Former Shelby County Correctional Officer Sentenced to Federal Prison

MEMPHIS, TN—Johnathan Jackson, age 26, a former corrections officer at the Shelby County Correctional Center, was sentenced to one year and one day in prison for possession of marijuana with the intent to distribute, announced United States Attorney Edward L. Stanton, III. Jackson was charged in a one-count indictment alleging that he possessed with the intent to distribute approximately 159 grams of marijuana.

The investigation utilized an undercover officer who posed as an associate of an inmate who had previously arranged for Jackson to bring marijuana into the Shelby County Correctional Facility. During recorded conversations, Jackson agreed to smuggle marijuana into the correctional facility in exchange for $500.00. Jackson arranged for the undercover officer to meet him at a local gas station. Officers on the scene recovered marked currency from Jackson, a handgun, and two packages containing the 159 grams of marijuana, as well as tobacco and rolling papers wrapped in black tape.

“Every correctional officer has a duty to ensure public safety, but the defendant used and exploited his position of trust for personal and illegal gains,” said United States Attorney Edward L. Stanton, III. “The sentence imposed should send an unequivocal message that individuals who violate the public trust and fail to uphold their oath to protect the community will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

This investigation was conducted by members of the FBI Tarnished Badge Task Force and the Shelby County Narcotics Unit. Assistant United States Attorney Brian Coleman represented the government.