News

Mississippi prisons, mental health, Medicaid seek more money

JACKSON, Mississippi (AP) — Mississippi’s prison and mental health systems and Medicaid program are seeking millions of extra dollars to get through the budget year, then more money on top of that for the coming year.

Agency leaders appeared Tuesday before the Joint Legislative Budget Committee to request money for fiscal year 2014, which ends June 30, and for fiscal 2015, which begins July 1.

State revenue has increased roughly 5 percent a year for each of the past two years, and the state-funded portion of the current budget is about $5.8 billion… […]

News

MDOC unveils new dialysis unit at Pearl correctional facility

A new kidney dialysis unit has been unveiled at the Central Mississippi Correctional Facility (CMCF) in Pearl.
 
After months of renovation, the Hemodialysis unit, which was once located in a trailer at the prison, has been moved to a more medically conducive environment at the facility. Wexford Health Sources Inc., the contracted health care provider for Mississippi Department of Corrections (MDOC), operates the unit. […]

News

MDOC responds to federal lawsuit

The Mississippi Department of Corrections (MDOC) is working with Management & Training Corp. (MTC) and Health Assurance to respond to a federal lawsuit filed recently over alleged conditions at East Mississippi Correctional Facility (EMCF) near Meridian in Lauderdale County.  

It is the agency’s policy to let the facts play out in court, prison officials said.

However, the allegations made against MDOC officials are unfairly damaging to its commitment to provide efficient and effective offender custody, care, control and treatment consistent with sound correctional principles and constitutional practices, MDOC spokesman Grace Fisher said. […]

News

Two prison guards arrested on contraband charged

Two correctional officers have been arrested on felony possession charges at Central Mississippi Correctional Facility after contraband items were found during a random check of vehicles on prison grounds.  

“Regardless if you are staff or civilians, we will not tolerate drugs or alcohol on the grounds of any Mississippi Department of Corrections’ facility,” Commissioner Christopher Epps said. “Unfortunately, some employees are not abiding by this zero tolerance, and those employees should not reflect on the MDOC staff as a whole. Most of our employees are men and women who steadfastly carry out their duties with the upmost integrity every day and might not ever get the notoriety they deserve.”   […]

News

Two arrested at South Miss. prison after pipe bomb found

Two people are facing charges in connection with a pipe bomb found during a routine search of a vehicle at the state prison in Greene County during visitation over the weekend.  

“We don’t believe the pipe bomb was intended for the prison, nor do we believe the inmate whom they were planning to visit had knowledge of it,” said Sean K. Smith, director of the Corrections Investigation Division of the Mississippi Department of Corrections. “We are fortunate that we found the device during a routine search of the visitors’ vehicle. They never got past the secure entrance gate off the highway.”  

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) agents were notified, arrived and took possession of the device, which was later disposed of without incident.   […]

Police Report

2 teenagers die in Lee County traffic accident

Two teenagers died in a Sunday morning traffic accident in Lee County. Lee County Coroner Caroline Green identifies them as Gage Fidram, 17, and Jesse Witt, 17, both of Saltillo.

Sheriff Jim Johnson told WTVA that Witt was driving south on Busy Bottom Road when he left the roadway and collided with a tree.

Authorities say the accident occurred at approximately 4:38 a.m. It took more than an hour to extricate both individuals from the vehicle, Johnson says. […]

News

MDOC seeks to hire correctional officers

From The Mississippi Link Newswire JACKSON – The Mississippi Department of Corrections (MDOC) is seeking to hire 105 more correctional officers by the end of the year. The latest classes began Wednesday, Aug. 1, at […]