Murder suspect, 18, is STOMPED to death while being held at Mississippi jail

Published: 21:26, 13 July 2026 | Updated: 21:28, 13 July 2026 A murder suspect was found dead in a Mississippi jail after a disturbing video captured his motionless body being stomped on by an inmate. Mielun Butler, 18, was arrested on July 1 by US Marshals and Jackson police in connection with the killing of 32-year-old Melvin Edwards.  Edwards was fatally shot by two suspects at his Pine Ridge Garden apartment complex in early June. Days after he was arrested, Butler was found unresponsive in his cell at the Raymond Detention Center and transported to Merit Health Hospital where he was pronounced dead. Murder suspect Mielun Butler, 18, was found stomped to death in a Mississippi jail, with a harrowing video capturing him limp and bloodied on the floor Hinds County Sheriff Tyree Jones said Butler died following an assault inside the facility, after a disturbing video emerged on social media showing a fellow inmate kicking his body as he lay on the floor. In the recording, the unidentified male filming can be heard saying 'say long live Melvin,' as he repeatedly stomped on Butler. Jones said that while a motive is not entirely clear, Butler's death reflects a recent uptick in violence in the local community.  'It can be attributed what we believe to be gang activity, conflict resolution, and other factors that we believe play a part in some way of what we have been experiencing here recently,' the sheriff said.  An autopsy confirmed Butler died from blunt force trauma to the head as shoe mark injuries were found on his body, indicating he was stomped repeatedly.  Butler's bond had been set at $1 million during his court appearance just one day prior to his death and was described by judge Jeffrey Reynolds as an extreme danger and flight risk.  Sheriff Jones also said that an unidentified officer was put on paid administrative leave as the incident remains under internal investigation by the Mississippi Bureau for Investigation. The Raymond Detention Center has been under federal receivership for the past several months regarding issues with the center's increasing numbers of pretrial detainees and violent incidents. The Raymond Detention Center has been under federal receivership for the past several months regarding issues with the center's increasing numbers of pretrial detainees and violent incidents The receivership was ordered by a federal judge in July 2022 over the center's conditions that led to seven deaths the year before. It went into effect over three years later.  The center has been involved in multiple hearings and lawsuits regarding patterns or practices of unconstitutional conditions, as well as its failure of taking measures to ensure inmate safety. Chancellor J. Dewayne Thomas reportedly issued a court order for the Hinds County Sheriff's Office (HCSO) to release records tied to inmate deaths at the detention center.  The Southern Poverty Law Center also filed a complaint against the sheriff's office after repeated attempts to obtain inmate death records at the Raymond Detention Center went unanswered.  Andrea Alajbegovic, senior staff attorney for the SPLC said that 'for more than a year, the Hinds County Sheriff's Office has failed to respond to our repeated requests for a full accounting of who has died in their custody. We welcome the court's ruling and hope HCSO will comply.'  According to Butler's defense attorney, he had recently graduated from high school and held a job at a fast-food restaurant in Flowood.  Butler had no publicly reported criminal history prior to the incident involving Edwards.  The Daily Mail contacted the county's investigations bureau for comment on any new developments but did not receive a response.