OGLETHORPE, Ga. — A North Georgia mother is grieving her son who was killed in the Macon State Prison this week.
His mom says this week is a blur.
She knows he is dead, but she says Macon State Prison isn't telling her what happened.
"He didn't have to die. He did not have to die," Buck said.
On Sunday, the state prison in Oglethorpe called Chastity Buck to tell her her 25-year-old son Kendrick Brown was dead.
"The worst phone call ever in possible history, I think, to hear. I know it happens every day to people, but this is something I never thought would happen to my child; and I know no mother ever thinks that anything could possibly happen like this to her child. I couldn't breathe. I was in shock. My son was not all bad. He had a good heart," Buck said.
She says people inside the jail tell her his cellmate beat him to death with a metal pole.
They say he was found hours later with organs showing.
"I understand my son did wrong. I understand that and I take that and he took that. he took his punishment and he took it like a man. He did not deserve to die at the hands of somebody else. They did not have to put him in a cell with someone else who had all this time and nothing to lose, who didn't care. Maybe people didn't care about him, but Kendrick had people who cared about him. We love him," Buck said.
Georgia Department of Corrections confirmed Kendrick's death, but would not release any other details, saying it's still under investigation.
"Nobody came to see or check on anybody, so it was very easy for this man to just do what he did, because there was no supervision. I pray for these people in prison, because these people are not treated like people. They are treated like animals," Buck said.
Buck says she isn't getting any answers from Macon State Prison either.
"I don't know what happened. I just want answers from whomever was there. Why in this world did you not go do your job? Why in this world did you not take 30 minutes to make a round just to see what we going on in these cells, so that my son's life was spared?" Buck said.
Buck says Kendrick was supposed to be released from jail next month.
"I just pray my family gets justice for Kendrick, because Kendrick did not deserve what any what he got. He did wrong. He was serving his time for doing wrong and he was going to come home and he was going to be OK," Buck said.
Buck says she drove down from Calhoun, Georgia with her husband to Macon State Prison to get answers, but she was turned away.
She says she doesn't believe she'll ever know the truth.
"I just wanted to go to see what we could do. I've never had to do this before. I don't care what he did. He did not deserve to die in Macon State Prison at the hands of somebody else. If this don't do anything but help somebody else down the line... keep your loved ones, check on the prisons, stay up with them, make sure they are OK. Make sure they are not being tormented. I know Kendrick fought for his life every single day of his life in prison. I know that. I know that without a shadow of a doubt. I know that," Buck said.
Buck says her son had served time for domestic violence and aggravated assault, was released, and then went sent back to prison for violating parole.
"I'll never get to see him. His family will never get to see him. His son will never get to see him. I just hate this for any family that has to go through this, because this is horrible, horrible. There is no closure, no closure for this," Buck said.
Kendrick leaves behind a 7-year-old son.