Jessie Lee Williams Jr.
Jessie Lee Williams died in February 2006 after being held at the Harrison County Adult Detention Center in Gulfport, Mississippi. He was taken into the booking room, and after an ambulance took him to the hospital, he died once life support was removed. Video shown at the federal trial of two jailers shows him being punched, hogtied, pepper sprayed and restrained in a chair. His family filed a civil lawsuit alleging negligence and wrongdoing, and in July 2007 Harrison County and the City of Gulfport reached settlements, with the county making no admission of liability. His brother, Terry Williams, watched the video at the trial with a pained expression while his wife, Annette, comforted him.
Cause of death, as reported: Killed by staff (disputed). Federal prosecutors showed video at the trial of two jailers that shows him being punched, hogtied, pepper sprayed and restrained in a chair, and his family's civil lawsuit alleges negligence and wrongdoing by the county and city.
Reported by: federal prosecutors; his family's civil lawsuit (family or their lawyers); news reporting of the federal trial.
Lawsuit: His family filed a civil lawsuit over his death in the Harrison County jail, and in July 2007 Harrison County and the City of Gulfport reached settlements without any admission of liability by the county, with no amounts reported.