A Mississippi attorney is in hot water after attempting to smuggle a shocking amount of drugs, electronics and other forbidden items in a silver brief case during a visitation session to detainees Antonio Harness Jr and Marcell Cornelius Martin, identified by affidavits. Both detainees are being held on unrelated murder charges.
Law enforcement caught him handing a cell phone and a brown envelope to Martin and Harness, whom he claimed were clients — though his relationship with the murder suspects remains unclear, as different outlets have stated he falsely presented himself as legal counsel.
The Daily Caller reports:
Dale was allegedly posing as legal counsel for a number of Hinds County detainees when police allegedly caught him with the contraband, which included cell phones, cigarettes, chargers, blunt wraps and what appears to be cannabis, according to Hinds County Sheriff Tyree Jones. Prosecutors charged Dale with two counts of conspiracy and three counts of introduction of contraband to a correctional facility.
Dale apparently appeared to be soaking wet in a gray suit and loosened tie after police arrested and took a picture of him. It is unclear how Dale allegedly stashed the contraband on his person when entering the jail considering the sheer volume of products police said they found him with.
Besides his suit presumably covered in sweat in his initial mugshot, the 49 year old attorney had a crazed look, with his eyes bulging, raising more questions about his own mental state.
Authorities say they discovered Dale with the contraband during a visitation Thursday afternoon. He was promptly detained and questioned before being charged with two counts of conspiracy and three counts of introduction of contraband to a correctional facility.
Hinds County Judge Johnnie McDaniel set his bond at $75,000 on Friday. Additional charges and arrests could come in the future in connection to the case.
His motivations or any payment arrangements between himself and the inmates have yet to be revealed.
Earlier this year, Senators Ossoff and Grassley introduced the bipartisan The Lieutenant Osvaldo Albarati Stopping Prison Contraband Act with the stated objective of cracking down on contraband cell phones in federal prisons. The legislation was named in honor of Lieutenant Osvaldo Albarati, a correctional officer who murdered by five inmates who admitted they targeted Albarati after continuous contraband seizures including cellphones. The inmate who led the hit on the officer ironically used contraband cellphone to organize it.
Ossoff's official Senate website revealed:
A recent DOJ Inspector General report identified contraband, like cell phones, as a critical threat to safety and security not only to prison staff and inmates, but also to the entire community. The report found that nationwide, contraband contributed to at least 1/3 of deaths in Federal prisons and also found that USP Atlanta had the most deaths of any Federal prison nationwide between 2014-2021.
In addition to hits on prison guards, contraband cell phones have been tied to drug trafficking and prison riots. Different states are in the process of introducing technology that allows carriers to identify and remotely shut off cell phones being illegally used in prisons.
A Democrat no doubt!