Local jail officials said an updated camera surveillance system is greatly needed on the county side of the Yazoo County Regional Correctional Facility. As of today, officials said they are in an “emergency situation” with no surveillance on the county side.
“It’s an emergency,” said Jerry Williams, jail consultant. “It is critical that we get something pretty quick. It’s a bad situation.”
The Yazoo County Board of Supervisors discussed the matter during its open board meeting. An estimate of $205,000 was provided by a vendor for a more updated camera system.
“I know we need it, but where is the money coming from,” asked Supervisor David Berry.
“This isn’t something we want,” added Supervisor Willie Wright. “This is something we need.”
Warden Keith Brown said a lot of activity is occurring on the county side of the jail facility that goes undetected by jail officials. Being short-staffed also adds to the dilemma.
“We got a lot of contraband coming in, even through the ceiling,” said Williams. “We don’t have enough staff to be moving around, and we don’t have the capability to look at them.”
Brown said recovered contraband includes brand new cellular phones, marijuana and syringes.
“We find a lot of these things in the ceiling,” Brown said. “The inmates don’t have anything but time on their hands. They will stand there and manipulate things and ways to hide it.”
Contraband is not the only issue. Williams said staff and inmate safety are also top priorities.
“We have had some incidents in the past where we had an inmate kill himself,” William said. “We have had incidents where somebody has died over there. Luckily, we had some ways to record the information. That is what I provided to the attorney this morning. But right now, there is nothing. If we had an investigation by the FBI or the MBI, if they come in asking questions, they are going to want to see surveillance. We don’t have anything. We have nothing on the county side.”
The board questioned whether the camera system could be purchased using the jail’s depreciation fund. County Administrator Donna Kraft said the depreciation fund has about $380,000.
“But can the money be used on the county side,” Kraft asked. “However, it is on the building. I think if it’s on the building and considered equipment that is going to have to be replaced, we might can. It would be worth looking into.”
The local jail houses a total of about 383 inmates, with 300 on the state side and 83 on the county. However, there are state inmates being housed on the county side with state work program.
“We got approved to house up to 16,” Williams said. “We have five right now. That number will increase to 16.”
In the past, Williams said the surveillance system on the county side has not been efficient, resembling more of a home security system.
“That is not going to work when you are talking about the population we are supervising over there, especially on the county side,” added Williams. “The state side is more secure.”
A more updated system would include something like “a cage” over the cameras to prevent tampering and destruction.
“A lot of things out there are outdated,” Wiliams said. “We might find another vendor for cheaper, but these cameras are going to be pricey. You might find something cheaper, but it’s still going to be six figures.”
Supervisor Joseph Thomas Jr. said the board will take the matter under advisement until it can be determined if money from the depreciation fund can be used.
