Kenny Ross bio

Kenny Ross, 37, was born to Marybeth Ross, who was 17 at the time. The birth certificate lists the father as unknown.

Marybeth stayed with her parents until Kenny turned one. She then rented a trailer and supported herself and her son by working as a waitress at a series of truck stops.

Depending on the management's attitude, Kenny's playpen was either jammed into an underused portion of the kitchen or placed out in the restaurant. As soon as he could walk, he was helping to bus tables.

By 16, Kenny was working whenever he wasn't in school. Marybeth passed the reins of their life to her son and slipped into an alcoholic haze. She was arrested twice for solicitation, but the charges were dropped both times for lack of evidence.

Upon graduation, Kenny received several scholarships and enrolled at the University of Mississippi as a business major. He withdrew after the first semester when his mother's health suddenly declined, and she required more of his attention. Marybeth died a year later.

With the help of several silent partners, Kenny opened a small breakfast place called Ma's. Due to financial mismanagement by his silent but greedy partners, the restaurant failed within six months, and Kenny used what little he'd managed to save to pay creditors.

Reeling from the loss of his mother and his business, Kenny hit the road and disappeared for five years before returning to Oxford on a new Harley Davidson. He never told anybody anything about where he'd been or what he'd been doing. He simply went back to work at the diners, cooking or washing dishes as needed.

Since then, Kenny's landlord has received numerous complaints about guests at odd hours, but otherwise, Kenny was a perfect tenant. Former employers described him as a hard worker who never complained.

When several people arrested for drug possession named Kenny as their supplier, YCSD detectives held off on taking him into custody until they were in a position to leverage the charges against him to identify suppliers higher up the chain. But when Kenny sold cocaine to a judge's daughter, the detectives had to reassess their priorities. Kenny was arrested, convicted, and sentenced to five years, which he is currently serving at the Marshall County Correctional Facility in Holly Springs.

Kenny is a model prisoner who gets along well with the guards, staff, and other inmates. He has assisted police during many investigations, and his information has always proved accurate.

Upon his eventual release, Kenny has said he intends to give the restaurant business another shot. To help him achieve that goal, he's participating in the Culinary Arts program at the prison. This time, he says, he won't make the same mistake of depending on others.