Council President: City Will Not Pay to Defend Mayor Tony Yarber in Lawsuit
The Jackson City Council decided today to hire outside counsel to represent its interests in the sexual and race harassment lawsuits filed last week, citing conflicts of interest within the City’s legal department. The City also will not pay for the mayor's defense.
UPDATED: Council Drills City Staffers Over Lawsuits, Gets Few Responses
The Jackson City Council entered into an executive session during a special meeting this morning to discuss sex and race discrimination lawsuits filed against the mayor and the City of Jackson last week, both of which involve members of the legal department directly, including City Attorney Monica Joiner.
Archie's Fish and Chicken, The Palette Cafe and Char Restaurant
Jackson restaurant Char Restaurant will add a new private dining area by December 2016, combining the current building with the adjacent 3,000-square-foot space that housed Mozingo Clothiers before it moved to Fondren.
Study: Mississippi Women Need More Political Representation
In honor of Women's Equality Day last Friday, WalletHub released its "Best and Worst States for Women's Equality" study, which looked at education, workplace and political environments for women in all 50 states.
DA Smith Says MBN Framed Jackson Man; Agency Says Evidence Not 'Credible'
Hinds County District Attorney Robert Shuler Smith is hanging his defense to state charges and a bar complaint around what he alleges is a set-up of Christopher Butler, the man at the center of five of the six counts that could get the DA booted from office.
Jacquelyn Franklin
Jacquelyn Franklin, a retired professor of social studies, African American studies and urban studies at Jackson State University, died on Aug. 3.
10 Local Stories of the Week
There's never a slow news week in Jackson, Miss., and last week was no exception. Here are the local stories JFP reporters brought you in case you missed them.
JPD Escorts 'Champion,' Crime Up and Down, Depraved Heart' Killer Sentenced
Despite ongoing controversy over his role in Hinds County criminal case, Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood is bragging this week after several local court wins, including sending a Jackson man to prison for "depraved heart murder."
Sheldon Rankins
The New Orleans Saints are trying to fix a defense that was terrible last season. It was one of the worst in the history of the NFL, but this preseason offered a chance to improve the unit.
UPDATED: Attorney Sues City of Jackson for Race Discrimination, 'Malicious' Termination
A former deputy city attorney is suing the City of Jackson for race discrimination, racial harassment, retaliation and violation of her First Amendment and due-process rights in federal court.
UPDATED: Woman Sues Mayor Yarber for Sex Discrimination, Mayor Calls Her 'Disgruntled'
Mayor Tony Yarber's former executive assistant today filed a complaint in federal court accusing him of sex discrimination, sexual harassment and a hostile workplace within City Hall, and of having sexual different work-related sexual liaisons going at the same time.
In Jackson, Trump Talks Bigotry, 'Brexit' and Fixing America's 'Inner-Cities'
The Republican presidential nominee, Donald J. Trump, visited the capital of the Magnolia State on Wednesday night—first for a private fundraiser at the convention center, then for a rally at the Mississippi Coliseum where he talked mostly about race and immigration—and got one fact about African American teenagers dramatically wrong.
Opponents of Charter Schools Ready for Quick Judgment in Lawsuit
In a small room in the Jackson office of the Southern Poverty Law Center, challengers to the state's funding portion of the charter-school law spoke out about the negative impact they believe the schools have on their children's lives.
Clarence Weatherspoon
One of the greatest men's basketball players in the history of the University of Southern Mississippi is coming home. Former USM star forward Clarence Weatherspoon is joining the staff as an assistant coach under head coach Doc Sadler.
Char Restaurant Adds Large Private Dining Area for Meetings and Special Events
Char restaurant will expand into an adjacent Highland Village storefront this winter to add private dining space.
DOJ Charges Mississippi Businessman with Bribery in Epps Case
Guy E. “Butch” Evans, 61, of Jackson, has been charged with paying bribes and kickbacks to former Mississippi Department of Corrections Commissioner (MDOC) Christopher B. Epps in exchange for exclusive access to sell insurance products to MDOC employees, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Harold Brittain, and FBI Special Agent in Charge (SAC) Donald Alway.
Coming into Its Own: ‘Obamacare’ Gets a Shakedown
Mississippians using the federal health marketplace, also known as "Obamacare, "will have fewer options than last year—largely due to United Healthcare's exit from the state's system, which takes effect Jan. 1, 2017.
