Image Credit: Trousdale County Sheriff’s Department / Facebook
The Tennessee Conservative [By Paula Gomes] –
Trousdale County District Attorney Jason Lawson is calling for the Trousdale Turner Correctional Center to be turned over to state control following recent riots at the Hartsville prison.
In a press release, Lawson stated that the proposed change in management is “long overdue” and that the Tennessee Department of Corrections would do a better job than privately-owned prison management company CoreCivic.
According to Lawson, approximately one crime occurs at the prison every four days, adding hundreds of new cases to the criminal court docket, and resulting in many years of additional incarceration for inmates. In addition, the “after-the-fact” response does not make inmates of prison staff safer.
During the Sunday night riot, three guards were taken hostage by inmates during lockdown which led to several law enforcement agencies converging on the prison.
Around one hundred law enforcement officials from Macon, Smith, Sumner, and Wilson Counties as well as the Tennessee Highway Patrol responded to set up a perimeter around the facility.
It took two hours for deputies and the Correctional Emergency Response Team to contain all inmates. No weapons had to be used to free the guards, although multiple guards were taken to the hospital once the riot was over, including one who was stripped of clothing.
The riot was the second incident at the prison over the weekend. On Saturday afternoon, a guard was assaulted by two inmates and required medical attention.
The Hartsville prison has made the news several time since it opened in 2016, with the Department of Justice opening a civil rights investigation last August.
Over a hundred complaints have been received from inmates, family members of those incarcerated, and other groups. Understaffing and safety concerns have been flagged by state audits from the very beginning and both remain an ongoing issue.
Despite these problems, and lawsuits against CoreCivic alleging it caused the deaths of inmates at the prisons they run, the state planned to extend their contract and pay the company $8 million more a year.
One death occurred at the Trousdale County facility when Kylan Leeper died of a fentanyl overdose in 2023.
According to his father, Tim Leeper, his son was stabbed by another inmate just a week into arriving at the prison and did not receive medical attention following the attack.
Leeper hired a private investigator after his son’s death and found a string of deaths, assaults, and drug sales, not just at Trousdale Turner, but at other CoreCivic prisons.
Governor Bill Lee has called CoreCivic an “important partner” – the Trousdale County facility is the largest prison in the state.
Since 2019, CoreCivic, headquartered in Brentwood, has spent over three million on lobbying and donations to Tennessee lawmakers, making it one of the state’s top twenty-five political spenders.
The prison operator gave $69,000 just to Lee’s campaign alone, which included funds to hold an inauguration ceremony.
About the Author: Paula Gomes is a Tennessee resident and reporter for The Tennessee Conservative. You can reach Paula at paula@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
One Response
Anybody imprisoned who causes trouble, IMHO, should be terminated.