Marshall County Correctional Facility

Marshall County Correctional Center
Location 833 West Street
Holly Springs, Mississippi
Coordinates 34°47′42″N 89°26′17″W / 34.795°N 89.438°W / 34.795; -89.438Coordinates: 34°47′42″N 89°26′17″W / 34.795°N 89.438°W / 34.795; -89.438
Status Open
Security class Minimum and medium
Capacity 1,076
Opened 1996
Managed by Management and Training Corporation
Director Tim Outlaw

Marshall County Correctional Center (MCCF) is a for-profit prison in Holly Springs, Marshall County, Mississippi, managed by Management and Training Corporation (MTC) on behalf of the Mississippi Department of Corrections.[1][2]

The prison facility has an authorized capacity of 1,076 and is on 17 acres (6.9 ha) of enclosed area. The prison property is in total 47 acres (19 ha).[3]

Accreditations

The prison was accredited by the American Correctional Association in January 1998, June, 2000, September 2003, January 2007, January 2010, and March 2014.[4]

Operation contracts

Management & Training Corporation of Centerville, Utah, agreed to a 10-year management contract for the Marshall County Correctional Facility in Holly Springs to begin on August 13, 2016. Corrections Commissioner Chris Epps, since convicted of extensive corruption,[5][6] had previously said that the department felt it might be more advantageous if a combined bid was solicited for all three prisons for which contracts were being offered, tendered to a number of corrections management companies. MTC signed 10-year operating contracts for Meridien's East Mississippi Correctional Facility beginning July 2, as well as the Walnut Grove Youth Correctional Facility in Leake county to start on July 9. The public was not informed of the financial specifics of the contracts.[7]

Incidents

On March 27, 2001, 24-year-old Daniel Underwood was attacked by another inmate at the MCCF. The autopsy showed he had died of head injuries, apparently suffered during a beating by other prisoners. Another inmate apparently assisted in the attack by obscuring the view of security personnel. The prison was managed by Wackenhut Corrections Corporation. Warden E.L. Sparkman declined to discuss the circumstances, referring questions to the Corrections Department.[8]

In 2009, the Mississippi Supreme Court reinstated a 2006 lawsuit filed pro se by ex-inmate Dennis Dobbs over conditions at the MCCF. He complained of a lack of air conditioning, ventilation and concerns regarding fire safety including an absence of sprinklers. The Supreme Court said that a Marshall County judge erred in dismissing the lawsuit. The justices said the Chancery court judge erroneously considered Dennis Dobbs' lawsuit as an appeal of his assault conviction prosecuted in another county. The Supreme Court said Dobbs' tort, for what he referred to as "inhumane" conditions at the Marshall County prison warranted a hearing.[9]

In March 2015, corrections officials conducted a search at the MCCF and several other for-profit prisons, seizing weapons (including 36 homemade knives), cell phones, and other prohibited materials at MCCF. “We believe there were some staff complicit in bringing in contraband,” Corrections Commissioner Marshall Fisher said, noting one had already resigned, and that four additional staff members were suspected of complicity. Former U.S. Attorney Brad Pigott said the quantities of weapons seized leads him to believe that contraband weapons are more common at for-profit prisons. “This makes clear that prisons operated by corporations are much more dangerous places to work.” Private prisons are using money “which could have gone into hiring enough guards to find and remove knives from prisoners, and they are sending those tax dollars instead to their corporate headquarters,” he continued. According to Issa Arnita, MTC's spokesperson, "Employees caught attempting to bring contraband into our facilities will not only be terminated but will be criminally prosecuted to the highest extent of the law.”[10]

On November 22, 2016, inmate Oscar Pirtle was killed in an altercation with another inmate. [11]

References

  1. ↑ Five Private Prisons, Mississippi Department of Corrections. Retrieved 24 September 2016.
  2. ↑ Archive, Mississippi Department of Corrections. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  3. ↑ Private Prisons, Mississippi Department of Corrections. Retrieved 24 September 2016.
  4. ↑ Five Private Prisons, Mississippi Department of Corrections. Retrieved 24 September 2016.
  5. ↑ Former commissioner of Mississippi Department of Corrections and local businessman plead guilty in federal court, United States Department of Justice], Retrieved on February 27, 2015.
  6. ↑ Chris Epps, Cecil McCrory plead guilty to corruption" (Archive). The Clarion-Ledger. February 25, 2015. Retrieved on September 25, 2016.
  7. ↑ Utah company wins contract to run three state prisons, Mississippi Business Journal, Megan Wright, June 7, 2012. Retrieved 24 September 2016.
  8. ↑ Mississippi private prison inmate dies of head injuries, Associated Press, April 10, 2001. Retrieved 24 September 2016.
  9. ↑ Mississippi Supreme Court Holds Substance, Not Label, of Prisoner Petitions Governs, Prison Legal News, January 15, 2011. 24 September 2016.
  10. ↑ Weapons seized in prison shakedowns, Clarion Ledger, Jerry Mitchell, Mar 24, 2015. Retrieved 24 September 2016.
  11. ↑ Private prison locked down following fight, inmate death, Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, William Moore, November 23, 2016. Retrieved 23 November 2016.

External links

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