Meigs Co. Jail decertified after commissioners vote to repair existing site; future unclear

From Local 3 News: The Meigs County Jail was decertified Wednesday afternoon after state officials determined that recently approved repair plans would not bring the facility up to minimum Tennessee Corrections Institute (TCI) standards.

The decertification came less than 24 hours after the Meigs County Commission voted to repair the current jail rather than pursue construction of a new facility. Local 3’s Leah Bolling toured the jail earlier in the day—just moments before officials received word of the state’s decision.

When walking through the aging facility, the conditions were immediately apparent: crowded, musty and outdated.

“As we go through, you’ll see the cramped conditions,” District Attorney Russell Johnson said during the tour.

Johnson explained that the jail has spent the past 12 years under a plan of action to bring the facility into compliance. Through an open records request, Local 3 learned the jail has failed to meet TCI minimum standards due to chronic overcrowding.
 
“The average daily population is about 60,” Johnson said. “It’s certified for 56. You have to break that down between 40 for male inmates and 16 for females.”

Russell also explained there are terrible segregation issues: inmates with vastly different criminal histories sharing space.

County Mayor Eddie Jewell and Chief Deputy Sheriff Brian Malone traveled to Nashville on Wednesday to present the commission’s repair plan to TCI officials. Johnson said the plan would have reduced the jail’s certified capacity from 56 inmates to 40—a move he called the wrong direction for a facility already struggling with overcrowding.

“That’s going in the absolutely wrong, reverse direction,” Johnson said.

During the walkthrough, Johnson received a phone call from Malone informing him that TCI had officially decertified the jail, effective immediately.

“They just said that renovating the jail is not going to cut it,” Malone said. “For us to become certified, we’re going to have to build a brand-new jail.”

Johnson said Tennessee Department of Correction inmates will need to be transferred out of the facility quickly, and county leaders will have to create a new plan to regain certification.

“I would certainly encourage the county commission that they need to take proactive steps to reevaluate the decision they made last night based on what the state of Tennessee is telling them they have to do,” Johnson said.

Here's the full letter and inspection report TCI sent to Meigs County Sheriff Jackie Melton: