federal authorities with the agreement they would prosecute since they could pull far more potential jurors. Getting enough people to serve as jurors has long been a problem in Noxubee County, which has a population of less than 10,000, much less finding impartial jurors, he said.
On July 13, 2020, an FBI agent interviewed Grassaree, who denied that he received nude photos and videos from Reed in jail.
Two years later, reporters from the Mississippi Center for Investigative Reporting at Mississippi Today and The New York Times began asking Colom about the case.
Colom responded that he was waiting for federal authorities to prosecute as they agreed. Afterward, he contacted federal authorities again and told them reporters had reached out to him, asking questions.
In October 2022, a federal grand jury finally indicted Grassaree and Phillips.
Colom said federal authorities “never gave me a good reason for why they took so long.”
He said even more troubling in his investigation was the discovery of “illegal activities” by the sheriff’s office “that were unrelated to sex.” There have been no indictments in that case.
Noxubee County residents already have a lot of skepticism toward law enforcement, he said, “so when you actually do have corruption, it has to be aggressively handled. We can’t have police forces where the people we are trusting to protect and serve are only concerned about themselves and their own illegal agendas.”
He still hopes federal authorities will prosecute, he said. “It would send a strong message to the citizens in Noxubee County that you care about them.”
Asked if his office could bring state charges now, he said that was impossible because “the statute of limitations has run.”
Federal authorities have a five-year statute of limitations, but the statute of limitations in Mississippi is only two years.
Colom said he didn’t move sooner because federal officials “had agreed to prosecute the charges and kept telling me they were going to do something.”
A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s office in Jackson responded Thursday, “The Department of Justice follows the facts, law, and principles of federal prosecution when determining how to proceed in an investigation and what charges, if any, can be filed. Federal agents and prosecutors will continue working hard every day to hold public officials in Mississippi, like Sheriff Grassaree, accountable for corrupt use of their office and efforts to mislead investigators.”
Former U.S. Attorney Michael Hurst, who served from 2017 to 2021, said prosecuting public corruption was one of his top priorities, especially when it involved law enforcement who “violated their oath and victimized our citizens.”
He said if the U.S. attorney’s office had sufficient evidence beyond a reasonable doubt to prosecute, “we prosecuted them, no matter who they were, period. In many instances, federal prosecutors are the last line of defense in our society of ensuring that our citizens are protected, their rights are upheld, and that criminals — especially corrupt public officials — are held accountable.”
