Prison nurse tells legislators that officials covered up a homicide in 2013
Jessica Jobes, a former nurse at West Tennessee State Penitentiary, told legislators Monday that prison officials covered up a homicide, reports The Tennessean. Correction Commissioner Tony Parker says he will now review circumstances of the investigation of the inmate’s death, reports The Tennessean.
Sheriff sees ‘dirty politics’ in PAC complaints over prisoners’ trip to church
Bradley County Sheriff Eric Watson held a news conference Thursday to denounce as “dirty politics” claims by a political action committee that he put the public in danger by taking nine state prisoners to a church in civilian clothes, apparently unguarded, reports the Times Free Press.
More than 3,700 probation or parole violators now at large in TN
More than 3,700 convicted criminals under the community supervision of the Tennessee Department of Correction are now at large, according to state records reported by WJHL-TV. TDOC confirmed all of those people are in “warrant status” for violating the terms of their probation or parole.
Eight state prison employees fired in contraband smuggling probe
Eight employees at the Morgan County Regional Correctional Complex have been fired in an ongoing probe started after an inmate breached the state prison’s perimeter, only to return in an apparent effort to smuggle contraband into the prison, reports the Times Free Press.
Amid freezing temperatures, heat conks out at Riverbend Maximum Security prison
Riverbend Maximum Security Prison, where almost 800 of the state’s most dangerous prisoners are house including those on death row, lost its main heating system on New Year’s Day and officials aren’t sure when it will be working again, reports The Tennessean.
Monday evening, temperatures dropped to single digits in Nashville. The National Weather Service recorded a temperature of 5 degrees at 7:16 Tuesday morning, 24 degrees colder than the “normal value” for the day. (The temperature was still in the teens on Wednesday morning.)
The department implemented “emergency procedures,” including passing out extra blankets and installing portable heaters, (Department of Corrections spokeswoman Neysa) Taylor said.
In a statement, Bobby Straughter, assistant commissioner of operations, lauded the work of the state maintenance staff.
“These folks worked throughout the night in extreme conditions to ensure that everyone was kept safe. We thank them for their service,” Straughter said.
David Sexton, assistant commissioner of prisons, said in a statement “the staff and inmates have been extremely understanding and cooperative as we work to fix this inconvenience.”
Legislators hear criticism of CoreCivic, call for improvement within a year
A legislative committee has voted, in effect, to give the state Department of Correction another year to show improvement after a hearing Tuesday centered on an comptroller’s audit that found multiple problems prisons operated by CoreCivic under contract with the state.
A joint Government Operations Subcommittee had earlier balked at granting approval of continued operations by the Department of Corrections as required periodically under the state’s “sunset” law – something that normally happens as a matter of routine. After Tuesday’s hearing, the panel voted to extend the department’s life for just one year.
Haslam to consider clemency for reported sex abuse victim who committed murder at age 16
Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam says his administration has begun gathering information on Cyntoia Brown, a Nashville woman whose murder conviction has become a cause célèbre, reports WPLN. But a decision on whether to grant her clemency is unlikely to come until the last days of his term in January, 2019, in keeping with a tradition established by predecessors.
Brown was convicted more than a decade ago for the murder of a Nashville man. Advocates for Brown say she was caught up in a so-called “sexual abuse-to-prison pipeline.” At 16 years old at the time of the crime, Brown says she was the victim of sex trafficking.
State to pay $80K to settle lawsuit over religious teaching in prison inmate program
TRICOR, the state program providing jobs for prison inmates, will pay $80,994 to settle a federal court lawsuit that contended inappropriate religious teaching was included in instructional materials, reports WKRN TV.
Judge gets reprimand for granting jail sentence reductions for vasectomies
White County General Sessions Jud Sam Benningfied has been reprimanded by the state Board of Judicial Conduct for offering jail inmates 30 days off their time behind bars for getting vasectomies or birth control implants, reports The Tennessean.
Bennifield’s order authorizing sentence reductions for long-term birth control measures was issued in May and rescinded in July after protests. It has led to at least two lawsuits against the judge and the White County sheriff, who oversees the jail in Sparta.
A letter posted on the Board’s public website (HERE) says the judge’s actions threatened confidence in the judicial system.
TN auditors find troubles at CoreCivic prisons
A state comptroller’s audit has found several problems at private prisons operated for the state of Tennessee by CoreCivic, previously known as Corrections Corporation of America. Short staffing at Trousdale Turner Correctional Center, the newest and largest prison in the state, is a major focus, but there’s also criticism of operations at Whiteville Correctional Facility and Hardeman County Correctional Center.
