There are 128 article(s) tagged Shelby County Jail:

• June 2020

  • Mask ordinance gets boost as way to promote business

    Enforcing the ordinance requiring face coverings at indoor public places relies on business owners' participation, says sponsor of city council measure. 

    By Bill Dries June 18, 2020

  • ACLU threatens second lawsuit against Shelby County Sheriff’s Office

    In a demand letter to Sheriff Floyd Bonner, the ACLU and others allege that unsanitary conditions and inadequate preventative measures are jeopardizing the health of detainees in the jail.

    By Marc Perrusquia June 08, 2020

• May 2020

  • MICAH continues multi-pronged push to help inmates during COVID-19 threat

    Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris has agreed to accelerated COVID-19 testing of inmates at the Shelby County Corrections Center after meeting earlier this week with representatives of the community action group MICAH.

    By Yolanda Jones May 23, 2020

  • Testing surge planned in June at correctional center

    Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris made the announcement Friday at the end of an eventful week that includes a lawsuit over COVID-19 cases at the Shelby County Jail, calls for testing at the correctional center and a sit-in by jail prisoners with the virus as they were moved out of isolation.

    By Bill Dries May 22, 2020

  • Harris could extend Wellpath contract after commissioners reject it

    The County Commission isn't likely to approve another contract with the health care provider.

    By Linda A. Moore May 22, 2020

  • Lawsuit seeks release of medically vulnerable from Shelby County Jail

    Amid the coronavirus pandemic, a federal lawsuit seeks the release of medically vulnerable detainees from Shelby County Jail. 

    By Yolanda Jones May 20, 2020

  • Inmates at 201 Poplar pepper-sprayed over move after COVID quarantine

    Detainees at 201 Poplar who had tested positive for COVID-19, upset they were being returned to their original housing, were pepper-sprayed Tuesday, May 19, after staging a sit-in, the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office confirmed.

    By Yolanda Jones May 19, 2020

  • West Tennessee prisons, Shelby County Jail hit hard by coronavirus

    At least three prisons in West Tennessee and the Shelby County jail top the list of correctional facilities with inmates and detainees who have tested positive for the coronavirus. 

    By Yolanda Jones May 18, 2020

  • Contract extensions for Wellpath don’t sit well with Shelby County

    County commissioners discussed, but didn’t vote, on extending the contract with the county's contracted inmate health care provider.

    By Linda A. Moore May 13, 2020

• April 2020

  • ACLU seeks greater transparency at Shelby Jail

    American Civil Liberties Union official says more information is needed from the Shelby County Jail as well as other detention facilities and prisons across Tennessee to not only protect inmates’ health from COVID-19 but that of the larger public too.

    By Marc Perrusquia April 07, 2020

• March 2020

  • Line of Defense: Coronavirus infects attorney

    Nick Cloud is one of nearly 400 people in Shelby County who’ve contracted the coronavirus COVID-19 infection, but his may be a special case. Cloud, an assistant Shelby County Public Defender, has been in and out of the Shelby County Jail meeting with clients.

    By Marc Perrusquia March 30, 2020

  • All public jail visitations halted

    No visits are permitted at any Shelby County jail facilities to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

    By The Daily Memphian Staff March 29, 2020

  • More than 200 inmates released over COVID-19 concerns, DA says

    More than 200 inmates have been released from the county jail and several cases dismissed in an effort to reduce the jail population amid fears over COVID-19.

    By Yolanda Jones March 27, 2020

  • State supreme court extends court closures until April 30

    The Tennessee Supreme Court extended the suspension of all court cases until April 30 and has ordered judges and law enforcement to work together on a plan to get vulnerable inmates released from jail. 

    By Yolanda Jones March 25, 2020

  • Exclusive: COVID threat triggers jail bailouts

    As the number of COVID-19 cases in Shelby County continue to rise, Just City, a nonprofit criminal justice reform organization, is armed with $50,000 from the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights organization and another $25,000 from an anonymous donor with the intention of bailing out several Shelby County Jail inmates this week who are believed to be vulnerable to the virus.

    By Marc Perrusquia March 24, 2020

  • Shelby County Sheriff’s Office employee tests positive for COVID-19

    A Shelby County Sheriff's employee has tested positive for the coronavirus. 

    By Yolanda Jones March 23, 2020

  • Coronavirus threatens vulnerable jail population

    Reform advocates say more efforts need to be made to ensure the poor aren't being put at undue risk in jail during the coronavirus threat. Judges say it can be complicated. 

    By Marc Perrusquia March 20, 2020

  • Coronavirus daily blog, March 9: Baptist patient improving

    Editor's note: Due to the serious public health implications associated with COVID-19, The Daily Memphian is making our coronavirus coverage accessible to all readers — no subscription needed.

    By The Daily Memphian Staff March 20, 2020

  • Sheriff says he has ‘no authority’ to release inmates due to COVID-19

    Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner said it would take the courts to order the release of inmates because of the coronavirus threat. 

    By Yolanda Jones March 19, 2020

  • Second inmate files suit against Shelby County jail health care provider

    A former Shelby County Jail inmate has filed a lawsuit against the company contracted by the county to provide medical care to detainees. It is the latest of a series of lawsuits against the company.

    By Yolanda Jones March 05, 2020

• February 2020

  • Assessment coming on whether to remodel, rebuild county jail

    State inspectors say 201 Poplar needs to be rebuilt or remodeled because the nearly 40-year-old facility is in bad shape. 

    By Yolanda Jones, Linda A. Moore February 27, 2020

• September 2019

  • Sheriff’s Office seeks extension on grant to reduce jail population

    A $650,000 grant the Sheriff's Office received from the MacArthur Foundation’s Safety and Justice Challenge program is set to expire Oct. 1. County officials working on the grant to reduce the jail population have requested an extension. 

    By Yolanda Jones September 23, 2019

• July 2019

  • Six Shelby County corrections deputies resign after internal investigation

    Six correction deputies at the Shelby County Jail quit their jobs amid an investigation into "inappropriate relationships" at 201 Poplar with inmates. 

    By Yolanda Jones July 22, 2019

• June 2019

  • Shelby County Sheriff’s Office hires ‘expeditor’ to help curb the jail population

    The Shelby County Sheriff's Office has hired an "expeditor" to help reduce jail population.

    By Yolanda Jones June 26, 2019

  • Video visitations to resume Saturday at Shelby County jail

    Video visitations will resume Saturday at the Shelby County Jail at 201 Poplar. Issues with the system have been repaired after a week of the service being down. 

    By Yolanda Jones June 14, 2019