George Lester Jackson, 29, died at San Quentin State Prison on August 21, 1971, during a violent incident that left six people dead. State officials describe the event as a failed escape attempt in which Jackson was shot by a guard in a gun tower. Three correctional officers—Jere P. Graham, Frank DeLeon, and Paul Krasenes—and two inmates, Ronald Kane and John Lynn, also died in the confrontation.

Convicted in 1961 of armed robbery and serving an indeterminate one year to life sentence, he had become a central figure in prison reform debates and one of the Soledad Brothers, connected to the 1970 killing of guard John Vincent Mills at Soledad Prison.

His death prompted sharp dispute: officials framed it as a response to an escape attempt, while supporters alleged he had been intentionally killed by prison authorities because of his influence. The conflicting accounts and disputed evidence keep the case controversial.