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But according to a lawsuit against the state's Department of Corrections, his life was cut short when he was stabbed inside his cell, dragged into the prison yard by correctional officers and left to die. The following says prison staff walked by him, leaving him to bleed to death on New Year's Eve 2017.
"Allen did something wrong," Dickson said Thursday. "But he wanted to do it because he knew he was wrong, he wanted to make it right."
Capers' final moments were caught in disturbing surveillance and obtained by the family's attorney, Justin Bamberg. The footage shows Capers struggling to get to his feet and repeatedly falling to the ground. Over the course of the video, Capers was approached by several times, but was not given medical treatment.
"It's not a death sentence just because you go to prison," Dickson said. "You go to prison, you get reformed and you come back into society."
"They're still human beings," she said, "for whom she's hoping to be an advocate. "They still have feelings.
South Carolina Department of Corrections spokeswoman Chrysti Shain said in a statement, "More should have been made to help and help this offender."
"The matter is under criminal investigation," Shain said, "and also the actions of the staff are under review for disciplinary actions."
Video shows inmate
The family's wrongful death lawsuit against the South Carolina Department of Corrections accused the agency of gross negligence for "failing to prevent the brutal attack" that killed Capers. It also claims that the Department of Corrections has failed to address the issue of medical care, "among other allegations.
In Thursday 's news conference, Bamberg said that they were somehow able to obtain answers from a correctional officer. He did not offer additional details about how it was known, citing ongoing court proceedings.
The inmates allegedly opened Capers' cell and stabbed him "numerous times" in the head, neck, stomach and hand, the lawsuit says.
According to Bamberg, a captive in the past, the capers lying in a pool of blood and taking him out of the prison while inmates were fighting.
At the time the surveillance is beginning, it's not clear how long Capers has been in the yard. The video, obtained by NBC, is more than 36 minutes long. Bamberg said Capers was in the yard for approximately 45 minutes to an hour.
The footage shows Capers was left alone for extended periods. Correctional officers and inmates repeatedly approaching him, but each time, appearing to struggle on the ground and crawling towards the prison.
About 26 minutes into the video, they are unable to get away from it.
Four inmates appear with a stretcher eight minutes later, and they have a captain finally wheeled capers out of the surveillance camera.
Death was preventable, attorney says
According to the lawsuit, Capers was finally given medical assistance "several hours later when they took him to the in-house medical facility."
At that point, however, he was unresponsive and had no pulse, the lawsuit says. Capers was placed on the floor and died.
Bamberg, who is also a representative of the United States, capers' death to the larger issue of prison reform in South Carolina. He urged changes to the system, including the issues of inmates' medical care and safety.
He credited the Department of Corrections' current director Bryan Stirling for making "to a valiant effort" to try to address issues that had been in place when he took the helm of the department.
"There are just so many problems that have been overlooked for far too long," he added.
"Things like safety, things like changing the locking system, things like having a proper staffing – Allen Capers," he said.
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