U.S. Justice Department Finds Unconstitutional Practices at Parchman Penitentiary After Call Out By JAY-Z, Yo Gotti and Team Roc

Shawn “JAY-Z” Carter, Yo Gotti, and Team ROC, Roc Nation’s social justice division, obtained legal representation for over 200 incarcerated people at the Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman and filed multiple lawsuits, prompting the US Justice Department to investigate the prison facilities’ inhumane conditions.

The US Justice Department released a lengthy report stating that “Mississippi consistently violates the constitutional rights of persons detained at Parchman,” thanks to JAY-Z, Gotti, and Team Roc’s advocacy efforts.

The report includes Parchman failing to provide adequate mental health treatment to people with serious mental health needs. In addition, Parchman does not practice sufficient suicide prevention measures to protect people at risk of self-harm and subjects people to prolonged isolation in solitary confinement in egregious conditions that place their physical and mental health at substantial risk of serious harm. Parchman also fails to protect incarcerated people from the violence of others that are incarcerated.

“On behalf of Team Roc, we are pleased to see the Department of Justice recognize the horrific conditions in Mississippi’s prisons,” said Roc Nation CEO Desiree Perez. “Because of the inhumane conditions, we filed lawsuits in Mississippi to help protect the men living inside the infamous Parchman prison. For years, the incarcerated population has been forced to live inside rat-infested conditions and survive with a water system contaminated with human feces all with non-existent healthcare resources available to them. Over the past three years, the death toll has been utterly devastating and we hope today’s report brings many families and their loved ones one step closer toward getting the justice they deserve. We applaud the Department of Justice for their report.”