Louisiana Voice

Elayne Hung Correctional Center (EHCC) has a history of violence and unexplained deaths but now an irate grandmother who just happens to know more than a little about the Louisiana political structure, has entered into the discussion after her mentally ill grandson was brutally beaten at the facility last June.

Thus far in 2026, there have been 14 reported inmate deaths at EHCC. In 2025, there were 47 with 18 of those classified as unexpected. The year before, 2024, 45 inmates died at the facility.

On June 18, Shane Travis, described by his grandmother, Annette Sharp of Amite as suffering from mental illness, was attacked and beaten. He had been incarcerated at Hunt since November 2025, primarily, according to Sharp, because even as Republicans were attributing mass shootings not to guns but to mental illness, former Gov. Bobby Jindal was closing mental health treatment centers during his term in office.

Sharp described herself as “emotionally distraught” after reviewing an itemized accounting from Healthy Blue Member Verification of Services for her grandson that showed treatments exceeding $16,000 for injuries to his pelvic and chest areas, his eye socket, ear, jaw, head, brain and lumbar, thoracic and cervical spine.

“As a grandparent, if my grandchild is in danger, I would remove them from the situation and keep them in a safe place,” she wrote in a letter to Hunt Warden Travis Day Warden and Secretary of Public Safety and Corrections Gary Westcott. “I am unable to do that now. I no longer can provide or attempt to provide those safeguards. The ‘powers to be’ in the correctional facility ae supposed to do that. When the aggressor is inside the institution that is supposed to take care of my grandchild, I cannot control that.”

She then asked question which were not necessarily rhetorical: “When Shane was severely injured, where were the employees that were supposed to protect him? How long was it before Shane received medical attention? I have no information on the timeline of when Shane was beaten and time he was seen at Our Lady of the Lake (OLOL) Hospital in Baton Rouge.

“Did Elayn Hunt Correctional Center document everything by taking photos, videos of Shane’s injuries, or the scene where the beating took place? Did Elayn Hunt Correctional Center note the date, time, location and any witnesses? Did Elayne Hunt Correctional Center keep a written record of what happened, including any statements from the aggressor or bystanders?

“Did Elayn Hunt Correctional Center notify the person’s next of kin? Does Elayn Hunt Correctional Center even collect that information? Does Elayn Hunt Correctional Center advise family of any follow-up? Does Elayn Hunt Correctional Center even care who the next of kin are to notify when you eventually kill Shane?

“Seeking legal advice is a clear next step. If Shane were 17, we could call child Protective Services. But he made his 25^th birthday two days after his horrific beating,” she wrote.

“What kind of animal could beat a human being this badly and what was the motivating factor? I want to know who the person or persons were who did this to Shane. What repercussions did those animals receive for this horrible abuse to a mentally ill individual?”

Sharp attached a copy of the services provided by OLOL thus far. “Play close attention to services 10-17 that enumerate X-rays and CT scans of his pelvis, chest, face, eye socket, ear, jaw, head and brain, lumbar spine, thoracic spine and cervical spine. Again, what type of animal would beat another human being in this fashion and where the hell were the employees on this unit. I will be sending all medical bills to Elayn Hunt Correctional Center.

“Did Elayn Hunt Correctional Center provide care after the emergency room visit and if so, where? Did you bring him back to the facility where he was beaten to a pulp? Where did nt receive follow-up care and for how long? Did you have him moved to East Feliciana Mental Hospital before he was recovered from this beating. What was the timeline between the beating, medical treatment, recovery and going to East Feliciana Mental Hospital?”

She added that she was “fighting another battle with incompetent mental health facilities on their dereliction of duties and responsibilities in keeping Shand and us safe. Thanks to former Gov. Bobby Jindal, there are NO mental health facilities in this state for our loved ones to exist safely. And those of us who have been trying to take care of our mentally ill relatives receive zero help and lots of roadblocks.”