$300,000 machines leading to more arrests and fewer deaths at EHCC, parish jail

ST. GABRIEL — A tighter crackdown on contraband at Elayn Hunt Correctional Center has led to more than 20 employee arrests this year.

Officials say tougher screening and a zero-tolerance policy have also cut the number of suspicious and overdose-type deaths at Hunt.

“Over the past weeks and months, we have seen a big decline in the amount of what we call suspicious deaths or overdose-type deaths,” said Iberville Parish Sheriff Brett Stassi…