Tammy Ross is serving as the acting commissioner for the Division of Corrections in St. Louis while a national search continues for a permanent replacement.
The last day of former Commissioner Doug Burris' seven months in the interim role was Friday. Burris was first hired by the city as a consultant in December 2024 to assess and recommend fixes to the troubled St. Louis City Justice Center, where 20 people have died in custody since 2020 — two under Burris’ leadership.
During his time running the jail, he’s hired around 25 people and leaves a staff of nearly 100 correctional officers. He said he’d like at least 30 more people to have an adequate number of staff.
“There are several accomplishments that took much longer to take place than I thought they would, and the most important one is getting additional staff,” Burris said. “We’re in the process of contracting. I think we'll get final approval (around Aug. 20) for a corrections recruiting company that will allow us to hopefully do a mass hiring.”
Ross — previously the deputy commissioner of the Corrections Division — steps back into the top role amid controversy surrounding her own status at the jail after being accused of breaking state and federal laws by housing juveniles next to adults at one point last year and leaving deceased detainee Antonio Weber in the jail for hours in November 2024.
Burris stopped short of discussing the matter during an interview with St. Louis Public Radio.
“I can't go into detail because it was a personnel issue, but I can say that I know that I think that some of the allegations that have been reported have been greatly exaggerated, and I know a full review has been done on those issues.”
When asked if he feared Ross’ disciplinary record could impact federal funding for the jail, Burris said he’s not concerned.
“I have no fear about that at all, because, as I said, her situation was fully investigated, and she is in good standing … doing an outstanding job.”
Mayor Cara Spencer said late last week a handful of interviews had been conducted with people eager to fill the position, which pays up to $163,332 annually.
Burris is credited with bringing Prison to Prosperity through the St. Louis Agency on Training and Employment back to the jail, as well as a food certification program called ServSafe. He also started a veterans program through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and increased the number of books available for detainees and jail visitors.
“We've got to have a commissioner that is committed to getting our facility fully staffed, working with our personnel department to do that, and really making sure that those processes and procedures that integrate our staff with the health provider within the jail facility are seamless and can best serve our community,” Spencer said.
