The Natchez community was gripped in fear in January while three teenage inmates from a Hinds County juvenile lockup eluded capture in Adams County.
The three teens – who also had escaped together in 2023 – have lengthy rap sheets, including aggravated assault, murder, felony armed robbery and auto theft charges. And during a massive four-day manhunt, not only were residents scared – they were angry. Anyone who scrolled social media or chatted with a co-worker heard the same questions and concerns about a lax judicial system that allows individuals charged with felonies – even charged with murder – to go free on bond for years?
At the heart of the issue is the case of 17-year-old Tayshon Holmes of Natchez.
At the age of 15, Holmes was arrested and charged as an adult in the murder of Bill Calvin Jr. of Natchez. Bond was set originally at $500,000, but it was reduced in January 2022 by then-Circuit Court Judge Lillie Blackmon Sanders to $100,000. Holmes was able to make bond and was free until he was arrested in September 2022 and charged with shooting his stepfather. That charge landed Holmes in the Hinds County facility from which he escaped – twice.