The Northwest Correctional Complex is a state prison located in Tiptonville,

Lake County, Tennessee Lake County is a county located in the northwest corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 7,005, making it the fifth-least populous county in Tennessee. Its county seat is Tiptonville. It shares a borde ...

. It is owned and operated by the

Tennessee Department of Correction The Tennessee Department of Correction (TDOC) is a Cabinet-level agency within the Tennessee state government responsible for the oversight of more than 20,000 convicted offenders in Tennessee's fourteen prisons, four of which are privately man ...

. The facility can hold 2,391 inmates at a range of security levels. It has the second largest capacity of any state prison in Tennessee after the

Trousdale Turner Correctional Center The Trousdale Turner Correctional Center is a private prison for men, located in Hartsville, Tennessee, Hartsville, Trousdale County, Tennessee, owned and operated by CoreCivic (formerly Corrections Corporation of America) under contract with th ...

. As of May 31, 2020, there were 1,958 in the facility. It is the primary educational prison in the state system. In addition, inmates provide more than 100,000 hours of community service to state and local governments, and non-profit agencies annually. In July 2015, eight NCC inmates sustained knife wounds in gang-related stabbings. The prison, as well as the state's Northeast Correctional Complex, was put on lockdown. The disturbances were attributed by ''

The Tennessean ''The Tennessean'' (known until 1972 as ''The Nashville Tennessean'') is a daily newspaper in Nashville, Tennessee. Its circulation area covers 39 counties in Middle Tennessee and eight counties in southern Kentucky. It is owned by Gannett, w ...

'' to understaffing and a "severe manpower shortage" following Tennessee's decision to reconfigure correctional officers' schedules to save money on overtime. In May 2020, it was reported that 394 cases of

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

had been linked to the NCC. Specifically, 381 inmates and 13 staff at the prison had tested positive for the disease as of May 15. As of June 3, 2020 a total of 612 inmates and 28 staff members have tested positive; 382 of those inmates have recovered and 10 staff members have returned to work.

History

The Lake County Regional Correctional Facility (now called Site 2 within the complex) opened in Tiptonville in 1981, with a capacity of 500 inmates. The Northwest Corrections Center opened on the site in 1992 and is called Site 1.

Notable inmates

References

{{State prisons in Tennessee Prisons in Tennessee Buildings and structures in Lake County, Tennessee 1981 establishments in Tennessee