Hood stated that the contractors involved used consultants to secure contracts with Chris Epps (ex-Department of Corrections commissioner), Hood claimed. Hood said Thursday that the settlements should discourage companies from doing business with the state. Hood stated that these companies had to pay a lot and they did so for a good reason. Settlements included major corrections contractors such as Management and Training Corp. and GEO Group. One company, Correctional Health Care Provider Health Assurance, LLC, went bankrupt during the proceedings. Epps’ resignation was followed by civil suits filed in February 2017. After pleading guilty, Epps is currently serving almost 20 years in federal prison. Federal authorities claimed that Epps received $1.4 million in kickbacks or bribes to secure contracts worth over $800 millions for the state’s prison systems. $10.6 million of the $26.6million will be used to fund the state’s general funds, while $9 million will be returned to the Department of Corrections. The $6.7 million in attorney fees related to the cases is nearly $7 million. Many of the contractors sued by Hood’s office still have contracts with the Department of Corrections. These include Global Tel*Link Corp. which offers phone services to prisoners; Management and Training Corp. which runs East Mississippi Correctional Facility in Meridian; and Sentinel Offender Services which provides electronic monitoring for offenders. Hood encouraged private companies to report any illegal behavior while they were securing government contracts.