News

Murrah High Makes Top High Schools List

[verbatim] Newsweek magazine has named Murrah High School to its 2009 America's Top Public High Schools list. The schools are ranked on the number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and/or Cambridge tests taken by all students in a school in 2008 divided by the number of graduating seniors.

Tonight: It's a Movie and a Benefit

Be honest. It's too hot to do much of anything but stay inside and watch a movie, right? Here's a perfect way for you to combine your love of the silver screen with your desire to do good. Tonight only, cruise up to Malco Grandview Theater to see the latest Will Ferrell movie, "Land of the Lost," starting at 7 p.m. For $10 each, you get the movie, a soft drink and popcorn, and all proceeds go directly to the Nicole Marquez Medical Fund.

Conflict of Interest: Big Insurance and Big Tobacco

Have you ever wondered why health insurance companies don't cover smoking cessation programs? Such programs seem like a natural fit given the amount of acute and chronic disease that could be avoided when smokers quit.

Free HIV Testing Tomorrow

[verbatim] On Tuesday, June 16th, AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the nation's largest non-profit AIDS organization, will partner with Building Bridges, Inc. to provide free HIV testing at Hinds Comprehensive Health Center, Dr. James Anderson Health Facility – Main Clinic, 3502 West Northside Dr., Jackson, MS 39213 from 2:00 PM to 6:00 PM.

Budget Impasse Will Affect Agencies

State agencies could be shutting down soon if the Mississippi Legislature can't come to an agreement on the state budget. A small contingent of lawmakers made up of three House and three Senate members plus a handful of others including Lt. Gov. Phil Bryant, have been working toward an agreement, but as yet, have produced no results.

Seale Appeals to U.S. Supreme Court

Attorneys for James Ford Seale, convicted in 2007 on federal kidnapping and conspiracy charges related to the 1964 killings of two 19-year-old African Americans, have appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court today.

Supreme Court Disbars Former D.A. Peters

The Mississippi Supreme Court has permanently disbarred former Hinds District Attorney Ed Peters by accepting the law license he turned over to the Mississippi Bar Association in January. Peter's action cames as a result of an ethics complaint against him. Bar General Counsel Adam Kilgore told the Jackson Free Press earlier this year that Peters turning in his license amounts to an admission of guilt.

Hot Stuff This Weekend

The weather isn't the only thing hot this weekend. Here are a few options, courtesy of the JFP Event Calendar, Best Bets and Music Listings.

State Paid 9,300 People in Error

Mississippi's Medicaid program paid Part B Medicare premiums for approximately 9,300 ineligible people, possibly since 2003, according to WAPT. Those payments were made after the state determined the recipients were no longer eligible.

Minority Contractors Win Arbitration Award

[verbatim] An American Arbitration Association panel awarded minority contractor Fish & Fisher $1,283,351 in a dispute with white owned L & T Construction. The dispute arose over work performed by Fish & Fisher at the Blue Springs, MS construction location to build a Toyota Prius Plant. During the arbitration hearing, sworn testimony by Leavy Harris of L & T revealed that L & T Construction never entered into a joint venture with M & H Construction, as had been announced by the Mississippi Development Authority (MDA) and Toyota. This testimony is crucial to the civil action filed by Jackie Williams and Renna Fisher, African American principals of Fish & Fisher, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, Western Division.

Mississippi to Receive $100 Million in Microsoft Settlement

The Mississippi Legislature may have a new tool to work with in straightening out the state's fiscal woes. Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood announced at a June 11 press conference that technology giant Microsoft Corporation has agreed to a $100 million settlement with the state of Mississippi that will be divided among state agencies and residents.

Jackson Uniting to Retire Johnson's Debt

A group of diverse citizens who supported varied candidates in the recent mayoral elections in Jackson are putting aside their differences and joining together to help retire the accumulated campaign debt of Mayor-elect Harvey Johnson Jr. The event will be held at the University Club of Jackson next Monday, June 15, from 5:30 to 7 p.m.

PSC Creates New Hurdles for Coal-Burning Plant

The Mississippi Public Service Commission met last Friday to consider multiple motions submitted by Mississippi Power, the Sierra Club, Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood and others regarding Mississippi Power's proposed coal-burning plant in Kemper County.

