Ex-49er Lawrence Phillips found dead in prison

Staff at the Delano, California, prison found Phillips unresponsive early Wednesday morning.

Guards found Phillips, 40, unresponsive in his prison cell shortly after midnight on Wednesday. Doctors confirmed his death at 1:27 a.m., prison officials said.

Phillips had been in an administrative segregation unit on single-cell status since April 11, 2013, after he was accused of killing his cellmate.

Phillips was in contact with his mother, and his letters showed that he was frustrated with his cellmate in the days leading up to Soward’s death. A Kern County judge had ruled Tuesday that there was enough evidence to try Phillips in the death of Damion Soward, 37, the cousin of former USC and National Football League wide receiver R. Jay Soward.

Lawrence Phillips (33) of the San Francisco 49ers carries the ball during a September 9, 1999, game against the New Orleans Saints in San Francisco.

Phillips was considered a bust in the NFL. In 2009, he was sentenced to 31 years in prison for two separate incidents – driving his vehicle into three teenagers and assaulting an ex-girlfriend. Bettis went on to a Hall of Fame career at Pittsburgh, while Phillips lasted just a year before being cut amid more off-field issues. His propensity towards criminal behavior eventually chased him from Miami when the Dolphins released him in 1997 after he pleaded guilty to an assault on a woman in a nightclub. He later ended his playing career with stints in the Arena Football League and the Canadian Football League.

Lawrence Phillips was found dead after an apparent suicide in prison, where he was facing murder charges. A coroner later determined Soward had been strangled to death.

Media reports at the time said the former player had choked his girlfriend, leaving her unconscious.