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Guards at a state prison in Northern California killed one inmate and critically wounded another as they tried to break up a fight in the recreation yard of the facility, authorities said Saturday.

The incident occurred Friday afternoon at California State Prison-Sacramento as the guards tried to stop two inmates from attacking another in the yard, said Krissi Khokhobashvili, a spokeswoman for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. The prison is located in Folsom.

The guards initially used less-than-lethal force — including 40-millimeter impact rounds, which are similar to rubber bullets — in trying to break up the fight, she said. The rounds are not intended to penetrate the skin.

They resorted to pepper-spray grenades, then fired a warning shot, Khokhobashvili said.

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