There are 124 article(s) tagged Shelby County Jail:

• August 2023

  • Inmate dies at 201 Poplar, the fourth death there this year

    A 70-year-old jail inmate died Aug. 22 while in custody at the jail. His body was sent out for an autopsy, TBI said.

    By Julia Baker, Ben Wheeler August 30, 2023

• March 2023

  • Opinion: The Shelby County Jail’s ‘long and shameful history’

    “In the past couple years, the Jail has seen troublesome population increases and has left key positions vacant ... the family of Gershun Freeman has called for a DOJ investigation into his homicide.”

    By Bill Powell March 20, 2023

• February 2023

  • New facts in death of Shelby County Jail inmate emerge

    Gershun Freeman’s family and their representatives are sharing new details about Freeman’s October death while in custody at the Shelby County Jail. Meanwhile, attorneys, activists and family members are calling for further action into Freeman’s case.

    By Julia Baker, Alicia Davidson February 17, 2023

• November 2022

  • Inmate seriously injured in altercation with cellmate

    Preliminary information indicates a detainee at Shelby County Jail is in critical condition after an altercation with his cellmate.

    By Alicia Davidson November 19, 2022

  • Sheriff’s office confirms death at 201 Poplar

    Due to an ongoing investigation, the name of the inmate and the exact circumstances of the death are unknown, a spokesperson said. 

    By Julia Baker November 07, 2022

• April 2022

  • Male supervisors sexually harassed jail employees, suit alleges

    “I believe it was happening long before this, it’s still happening and it appears it is going to happen into the future because nobody appears to be willing to take responsibility,” said attorney Sue Palmer, speaking of the alleged harassment.

    By John Dunbar April 26, 2022

• October 2021

  • Watch: Sheriff Bonner downplays discord over juvenile detention, welcomes federal oversight

    On “Behind The Headlines,” Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner talked about battling the COVID pandemic at the county jail and a call to resume federal oversight of Juvenile Court, including the detention center he runs.

    By Bill Dries October 01, 2021

• September 2021

  • County’s legal bills more than $341,000 as reported COVID conditions strain 201 Poplar

    The county is paying an average of $34,000 per month to a Jackson, Tennessee, law firm to represent Sheriff Floyd Bonner in a federal lawsuit. 

    By Matt Stroud September 30, 2021

  • Judge: Staffing shortage, lax COVID vaccine program put jail population ‘in deep peril’

    In an order denying the county’s request to end a consent decree to monitor pandemic conditions in the jail, federal judge Sheryl H. Lipman wrote that the county has resorted to “box checking” rather than living up to its responsibility to keep people safe inside the jail.

    By Matt Stroud, Yolanda Jones September 02, 2021

• August 2021

  • Settlement would pay millions to those wrongfully jailed in software rollout

    Shelby County “lost” potentially thousands of people in the county court system during the launch of a digital management software system by Tyler Technologies in 2016. 

    By Matt Stroud August 19, 2021

  • Shelby County Jail inspections find issues of ‘great concern’

    Attorneys representing the inmates, including lawyers with the American Civil Liberties Union and Memphis’ Just City, claim conditions at the jail are ill-equipped to deal with safety regarding COVID-19.

    By Rob Moore August 17, 2021

• April 2021

  • County Commission approves $2.45M settlement in jail tracking glitch lawsuit

    The federal class action lawsuit was filed in 2016, a month after a new computer system was installed by the county to track the movement of pre-trial detainees through the criminal justice system. 

    By Bill Dries April 27, 2021

• March 2021

  • Some Shelby County inmates receive COVID vaccine

    More than 200 inmates at two Shelby County corrections facilities were offered COVID-19 vaccines that were about to expire. 

    By Yolanda Jones March 05, 2021

• January 2021

  • Sides agree to guidelines for curbing COVID-19 in county jail

    County officials and attorneys for Shelby County Jail detainees have agreed to guidelines to prevent the spread of the coronavirus at the jail.

    By Yolanda Jones January 26, 2021

• December 2020

  • ‘Tentative resolution’ reached in case alleging improper COVID practices at Shelby County Jail

    The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office announced Wednesday, Dec. 23, it has reached a settlement in a federal lawsuit alleging failure to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in the Shelby County Jail. 

    By Daja E. Henry December 23, 2020

• September 2020

  • Sheriff says Shelby County Jail implementing COVID-19 changes

    On “Behind The Headlines,” Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner Jr. also said he sees an “appetite” for reform among law enforcement in general but has some hesitation about trying to codify reform measures he’s taken to apply to future sheriffs.

    By Bill Dries September 18, 2020

  • Attorneys in COVID-19 jail lawsuit amend complaint regarding facility conditions

    Attorneys representing medically vulnerable detainees at the Shelby County Jail have filed a motion to amend their original class-action lawsuit against Sheriff Bonner and the Shelby County Jail. 

    By Yolanda Jones September 15, 2020

• July 2020

  • Attorney, families seek answers after deaths of three detainees

    An attorney is looking into the deaths of three Shelby County Jail inmates who died within days of one another. 

    By Yolanda Jones July 27, 2020

  • Both sides await decision in lawsuit seeking release of vulnerable inmates

    A lawsuit seeking the release of medically vulnerable detainees from the Shelby County Jail because of COVID-19 has ended. Both sides now will wait to see how the court rules. 

    By Yolanda Jones July 14, 2020

  • Judge in jail lawsuit urges both sides to talk

    U.S. District Judge Sheryl Lipman says the case isn't about her ordering changes at Shelby County Jail, but about whether vulnerable prisoners should be ordered released.

    By Bill Dries July 01, 2020

• June 2020

  • Inspection of jail finds multiple issues, according to report

    An independent inspection of the jail at 201 Poplar was ordered by the court in an ongoing lawsuit to get medically vulnerable inmates released from the jail. 

    By Yolanda Jones June 30, 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