Prison Guards Become The Guarded

JACKSON – Four correctional employees have been arrested for having contraband on prison grounds within the last several days.

The latest arrests occurred Monday at Central Mississippi Correctional Facility in Pearl.

Two of the employees were hired in August and two have been employed since November 2014. Employees arrested in the first year on the job are immediately terminated.

“There is zero tolerance for contraband whether in the hands of inmates or staff,” Commissioner Marshall Fisher said. “I am committed to ensuring that the Mississippi Department of Corrections maintains the highest standards among its officers.”

Avery Shelby, 22, of Brandon, and Charlie Foreman III, 26, of Byram, who rode to work at CMCF together, were arrested Monday following a search of their vehicle. Several grams of marijuana and several Green Dot numbers were found. Each is charged with possession of narcotic drugs within facilities. Shelby also is charged with possession of prohibited items by persons other than offenders. They were taken to the Rankin County Jail.

In a separate case on Jan. 20, also at CMCF, Randy Wallace, a correctional officer trainee, was charged with possession of prohibited items by persons other than offenders and possession of controlled substance. Tobacco, marijuana and spice were found in Wallace’s vehicle.  Wallace, 22, of Jackson was booked into the Rankin County Jail.

Kamela Danson, another correctional officer trainee, was arrested at the Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman on Jan. 15 after marijuana was found in her vehicle. Danson, 26, of Shelby, was booked into the Sunflower County Jail on the charge of possession of controlled substance within facilities.

The three separate investigations are ongoing.

A conviction for possession of controlled substances or narcotic drugs within facilities carries a maximum seven years in prison and a maximum $25,000 fine. The person is not eligible for probation, parole, a suspended sentence, earned time release or any other reduction in sentence.

A conviction for possession of prohibited items by persons other than offenders is a misdemeanor, punishable by no more than one year, a maximum $1,000, or both.