News

Deterrence: Not What You Think

Once a person has committed a crime and is in the prison system, what works and what doesn't to deter ongoing criminality?

Citizen Policewoman

I'm going to be completely honest: I'd never held a gun before. I always thought guns were for thugs and hunters. I simply didn't need one. So it may surprise you that on Saturday, Oct. 8, I spent the better part of the day at the Jackson Police Department rifle range working on my target practice.

The Poverty-Crime Connection

If you struggle to pay your bills and don't know where your next meal is coming from, studies show you are more likely to be incarcerated. Once you fall into that cycle, it's difficult to break out. When people get out of jail, they usually have no money or a stable home to return to. http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/v3/images/uploads/poverty_house_Oskari-Keetun.jpg

‘Eyes on the Street': A Case Study

'The revival of Jackson is not going to be made on single-family housing.'

The Dropout-Crime Connection

What if there was a way to stop people from committing crimes before they started? Fight Crime: Invest in Kids is a nonprofit organization that advocates for quality education and after-school programs as the best way to prevent crime and violence.

Bryant, DuPree Play Nice

The two candidates for governor in Mississippi talked up bipartisan cooperation and downplayed their differences at a debate Oct. 14.

How to Be Safe

When I lived in the Washington, D.C., area, I knew a woman who was repeatedly on the receiving end of crime. She was mugged in the subway, had her purse snatched at a bar, was attacked and raped walking home. I didn't know her well; however, it was hard not to feel badly for her.

Many Ways to Prevent Crime

The best way to stop crime is to put children on a good path early, help strengthen their families and intervene as needed. These groups do just that in many ways.

The JFP's Crime-Fighting Manifesto

"When bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall, one by one, an unpitied sacrifice in a contemptible struggle." - Edmund Burke.

Protesters Occupy Smith Park

A demonstration that began Saturday at Smith Park continued through the weekend, and supporters of Occupy Mississippi say they do not plan to leave any time soon.

Stevenson: Raising the Bar

The qualifications to run for justice court judge are pretty simple: a high-school diploma and $10 to pay the county circuit clerk to file your paperwork. You also must be a resident of the county you wish to run in for two years before the election and take a training course within six months of beginning your term in office. Perhaps this is why the race has been somewhat an unknown quantity this election season.

Jason Meeks

For a locksmith like Jason Meeks, security is everything. His work's purpose is to keep people, their belongings and their  property safe.

Farish Street Presentation Today

Watkins Development will update city of Jackson officials this morning on the progress of the Farish Street Entertainment district.

Study: Mississippians Lack Economic Security

Read the study here.

Eclectic Food; Restaurant Charity

A restaurant that closed downtown almost 20 years ago has now reopened on Woodrow Wilson Avenue, where it offers an eclectic mix of food.

Randy Bell

"It's where people come to help," a calm radio voice explains. "It's an assortment of tents and trailers in a parking lot right in the middle of some of the worst destruction from last week's monster tornado in Yazoo City."

State Receives Last Payment in Microsoft Settlement

Microsoft Corp. has paid the state its final payment of $5 million in a anti-trust settlement the company and state reached in 2009, Attorney General Jim Hood announced yesterday.

Candidates Put Politeness Above Policy

Mississippi's two candidates for governor stayed polite and avoided any appearance of negative attacks at a debate Friday night. Lt. Gov. Phil Bryant and Hattiesburg Mayor Johnny DuPree invoked friendship, bipartisanship and a new way of politicking in Mississippi. Perhaps that explains why they did not emphasize many major differences between them, even on contentious issues such as ballot initiatives and how to reduce the number of teen pregnancies in the state.

Baptist Expansion to Include Skybridge

Baptist Health Systems' plan for expansion includes a pedestrian bridge at the intersection of North State Street and Poplar Boulevard.

Nina Parikh

Nina Parikh will enjoy dinner and a movie tonight to view an international film with a universal message outside at the Art Garden at the Mississippi Museum of Art.

Community Events and Public Meetings

• L.E.A.D. Conference Oct 17-20. Four one-day conferences teach youth the importance of preventing tobacco use in their communities. Shaun Derik is the keynote speaker. Sessions are from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Venues include Lake Terrace Convention Center (1 Convention Center Plaza, Hattiesburg) Oct. 17, Washington County Convention Center (1040 S. Raceway Road, Greenville) Oct. 18, Oxford Conference Center (102 Ed Perry Blvd., Oxford) Oct. 19 and the Mississippi Trade Mart (1200 Mississippi St.) Oct. 20. Free; call 601-420-2414.

Jackson Named A Top Community for Youth

Jackson's focus on youth has earned the city a spot in America's Promise Alliance's "100 Best Communities for Young People" competition.

Jackson Mourns Chef's Death

Craig Noone's ability to treat customers like family, foster downtown revitalization and inspire Jackson's palate will likely be a few of the qualities Jacksonians will remember about the 32-year-old restaurant owner who died early this morning in a car accident.

Occupy Mississippi Demonstration Tomorrow

More than 20 people gathered in Jackson's Smith Park yesterday to plan and discuss getting people involved in the local Occupy Mississippi movement.

Donovan Childress

By the time he reached 30 this year, Donovan Childress says he had never spent a day in the hospital. In fact, he can't remember any serious illnesses at all. He was the one who would stay healthy at work, even as one-by-one, his coworkers succumbed to whatever kind of yuck that was going around.

Parlor Market Owner Dies

Parlor Market owner Craig Noone was killed early this morning in a car accident.

Noone, who opened Parlor Market on Capitol Street a little over a year ago, was driving his Chevy Tahoe when he collided with a Ford Taurus at the intersection of West and Capitol streets at 1 a.m.,

Hotel Study Not Public, Yet

The public can't see a recently commissioned study on the proposed convention center hotel yet because the figures need revisions, the Jackson Redevelopment Authority Board Project Committee determined yesterday.

Racing to Fund Pre-K

Mississippi is one of only 10 states without public, statewide early childhood education, leaving a hodgepodge of agencies and organizations to help children prepare for kindergarten. Now, the state is applying for $50 million in federal grant money to help the state better coordinate those organizations' efforts.

Sonia Fogal

Sonia Fogal, a self-professed adrenaline junkie and accomplished wheelchair fencer, is working hard to encourage health and physical fitness in the disability community.

JPD Receives $3M Grant

The Jackson Police Department received a $3-million grant Tuesday from the U.S. Department of Justice.

Ellington