Workhouse inmate dies following collapse

An inmate at Bedford County Workhouse died at a Nashville hospital after suffering an apparent heart attack Monday morning, officials said Tuesday.

Larry Dale Byford, 54, of Shelbyville was rushed to Heritage Medical Center after collapsing Monday morning, then taken to Vanderbilt Medical Center, Lt. Tim Lokey, who supervises the workhouse, said.

"We had him on medical watch," Lokey said. "We had him on a (video) monitor, we could see him from the tower and watched him at all times. He was sitting there and fell out of his chair onto the floor. We did CPR and called an ambulance."

Byford had not had previous major medical incidents at the workhouse, Lokey said. "He had thrown up and been sick but hadn't collapsed or anything like that."

A nurse and Dr. Howard Rupard regularly check patients, Sheriff Randall Boyce said.

"(Byford) was in a medical unit at the workhouse -- a sick bay," Boyce said. "He was real sick."

"He had some issues with his kidneys and cirrhosis of the liver," Lokey said. Byford was put on dialysis at VMC Monday, according to Boyce.

No autopsy was performed, Boyce said.