Global InformationTallahatchie County Correctional Facility information
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| Location | Tallahatchie County, Mississippi, U.S. |
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| Status | open |
| Security class | Maximum Security |
| Capacity | 2542 |
| Opened | 2000 |
| Managed by | CoreCivic |
Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility (TCCF) is a private prison for men,[1] authorized by the Tallahatchie County Correctional Authority and operated by CoreCivic, formerly the Corrections Corporation of America on behalf of the Mississippi Department of Corrections. The maximum-security facility is located in unincorporated Tallahatchie County, Mississippi, near Tutwiler in the Mississippi Delta.[2][3] Since its opening with 352 prisoners, the prison has expanded capacity nearly ninefold, holding 2672 inmates by October 2008. It has housed inmates from Wisconsin, Colorado, Hawaii, Wyoming, Vermont, and California, in addition to prisoners from Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi. In 2010 the facility served as a county jail and also housed more than 1,000 prisoners from California.[1] Since 2013, it has not held Mississippi state prisoners.
The prison opened in March 2000 with 352 prisoners. It is one of six private prisons constructed to hold state prisoners. As of early 2017, three are still operating for the state. (One of these was closed in September 2016.) The facility is located on a 149-acre (60 ha) plot of land located along U.S. Highway 49,[1][3] 1.5 miles (2.4 km) north of Tutwiler, 12 miles (19 km) south of Clarksdale, and 85 miles (137 km) from Memphis International Airport.[1] 27 acres (11 ha) of the prison property are fenced and used as the prison.[1][3] By 2008 the prison held 2,672 prisoners, and competing California gang members erupted in a violent riot. Additional such incidents have occurred. Legally the prison's capacity is 2,800 prisoners. In September 2005 the facility was accredited by the American Correctional Association.[3]
As of 2016[update] the county has no hotel facilities, so families visiting inmates must stay in hotels in other counties.[4]
State contracts with MTC and the previous operator, Corrections Corporation of America (CCA), have been under investigation since before 2014 in what is known as Operation Mississippi Hustle, a wide-ranging statewide corruption case investigated by the FBI. Former Commissioner Chris Epps was indicted in November 2014 (the day after he resigned), as was Cecil McCrory, a consultant, contractor and former state legislator. Both pleaded guilty in February 2015, cooperated with investigators and are now serving prison time. Numerous other figures have been indicted; some have pleaded guilty, others have been convicted at trial, and one committed suicide. In February 2017, the Mississippi State Attorney announced a civil suit against the private prison operators and numerous other contractors, for damages and punitive damages, to recover the cost of contracts.
- ^ a b c d e "Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility." (Archive of later date) Corrections Corporation of America. Retrieved on October 15, 2010.
- ^ "Tutwiler town, Mississippi[permanent dead link]." U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on October 15, 2010.
- ^ a b c d "Five Private Prisons ." Mississippi Department of Corrections. Retrieved on October 15, 2010.
- ^ Hager, Eli and Rui Kaneya. "The Prison Visit That Cost My Family $2,370." The Marshall Project. April 12, 2016. Retrieved on July 30, 2016.