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Sheriff Charles Rinehart said Friday that the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation, which was expected to handle the investigation, is short-handed and doesn’t know if it will be able to do it.
The next probable step, Rinehart said, is to ask Corinth Police Chief David Lancaster if his detectives division can conduct the investigation.
On Feb. 22, dispatcher Christy Peterson and part-time correctional officer Amanda Kuykendall were fired after the sheriff learned of alleged improper contact between the jail employees and a jail inmate.
The inmate, who was being held in Alcorn County jail pending transfer to the state Department of Corrections, was taken to Rankin County the same day.
If an investigation uncovers a basis for charges, the cases will be presented to a grand jury, the sheriff said.
Another matter to be investigated is whether either or both of the employees provided cell phones to any inmates, a felony under Mississippi statute since a cell phone is considered contraband, Rinehart said.
Under Mississippi law, the sex act between incarcerated offenders and law enforcement officers or employees could lead to felony charges against the jail employees, whether or not the behavior was consensual. The law does not penalize the inmate.
Contact Lena Mitchell at (662) 287-9822 or lena.mitchell@djournal.com
I happened to of had some of the letters that my husbands ex-wife had written to some inmates when she was working at the Alcorn County Sheriff's Dept. under Jimmy Taylor...
I called everyone under the sun; the sheriff's department, the police department, the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation, and nothing! The only thing that happened was an MBI office came and got copies of my letters and a statement from me.
When will people, especially law enforcement, stop passing the buck and stand up for what is right?
I'm serious... What's right is right and what's wrong is wrong. It doesn't matter if an employee currently works there or worked there two years ago, A crime is a crime and justice needs to be done. These people need to be punished for breaking the law.
Besides what benefit does someone get from messing with an inmate?? These people should be put in jail... Christy Peterson, Amanda Kuykendall, and Jamie Duncan Burnett... and anyone else who has ever crossed the line by messing with inmates while they are employed with any type of police or sheriff's department.