Hinds County Adult Detention Center (Mississippi)

our findings, the facts supporting those findings, and the minimum remedial steps necessary to address the identified deficiencies. We conclude that Hinds County ("County") violates the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments of the United States Constitution by (1) failing to provide conditions of confinement that offer prisoners reasonable safety and protection from vio.lence, and (2) holding prisoners in the Jail beyond their court-ordered release dates.3 Our investigation included both the Hinds County Adult Detention Center in Raymond, Mississippi, and the Jackson City Detention Center in Jackson, Mississippi. 2 CRIPA authorizes the U.S. Department of Justice to seek equitable relief where conditions violate the constitutional rights of prisoners in state or local correctional facilities. 3 For purposes of this letter, the term "prisoner" refers to all individuals housed at the Jail. We understand that various categories of individuals are held in the Jail, including pretrial detainees, people who have been convicted of crimes, people awaiting transfer to another jurisdiction, and people who are being held for nonpayment of child support. 2 As you are aware, over the last three years, a series of incidents have caused serious physical harm and posed an ongoing risk of serious harm to individuals in the Jail. These incidents include at least three major riots, two alleged homicides, and numerous assaults on prisoners and staff members. They required closing entire housing units and transferring prisoners to other jurisdictions, where they were difficult to locate by defense attorneys and court officials. Attorney access to clients was interrupted. Tactical teams have been repeatedly called in to restore order to the facility. The situation has been of such concern that in September 2013, the County Circuit Court entered a series of orders directing the grand jury to review Jail conditions with the assistance of an appointed monitoring team. Grand jury consultants and the monitoring team identified a host of serious systemic issues such as inadequate staffing, physical plant deficiencies, and unsound security procedures. As discussed further in this letter, we confirmed many of the same findings during our inspection. In response to the emergency situation, County officials have tried to take remedial action to address reported Jail deficiencies. The Sheriff and County Board have expended funds to make physical plant repairs, contracted with experienced managers to oversee Jail reforms, and started planning other improvements. However, these actions have not remedied the Jail’s fundamental problems. As we detail below, the Jail needs additional qualified staff, an effective classification system, and systemic improvements to the maintenance of physical security features. Harsh practices, such as long-term lockdowns and the confinement of prisoners in unsanitary cells, must cease. Policies and procedures for processing prisoners must be more reliable and efficient, to prevent unnecessary detention. Until the County implements systemic remedies, piecemeal reforms are insufficient. Thus, despite the County’s recent efforts to address systemic deficiencies, we find that longstanding problems with Jail safety and security persist. Many of these problems were described by local grand jury investigations, news reports, and the facility’s own incident reports. They continue to pose an unacceptable risk to prisoners in violation of the Constitution. I. SUMMARY OF FINDINGS Constitutional deficiencies at the Jail violate prisoners’ Eighth and Fourteenth Amendment rights. Specifically:  The Jail does not provide prisoners with reasonable safety and minimum levels of protection from violence by other prisoners and staff members. The Jail lacks sufficient numbers of trained staff to supervise prisoners and to deal with emergencies. The Jail’s physical plant poses seri