Mississippi Bill Aims to Increase Scrutiny of Prison Deaths

Proposed legislation would expand oversight of unexpected prison deaths in the state.

Published on Feb. 13, 2026

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The Mississippi House of Representatives has unanimously passed a bill that would require more oversight and investigation into unexpected prison deaths in the state. The bill, inspired by a joint investigation by several news outlets, would empower a legislative task force to review coroner's reports and information from the Mississippi Department of Corrections to determine the causes of deaths that are not related to pre-existing terminal illnesses. The legislation now heads to the Senate Corrections Committee for consideration.

Why it matters

The bill is a response to concerns that many prison deaths in Mississippi have gone uninvestigated, with families often receiving little information from prison officials. The news investigation found that prison understaffing and gang violence likely led to the killings of nearly 50 people since 2015, but only eight resulted in criminal convictions, and at least 20 deaths remain undetermined. The proposed legislation aims to bring more transparency and accountability around these deaths.

The details

House Bill 1739 would direct the Corrections and Criminal Justice Oversight Task Force to investigate "unexpected" prison deaths using information from coroner's reports and the Mississippi Department of Corrections. The task force would then be required to release a public report describing its findings and recommendations to try to prevent future deaths. The bill also expands the membership of the task force to include the chairs of the House and Senate Corrections committees, the Accountability, Efficiency and Transparency committees, and the public safety commissioner or a designee.

  • On February 13, 2026, the Mississippi House of Representatives unanimously approved House Bill 1739.
  • The bill now heads to the Senate Corrections Committee for consideration.

The players

Rep. Becky Currie

A Brookhaven Republican who filed the legislation and chairs the House Corrections Committee.

Sen. Juan Barnett

The Democratic chairman of the Senate Corrections Committee, who said he plans to review the prison death task force legislation before bringing it up for consideration.

Burl Cain

The Mississippi Department of Corrections commissioner, who told a legislative budget committee and Mississippi Today that the department would review unprosecuted homicides and deaths ruled as undetermined after the news investigation.

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What they’re saying

“I think that's something that we really need to be looking into more. More oversight, more transparency for the public so they can feel more comfortable and know that if something happens, somebody will be on top of it to make sure that we don't have any bad actors.”

— Sen. Juan Barnett, Senate Corrections Committee Chairman

“A lot of times these deaths don't get investigated correctly, they're swept under the rug. We don't know if they were suicide, we don't know if they were drugs. We don't know if they were killed by another inmate. But I'm a big believer (in) if you don't know where you've been, you can't figure out where you need to be.”

— Rep. Becky Currie, House Corrections Committee Chairwoman

What’s next

The bill would have to clear the Senate Corrections Committee, be passed by the full Senate, and be signed by the governor to become law.

The takeaway

This proposed legislation aims to bring more transparency and accountability around unexpected prison deaths in Mississippi, which have often gone uninvestigated according to a recent news investigation. By empowering a legislative task force to review these deaths, the state hopes to better understand the causes and take steps to prevent future tragedies.