616 prisoners, about one-third of them serving homicide sentences.