After the Yazoo County jail received a bill for a Yazoo City inmate being housed at the Warren County jail, the mutual agreement between Yazoo County and Yazoo City concerning the housing of inmates was once again brought to the table for discussion.
Warden Jacqueline Morton, with the Yazoo County Regional Correctional Facility, presented a bill from the Warren County Jail to the Yazoo County Board of Supervisors. She said the Yazoo City Police Department transported one of their inmates to the Warren County Jail and forwarded her a bill, citing the mutual agreement signed last December.
Sheriff Jeremy McCoy said the bill provided by Warren County was a little under $2,000.
According to the mutual agreement, a municipal inmate is considered Yazoo City’s responsibility until they are bound over to the Grand Jury. At that point, the inmate becomes Yazoo County’s responsibility, which includes all housing, medical and other related expenses.
But since Yazoo City sent its inmate over to Warren County, regardless of if the inmate was bound over or not, it was questioned whether Yazoo County was responsible for the inmate.
“We got an MOU with (Yazoo City) to house city inmates,” said Supervisor Joseph Thomas Jr. “We don’t have an agreement with Warren County. If they are a city inmate, and we are responsible for the housing of that inmate, then they would be at our county jail; not Warren County’s jail.”
Morton said she cannot control where Yazoo City sends their inmates even after they are bound over.
“But they are bound over,” she said, referring to her understanding of the MOU. “When they are bound over, they belong to the county. The city is saying that they are not responsible for this bill because the inmate was bound over.”
Morton said Yazoo City forwarded the Warren County Jail bill and the mutual agreement to her.
“If the city doesn’t abide by their part of the MOU, then we shouldn’t abide by our part,” Thomas said. “The MOU is for them to come to the county jail, not another county jail. They took that inmate somewhere else, so it doesn’t fall under our agreement.”
Board Attorney Jay Barbour said the agreement states that “any city inmate who is housed at our facility is a city inmate until they have been bound over. Upon being bound over, such prisoners held at our facility should then be considered a county prisoner with the city no longer responsible for them. They must be housed at our facility for them to be our responsibility.”
“I would take the position that if the city sends an inmate to the county jail and they then leave and go somewhere else, then they are no longer our responsibility,” added Barbour. “You have to be housed at our facility to be our responsibility.”
Morton added that her facility is not turning any city inmates away. However, the city continues to forward bills for city inmates being held at other county jail facilities to her.
“We aren’t responsible for that one,” Thomas said, pointing to the Warren County bill. “Our MOU is for them to house them in our county jail. If the city sends them somewhere else, then that is their responsibility.”
