Mississippi

The Mississippi Department of Corrections holds people in custody across three different kinds of facility, and which kind holds a person changes the rules that apply. Six state institutions run under MDOC’s statewide rules: Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman, Central Mississippi Correctional Facility at Pearl, South Mississippi Correctional Institution at Leakesville, Marshall County Correctional Facility at Holly Springs (brought back under state operation in 2021), Walnut Grove Correctional Facility in Leake County (reopened in 2021), and Delta Correctional Facility at Greenwood (reopened in 2022 as a women’s prison). Two privately operated prisons — East Mississippi at Meridian and Wilkinson County at Woodville — hold MDOC inmates under contract; the statewide rules are the baseline there, but the operators may set their own visiting schedules, so confirm with the facility. About fifteen county-run regional facilities, along with community work centers and restitution centers, also hold state-sentenced people, under their own local rules. A sentence is served in state custody unless a court orders up to 24 months in an approved county jail when state space is unavailable.

Central Mississippi Correctional Facility in Pearl is the system’s classification hub — the first stop for most people entering MDOC — and, together with Delta in Greenwood, one of the two prisons that hold women; the state’s death-sentenced women and people under 18 are held at Pearl. The MDOC inmate search on mdoc.ms.gov shows where a person is held; the facility’s “type” — State, Private, or Regional — tells a family which rulebook applies. Use the guides below for MDOC’s statewide rules, or jump to a specific facility.