DOJ: Three Mississippi prisons violate US Constitution
MISSISSIPPI (WCBI) – The Department of Justice said three Mississippi prisons violated the U.S. Constitution.
In a 60-page report, the D.O.J. said the Central Mississippi Correctional Facility, South Mississippi Correctional Institution, and Wilkinson County Correctional Facility violated the 8th and 14th Amendments.
Right now, 7,200 people are housed in those prisons.
The report said the Mississippi Department of Corrections failed to protect inmates from widespread physical violence.
Other issues included not adequately supervising inmates, controlling the flow of contraband, adequately investigating incidents of serious harm, or providing adequate living conditions.
The D.O.J. said understaffing was one of the reasons the problems continue.
The report findings came on the heels of an April 2022 report that found conditions at Parchman also violated the constitutional rights of inmates there at the Mississippi State Penitentiary.
