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Trae Elston

Former University of Mississippi safety Trae Elston will try to make the New Orleans Saints' roster as an undrafted rookie free agent. He might have made a great decision by signing with the Saints, a team that needs all the defensive help it can get after having one of the worst defenses in the league last season.

Bar Files Complaint Against DA, Includes Letter About His Mother

The air of secrecy continues around the case against Hinds County District Attorney Robert Shuler Smith Wednesday, as Hinds County Judge Larita Cooper-Stokes recused herself during a closed meeting with attorneys, and the Mississippi Bar Association filed a complaint, including judicial complaints about "odd and improper" attempts by Smith and his mother to communicate with Judge Tomie Green.

What the ‘Bryant Documents’ Say About HB 1523, Its Future

Despite U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves' 60-page preliminary injunction blocking House Bill 1523 from becoming law, the legal battles could just be heating up.

Chronically Absent: Is Quality Education in Juvenile Detention Possible in Mississippi?

Rankin County Youth Court Judge Thomas Broome told the Jackson Free Press with some pain that before 2006, juvenile-detention centers in the state didn't have to have school. With few organized efforts to educate detained children, they missed days or weeks of school at a time.

Edrick G. Franklin

Edrick G. Franklin was recently promoted from the eighth grade at Northwest Middle School, where he was an International Baccalaureate student. There, he also played French horn and alto saxophone.

Fighting the Lethal Injection

Immediately before a July 2015 hearing on the prisoners' challenge to Mississippi's use of pentobarbital, the Mississippi Department of Corrections changed its policy to include more drugs on its list of possible drug "#1s" (the sedatives) in its three-drug injection.

Uber, ADA Accessibility and Jackson

In the wake of state legislation cementing transportation network companies like Uber into the market, the Jackson City Council is in the middle of an overhaul of the ordinances governing taxicabs, while members of the disabled community are expressing trepidation that they will be left out in the rain.

HB 1523 in the 5th Circuit's Hands

Gov. Phil Bryant and John Davis, the executive director of the Mississippi Department of Human Services, have asked the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to stay the lower court's preliminary injunction that blocked House Bill 1523 from becoming law on June 30.

Skybox Daiquiri Bar and Bistro, Cakes by Crystal, My Kid's Cabby and Bumps and Beyond

Raymond T. Kersh, owner of Skybox Daiquiri Bar and Bistro (6392 Ridgewood Court Drive), said he hopes that his restaurant will serve as "a great place to take a break, listen to music, have some great food and a refreshing daiquiri," when it opens in September.

MAC Construction Wants Siemens Lawsuit to Stay in Hinds County

MAC and Associates, LLC., wants a Jackson jury to decide whether Siemens Industry Inc. violated the terms of the contract to install new digital water meters as a part of the $90-million contract with the City of Jackson.

'Young, Fun, Sexy and Hot': Education Leader Wants Passion in Teaching

Ron Clark, founder of the Ron Clark Academy, a private, nonprofit school in Atlanta, says he wants education to be "young, fun, sexy and hot."

Justice Ann H. Lamar

Mississippi Supreme Court Justice Ann H. Lamar of Senatobia received the Chief Justice Award on July 16 during the Mississippi Bar Convention in Destin, Fla.

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.

Expert on Death of 17-Year-Old: 'Castle Doctrine' Needs Danger Threat

Yesterday, outside a business near the Henley-Young Juvenile Justice Center, a white employee shot a young black man who was allegedly breaking into a vehicle in the parking lot.

Frustration Continues over City Furloughs

Standing in the sweltering July heat, city workers, union organizers and their interns gathered this morning on the steps of Jackson City Hall to speak out once again about the city-mandated furlough Fridays that have been in effect since last October.

Crystal James

Jackson native Crystal James is the winner of the 2016 Miss Black Mississippi Scholarship Pageant. James, 22, was crowned Miss Black Mississippi in Tupelo on September 2015.

White Male Shoots Black Minor for Breaking into Car Near Juvenile Detention Center

A white employee of Performance Oil Equipment shot and killed a black minor during an attempted car theft around noon Thursday, police say.

UPDATED: ADF to Defend Bryant in HB 1523 Appeal, Emails Reveal Outside Groups' Influence

In a court filing Wednesday, Roberta Kaplan, one of the lawyers representing plaintiffs in the case that made the "Freedom of Conscience from Government Discrimination Act" unconstitutional, revealed numerous emails that show the Alliance Defending Freedom's influence on House Bill 1523.

Attorney: Reddix Alleged Bribery a 'Shakedown'

On July 19, Dr. Carl Reddix pleaded not guilty to seven counts of bribery, appearing in front of U.S. Magistrate Judge Keith Ball for the first time in the latest chapter of the bribery scandal that continues to unfold around former Mississippi Department of Corrections Commissioner Christopher Epps.

'Demon Chipmunk' Case Goes Before Mississippi High Court

The Mississippi Supreme Court heard arguments Tuesday on a petition Rep. Jay Hughes, D-Oxford, filed during the 2016 legislative session, alleging that speed-reading bills in the House of Representatives violates the state's constitutional provision that allows bills to be read.

Jackson Doctor Indicted in Epps-Related Bribery Case

Dr. Carl Reddix, 57, of Jackson, was charged today with paying bribes and kickbacks to former Mississippi Department of Corrections (MDOC) Commissioner Christopher B. Epps in exchange for receiving contracts involving the MDOC and its operations, announced Acting United States Attorney Harold Brittain and FBI Special Agent in Charge (SAC) Donald Alway.

Erin Shirley Orey

Erin Shirley Orey serves others not for monetary gain or personal accolades, but because she recognizes a need.

City May Lease More Buses

The Jackson City Council deliberated handing the mayor the authority to terminate the contract with the company that maintains the JATRAN fleet during its last regular meeting on July 12, while moving toward leasing more buses in August.

City Prodding State on ‘Bandos’

The City of Jackson took steps last week to prod Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann's office to include some of the more than 3,000 properties under its control to the list of qualified lots under the Neighbor's First program, the City-run effort to sell surplus property to qualified residents for as low as $10.

Ellington