Premium

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

Sheriff Floyd Bonner Jr.: ‘We’re doing all that we can do’ to hire jail staff

By  and , Daily Memphian Updated: September 02, 2021 4:36 PM CT | Published: September 01, 2021 5:08 PM CT

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.

Topics

Shelby County Jail delta variant COVID Shelby County Subscriber Only

2025 is almost over. Now is the time to support your trusted local news source.

Will you help us reach more Memphians with quality, in-depth local news? Make a fully tax-deductible donation or other contribution to The Daily Memphian, a 501(c)3 nonprofit news organization, today.

Thank you for keeping up with what’s happening in Memphis. Thank you for investing in our community’s trusted local news source.

Matt Stroud

Matt Stroud

Matt Stroud, a former correspondent for Bloomberg News and The Associated Press, is an investigative reporter with The Daily Memphian. He is the author of “Thin Blue Lie: The Failure of High-Tech Policing,” and the creator of the six-part podcast, “Guru: The Dark Side of Enlightenment.”

Yolanda Jones

Yolanda Jones

Yolanda Jones covers criminal justice issues and general assignment news for The Daily Memphian. She previously was a reporter at The Commercial Appeal.

Public Safety on demand

Sign up to receive Public Safety stories as they’re published.

Enter your e-mail address

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Comments

Want to comment on our stories or respond to others? Join the conversation by subscribing now. Only paid subscribers can add their thoughts or upvote/downvote comments. Our commenting policy can be viewed here