UMC Closing School for Autistic Children

The fate of Jackson's autistic children will be in the hands of the public schools this fall, raising concerns for parents, according to a report from WLBT. Last week, parents of autistic children attending the Mississippi Child Development Institute at the Jackson Medical Mall received letters saying the school will close at the end of the summer.

Mississippi Energy Policy Institute Formed

Gov. Haley Barbour has announced the formation of a group dedicated to coming up with energy policy for the state. The group, the Mississippi Energy Policy Institute, will be part of Momentum Mississippi, "a statewide, public, private partnership dedicated to the development of economic and employment opportunities" in the state, according to its Web site.

State Agencies Silenced on Lake Plans?

The Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks remains strangely silent and without comment on two plans to partially inundate a state park stagger drunkenly forward.

The Saga of the No-Budget-Bill

Although he isn't an official party in the Mississippi Legislature's budget negotiations, Gov. Haley Barbour is still wielding his influence. The regular session ended last week with House and Senate leaders still deadlocked on a hospital assessment and Medicaid funding, and some House Democrats blame the governor for ruing a near-agreement.

JPD Wrestles Garage Gator

Officers from the Jackson Police Department and the Mississippi Department of Wildlife captured an alligator in a garage on Ashley Circle in Ward 2 early this morning, police said.

Karmichael Spiller

"Sometimes things (will) be going through my mind in my sleep," 46-year-old Jackson native Karmichael Spiller says. "It's like I'm always awake.

Suspect in Holocaust Museum Shooting is White Supremacist

The Associated Press is reporting that a shooter opened fire in the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C., just before 1 p.m. today, fatally wounding a security guard before he was shot.

Fiat Signs Deal with Chrysler

When the US Supreme Court told plaintiffs yesterday that they did not prove the court needed to intervene, they removed the final obstacle for the company's partial sale to Italian automaker Fiat. This morning, the deal was signed, giving new life to the storied American brand.

Barbour Talks Party Line on Cap & Trade

In a speech yesterday at the Southern Growth Policies Board, Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour repeated the GOP's party line about the Obama administration's proposed cap and trade energy policies, repeatedly labeling the policy a "tax.

Board of Ed Names Interim Replacement for Bounds

The Mississippi Board of Education has named an interim education superintendent to replace Hank Bounds, who is the preferred candidate for the post of higher education commissioner, a position overseeing the Magnolia State's university system.

Signs Point Cautiously to Recession's End

Slowing job losses is one sign of the economy's impending recovery. The bottom is just ahead, according to economists, which means things will start looking up soon.

[Tobin] We Need Fair and Just Immigration Reform

The history of immigrant labor in the U.S. is as old as the country itself. Given political or economical expediency, immigrants were given legal protection and a path to citizenship, or were locked out due to politically dominated regulations. That being said, goods we take for granted, and can purchase fairly cheaply, are often the result of immigrant labor.

Governor Leads Southern Energy Conference

Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour joins Texas oilman T. Boone Pickens today in Biloxi to lead a two day energy summit titled "Southern Energy: Abundant, Affordable and American." according to the Sun Herald. At the same time, the Southern Growth Policies Board, chaired by Barbour, meets regarding energy-related economic development.

Ward 1 Voters Stayed Consistent: No to Johnson

Voting patterns in last Tuesday's general elections tell a story about Jackson: Citizens were tired of voting, and the city's whites and blacks don't necessarily agree on who should be the city's mayor.

Seale Conviction Upheld

See full JFP coverage of the Dee-Moore case.

Working for the Weekend?

It's hard to believe that it's the first weekend in June, isn't it? If you're looking for things to do, places to go and people to see, though, this is the right place. Allow us to suggest a few things, courtesy of the JFP Events Calendar and Best Bets.

Brown: Governor Will Cut School Funding

State Rep. Cecil Brown is warning that Mississippi's children will be the ultimate losers in the current budget battle if the governor gets his way. In an e-mail sent to his constituents and forwarded to the Jackson Free Press, Brown, who is chairman of the House Education Committee, warned that the Mississippi Adequate Education Program, MAEP, is on the governor's hit list of programs to cut.

Ellington