58 - Mississippi, Pelicia Hall
I was so impressed by a presentation of Pelicia Hall at a conference I attended in October 2019. She spoke honestly of her position as Commissioner of the Department of Corrections for the State of Mississippi, and learning about her role and experiences on the professional side of corrections beyond the built environment.
Mississippi was the final of the 48 states to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment because in 1920 there were only 48 states. They adopted the Nineteenth Amendment into their constitution on March 22, 1984.
Pelicia Hall was the first woman Commissioner of the Department of Corrections for the State of Mississippi from 2017-2019. Appointed by the Governor following Marshall Fisher whom she was chief of staff to before he was promoted to commissioner of Public Safety.
Ms. Hall was a lawyer with Page< Kruger & Holland of Jackson, MS, leading cases on personal injury claims, employment discrimination, contract disputes, product liability, general tort litigation and more. Before Mr. Fisher was brought to the DOC, the former commissioner Chris Epps was charged in 2014 with criminal conspiracy taking bribes and kickbacks, for which he is now sentenced to almost 20 years in Federal Prison.
This scandal left an onslaught of corruption in its wake and required significant repair. Mississippi’s prison system is known for the failing infrastructure, gang violence, and inmate deaths. During her two years as commissioner, she was the source of a picketing campaign spurred by a spike of inmate deaths. The protesters rallied at the governor’s mansion for prison reform to bring medical care and security to the inmates.
Ms. Hall left the DOC in January 2020 to join the private sector to advocate for criminal justice reform and support for better wages for DOC employees.
Why this woman?
In 2018, I joined the Association of Women Executives in Corrections. At their 2019 annual conference, Pelicia was a guest keynote speaker to present as a commissioner in the DOC to our nation’s wardens, superintendent, and leaders.
This was my first time at this conference, but I was immediately drawn in to multiple things. First, the number of women in these high positions from all over the country. They had all experienced a different career path than me, yet we all had a common goal of making the work conditions, both operational and physical, better. There were only two other private architects there. These were all the women on the front line. Secondly, the diversity was refreshing. I admit I live in my Seattle culture for so long. My opportunities in St. Louis and New York were framed by my innocence and hesitancy to reach outside my comfort zone. I’m the first to admit that my many diverse friends catered to my lifestyle and culture, not the other way around. The third big take away was all the women’s candor and honesty.
Pelicia spoke of the hardship of walking through a picket line with people chanting for her head. She felt the turmoil and personal attack of the words insinuating that she was uncaring of the deaths under her watch. She didn’t talk to inspire through her successes. She spoke to bring women through their hardships with words from her experiences. She shared so they would know it is OK to talk about your hard days. She knew the women in front of her haven’t, nor likely would, experience what she has. But she knew speaking of it brought solace. She was there for them. And me too.
Mississippi was the final of the 48 states to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment because in 1920 there were only 48 states. They adopted the Nineteenth Amendment into their constitution on March 22, 1984.
Pelicia Hall was the first woman Commissioner of the Department of Corrections for the State of Mississippi from 2017-2019. Appointed by the Governor following Marshall Fisher whom she was chief of staff to before he was promoted to commissioner of Public Safety.
Ms. Hall was a lawyer with Page< Kruger & Holland of Jackson, MS, leading cases on personal injury claims, employment discrimination, contract disputes, product liability, general tort litigation and more. Before Mr. Fisher was brought to the DOC, the former commissioner Chris Epps was charged in 2014 with criminal conspiracy taking bribes and kickbacks, for which he is now sentenced to almost 20 years in Federal Prison.
This scandal left an onslaught of corruption in its wake and required significant repair. Mississippi’s prison system is known for the failing infrastructure, gang violence, and inmate deaths. During her two years as commissioner, she was the source of a picketing campaign spurred by a spike of inmate deaths. The protesters rallied at the governor’s mansion for prison reform to bring medical care and security to the inmates.
Ms. Hall left the DOC in January 2020 to join the private sector to advocate for criminal justice reform and support for better wages for DOC employees.
Why this woman?
In 2018, I joined the Association of Women Executives in Corrections. At their 2019 annual conference, Pelicia was a guest keynote speaker to present as a commissioner in the DOC to our nation’s wardens, superintendent, and leaders.
This was my first time at this conference, but I was immediately drawn in to multiple things. First, the number of women in these high positions from all over the country. They had all experienced a different career path than me, yet we all had a common goal of making the work conditions, both operational and physical, better. There were only two other private architects there. These were all the women on the front line. Secondly, the diversity was refreshing. I admit I live in my Seattle culture for so long. My opportunities in St. Louis and New York were framed by my innocence and hesitancy to reach outside my comfort zone. I’m the first to admit that my many diverse friends catered to my lifestyle and culture, not the other way around. The third big take away was all the women’s candor and honesty.
Pelicia spoke of the hardship of walking through a picket line with people chanting for her head. She felt the turmoil and personal attack of the words insinuating that she was uncaring of the deaths under her watch. She didn’t talk to inspire through her successes. She spoke to bring women through their hardships with words from her experiences. She shared so they would know it is OK to talk about your hard days. She knew the women in front of her haven’t, nor likely would, experience what she has. But she knew speaking of it brought solace. She was there for them. And me too.
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