Aubrey McKay
27 years old · Wise County, Virginia · June 4, 2025
Who he was
Aubrey McKay was 27 years old and had spent nearly a decade at Wallens Ridge State Prison — a supermax facility in Wise County, Virginia — on an aggravated malicious wounding conviction he received as a teenager. He had a mother, Stacy Carter. A father. A child. Siblings. A community that loved him. He was weeks away from coming home. His release was scheduled for his 28th birthday, July 28, 2025. In the weeks before his death, he told his mother that guards at the facility didn't like him and had called him racist names. "He did tell me that, and it used to make him very angry," Carter recalled. "But he was trying to hold himself together, because he wanted to come home."
What happened
On June 4, 2025, Wallens Ridge prison officials contacted Stacy Carter and told her Aubrey had been found dead in his cell. When Carter spoke with the Wise County coroner and later the state medical examiner, she learned a different account. He had not been found dead in his cell — he had been pronounced dead at a hospital after sustaining serious injuries. The medical examiner described to Carter what she had observed: blunt force trauma to the head, black eyes, bruises on his arms and ankles from handcuffs and shackles, and a fractured Adam's apple. A former inmate, Devon Jensen, who was held in a cell adjacent to McKay, filed a written report stating he witnessed correctional officers beat McKay to death. Jensen said McKay had been experiencing a mental health crisis after learning his mother had been diagnosed with cancer, and that he begged for help but never received it.
Official ruling
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner of Virginia ruled Aubrey McKay's cause of death as multifactorial asphyxia. The manner of death is homicide.
Contested record
Prison officials initially told the family McKay was found dead in his cell. The medical examiner's account — pronounced dead at a hospital, with documented injuries consistent with a beating — directly contradicts that initial statement. Carter has noted that guards at Wallens Ridge do not wear body cameras and are not required to activate them, meaning there is no video record of what occurred. McKay's mother has filed a civil lawsuit against officers and administrators at Wallens Ridge. Attorney Ben Crump has been retained by the family.
McKay's death occurred in the context of broader documented abuse at Wallens Ridge. In the weeks before his death, five inmates attacked officers at the facility — an incident that led to a prolonged lockdown and, according to family members of multiple incarcerated people, retaliatory beatings by guards. McKay's case is one of several alleged guard-on-inmate assaults at the facility during this period.
Legal process
June 4, 2025 — Aubrey McKay dies at Wallens Ridge State Prison. Prison officials tell family he was found dead in his cell.
June 2025 — Wise County coroner contacts family and describes serious injuries. State medical examiner opens investigation. Virginia State Police opens investigation.
July–September 2025 — Family raises funds for funeral. Wallens Ridge and Red Onion prisons remain on extended lockdown following the May stabbing incidents. Family files civil lawsuit.
February 2026 — Sergeant Jason Cope, a VADOC employee of more than a decade, is terminated in connection with McKay's death. Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger directs the Office of the Attorney General to investigate and conduct any appropriate criminal proceedings.
March 2026 — Wallens Ridge warden replaced, partly in connection with McKay's death. VADOC confirms administrative disciplinary action has been taken.
April 3, 2026 — Office of the Chief Medical Examiner formally rules death a homicide: multifactorial asphyxia.
May 13, 2026 — CBS 6 publishes investigation. Former inmate Devon Jensen goes on record stating he witnessed officers beat McKay to death.
May 21, 2026 — Wise County Commonwealth's Attorney recuses himself from the case. Smyth County Commonwealth's Attorney appointed as special prosecutor.
May 27, 2026 — Virginia Governor directs Attorney General to formally investigate and prosecute. Motion confirms three senior assistant attorneys general assigned to the case.
As of May 31, 2026 — No criminal charges filed. Investigation active. Special prosecutor assigned. Virginia State Police investigation ongoing.
Sources
WVTF/Radio IQ — State probes death of an inmate at Wallens Ridge
WVTF/Radio IQ — Aubrey McKay's death at Wallens Ridge prison ruled a homicide by the state medical examiner
CBS 6 Richmond — Virginia man says he saw officers beat Virginia prisoner to death
CBS 6 Richmond — Virginia prosecutor steps aside from Virginia inmate death case
WTVR — Governor orders Attorney General to investigate inmate death at Virginia supermax prison
WCYB — Smyth County Commonwealth's Attorney handling charging decision in Wallens Ridge death