Mississippi’s prison system remained on statewide lockdown in early January 2020 after a week of violence left five inmates dead, and one of two men who reportedly escaped from the Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman was still missing.
According to the Mississippi Department of Corrections, an emergency count around 1:45 a.m. on Saturday, January 4 found two inmates missing from Parchman: David, 42, and Dillion, 27. By Sunday, officials said David had been recaptured and taken back into custody. Dillion had not been found.
Bossip reported that prisons have been on lockdown since December 29, after one inmate was killed and two others were hurt in what officials called a “major disturbance” at South Mississippi Correctional Institution. The department told families that visitation was canceled for safety reasons.
Reports say three inmates later died at Parchman and one at Chickasaw County Regional Correctional Facility, with several other inmates injured. Corrections Commissioner Pelicia Hall said four of the five killings were connected to gang violence. Relatives of inmates told news outlets the conflict involved the Vice Lords and the Black Gangster Disciples, but the department did not confirm that.
On social media, some users posted photos they said showed conditions inside Parchman, including leaking ceilings, mold, and a lack of bedding. Some of those users also claimed that inmates were being mistreated and that guards played a part in the violence. Those claims came from individual accounts. Baller Alert has not been able to verify the photos or the claims, and officials have not confirmed them.
Officials pushed back on the idea that conditions were being ignored. According to WAPT, Governor Phil Bryant called the week of violence “tragic,” said inmate needs were being met, and said he had ordered investigations to continue. The Washington Post also reported that a federal judge ruled this week that conditions at East Mississippi Correctional Facility had improved enough to resolve a lawsuit brought in 2013 by the ACLU and the Southern Poverty Law Center.
We will keep following the story as officials share more information.
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