Search About Newsletters Donate
A photo shows a Black woman with curly hair in a ponytail holding a framed picture while posing for a portrait in front of her home. The framed picture shows her embracing and looking toward her son, a Black man with a plaid shirt and glasses, in front of a green background.
Jackson September 10, 2025
New Evidence May Offer Answers to Mother of Son Slain in Mississippi Prison 5 Years Ago
After reports of cell keys being shared and the lights turned off, Denorris Howell was killed in his dark Parchman prison cell.
By Jerry Mitchell, Mississippi Today
An illustration shows an overhead view of a crowd of incarcerated people wearing plain shirts and striped pants. The people are standing with their arms behind their backs while one person, shown with a faded outline, lies on the floor. Between the people are faded blue outlines of other incarcerated people over orange circles.
Jackson September 11, 2025
‘Catastrophic Failures’: Why Dozens of Killings In Mississippi Prisons Go Unanswered
At least 42 incarcerated people have been killed in the last decade. Just six people have been convicted in their deaths.
By , The Marshall Project, and Mina Corpuz, Mississippi Today
A photo shows a view of a person shoveling snow.
News January 30
When Temps Plunge, Dilapidated Jails and Prisons Put Lives at Risk
The Marshall Project examined reports of scarce food and water and interrupted access to medical care during a day-long power outage in Mississippi.
By , and
Graphics December 23, 2014
Shifting Away from Solitary
More states have passed solitary confinement reforms this year than in the past 16 years.
By and
Feature February 20, 2020
Mississippi Prisons: No One’s Safe, Not Even the Guards
Too many prisoners, too few officers leads to violence.
By and
Illustration of a colorful paper airplane flying in the sky with a faint cornflower blue city skyline in the background.
Jackson Newsletter August 8, 2024
Sweltering Heat Endangers Incarcerated in Mississippi Prison
Also, trial starts before a federal judge to determine if Mississippi’s judicial districts should be redrawn to include more Black voters.
By The Marshall Project - Jackson
A photo shows a silver car going through a prison checkpoint entry with a large sign that reads “Mississippi State Penitentiary.” Bare trees are visible in the background beyond the entrance.
Jackson Newsletter February 5
Winter’s Toll on Incarcerated People
Winter storms have worsened conditions in prisons and jails.
By The Marshall Project - Jackson
U.S. Attorney Todd Gee for the Southern District of Mississippi, right, at a news conference in Jackson in 2023 with Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division.
Jackson Newsletter January 16, 2025
Biden Appointed Federal Prosecutor to Resign
Also, an 80-year-old fights for presidential clemency.
By The Marshall Project - Jackson
Illustration of a colorful paper airplane flying in the sky with a faint cornflower blue city skyline in the background.
Jackson Newsletter September 18, 2025
Why Mississippi Prison Killings Go Unanswered
At least 42 people have been killed in the past decade.
By The Marshall Project - Jackson
In Connecticut, conjugal units include playing cards and games like Jenga.
The Lowdown February 11, 2015
Conjugal Visits
Why they’re disappearing, which states still use them, and what really happens during those overnight visits.
By
Feature January 9, 2020
Think Debtors Prisons Are a Thing of the Past? Not in Mississippi.
How the state’s “restitution program” forces poor people to work off small debts.
By Anna Wolfe and Michelle Liu
Three out of five prisoners who were stabbed or beaten to death last week in Mississippi prisons were at the State Penitentiary in Parchman.
News January 8, 2020
Mississippi Prison Killings: Five Factors Behind the Deadly Violence
Understaffing, powerful gangs and constant lockdowns brew tensions that exploded last week.
By and
Prisoners from the Ferguson Unit picking cotton outside of Huntsville, Texas, in 1968. The unit was named after James E. Ferguson, a governor in the 1910s with a troubled record of condoning anti-Mexican violence.
News July 29, 2020
Will The Reckoning Over Racist Names Include These Prisons?
Many prisons, especially in the South, are named after racist officials and former plantations.
By
An incarcerated person wearing food preparation gloves adds French fries to a food tray that contains a hamburger and a small bag of baby carrots.
Closing Argument March 8, 2025
The Big Business of Bad Prison Food
A market analysis said the food service industry in U.S. prisons and jails is worth billions — and is forecasted to grow.
By
A close-up photo of an older White man with white hair, blue-tinted glasses, and a navy blue suit.
Jackson October 14, 2025
Mississippi Prison Chief Reopens Homicide Cases Following News Investigation
Nearly 50 prison deaths will be examined, following a joint investigation by multiple Mississippi newsrooms.
By , The Marshall Project, and Mina Corpuz and Jerry Mitchell, Mississippi Today
A collage of photos and illustrations. Clockwise from top left: A photo of a Black woman holding a framed picture, of her embracing and looking toward her son, while posing for a portrait in front of her home; a photo of a man in a suit, seen from behind, standing in front of one of two doors; a photo of a beige building with narrow horizontal windows, and is partly in shadow; an illustration of a opaque hand interfacing fingers with a transparent hand and both hands being wrapped by a beaded necklace; a photo of protesters standing on the side of a road; ; an illustration of a spreadsheet, where the cells contain small drawn figures of people in teal-colored jumpsuits in different poses (sitting, standing, leaning). On the right is a menu of options: Cut, Copy, Paste and Delete Cell. Delete Cell is highlighted; and a photo of barbed wire.
Analysis December 17, 2025
We Spent a Year Covering Deaths Behind Bars. Here’s What We Learned.
Every year, thousands of people die in prisons, jails and law enforcement custody.
By
A photo shows a watchtower at the Central Mississippi Correctional Facility. Nearby is a shorter building that has the words "Central Mississippi Correctional Facility" painted on it in blue letters. Behind the watchtower is some fencing and a reddish-orange building.
Jackson February 24
Beating by Guards, Not a Heart Attack, Killed Man in Mississippi Prison, Report Shows
FBI is now investigating after a report showed that Mississippi guards beat an incarcerated person to death.
By Jerry Mitchell, Mississippi Today, and , The Marshall Project
Illustration of a colorful paper airplane flying in the sky with a faint cornflower blue city skyline in the background.
Jackson Newsletter March 5
A New Voting Rights Battle
Lawmakers brace for a U.S. Supreme Court case that could affect voting rights for Black Mississippians in particular.
By The Marshall Project - Jackson
About
People
Privacy
Sitemap
Funders