Revamping the VA: A Slow Process
Darryl Brady, Jackson's regional benefit office director for the Veterans Administration, said his office is doing everything they can to reach out to military vets in all 82 counties in Mississippi.
City Needs Siemens Until Problems Resolved
As the City of Jackson continues to mull over the next year's budget and its myriad cuts, the talk from recent city-council meetings about possible legal action against Siemens for the $90-million contract has morphed into discussions on how to address the billing problems facing citizens.
Jina Daniels
Jina Daniels' paintings surround her on every wall as she sits in her kitchen, which doubles as an art studio.
Teach For America and the Retention Problem
Schools across Mississippi struggle to keep teachers, which educators and experts say is due in part to low salaries and an overall inability to keep Mississippi's most promising young adults in the state.
Mayor Presents Proposed 2017 Budget, Cuts Revealed
Last week, Mayor Tony Yarber presented his proposed 403-page budget to the Jackson City Council for review, which the members did through a four-day gauntlet of meetings with the various departments.
Zoo Backs Out of National Accreditation to Focus on Raising Funds
The Jackson City Zoo has dropped its affiliation with a national accreditation agency in the wake of news last week that its yearly contribution from the City of Jackson is expected to drop by $250,000 for fiscal-year 2017.
District 72 Special Election Today: Meet Candidates, Vote Until 7 p.m.
Residents in Hinds and Madison counties that live in District 72 have the opportunity to elect a new representative to the Mississippi House of Representatives today.
Saltine in Southern Living and Playtime Entertainment
Birmingham, Ala.-based magazine Southern Living recently named Jackson chef Jesse Houston's Saltine Oyster Bar in its 2016 list of the 25 best new restaurants in the South.
JPS Improves, Stays Stable in Language Arts, Math; Average ACT 15.6
Jackson Public Schools remained stable or saw improvement across the third- through eighth-grade English language arts and math assessments in 2015-2016 Mississippi Assessment Program, or MAP, results that the Mississippi Department of Education released Aug. 16.
Southern Airways Comes to Jackson, Stallworth Pushed Out of Lawsuit
Gov. Phil Bryant joined local leaders Monday to mark the addition of a new air service to the Jackson-Medgar Wiley Evers International Airport.
10 Local Stories of the Week
There's never a slow news week in Jackson, Miss., and last week was no exception. Here are the local stories JFP reporters brought you in case you missed them.
New Airline Coming to Jackson: Southern Airways Express
The Jackson Municipal Airport Authority (JMAA) and Southern Airways Express invite all members of the media to attend a press conference on Monday, August 22nd, at 8:30 a.m. announcing new non-stop and direct air service to/from Jackson Medgar Wiley Evers International Airport (JAN). Representatives from the Jackson Municipal Airport Authority Board of Commissioners, Southern Airways Express executives, and local dignitaries will be available for interviews immediately following the press conference.
Ole Miss Quietly Mothballs ‘Dixie’
The University of Mississippi shed one more vestige of its Confederate past today, announcing that it is doing away with the song “Dixie” starting with this season’s football festivities. But the public institution, known as Ole Miss, tiptoed the news out the door gingerly.
Blogs
- Boil Water Lifted for Most Jackson ZIPs
- City Responds to Hinds County Emergency Declaration
- ZDD Giveaways and Festival on Mar 25, but No Parade
- Casino-Mogul Trump Going Against the Odds With 'Muslim Ban'
- Millsaps Issues Statement on Trump's Immigration Order
- Court Denies Attempts to Dismiss Election Complaint for "Straw Contest"
- Roll-Off Dumpster Day on February 4
- City: Court Rules Rankin Can Build Own Wastewater Treatment Plant
- LaDarion Ammons Announces Run for Ward 7 Council Seat
- Tornado Warning for Central Hinds, NE Rankin, Madison Counties
Video
- Gov. Reeves Answers Nick Judin's Questions
- Chris McDaniel on Morning Joe
- Word on the street: What would you like to see come to Jackson?
- Trump Rally
- Trump Rally
- More Trump Rally Footage
- Trump Rally
- Kameron Palmer On Saving Our Sons
- Joel D. Swan On Saving Our Sons
- Attorney Martin Perkins Speaks for Inmates