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Week 3: Cigs and Cells
Now that House Speaker Billy McCoy has named committee chairs, the House is going into overdrive regarding bill production.
Battlefield Aching But Optimistic
Crime is still the prevailing concern at neighborhood meetings around the city. With the most recent crime statistics showing increases over last year in both property and violent crime, community members are looking for other ways to deal with the problem beyond calling the police.
Funny Math At The Fair
The Neshoba County Fair was calm this year. There are no candidates fighting for state-wide races, leaving many politicians free to make jabs at national candidates like presumptive Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama.
Espy and Thompson Lock Antlers
The Mississippi Democratic Club hosted a debate between second congressional district contenders Bennie Thompson and Chuck Espy on May 28. Candidate Dorothy Benford did not attend the debate.
Barbour Flips on $20 Billion
Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour shifted his support for a $20 billion escrow fund that BP agreed to set up to compensate Gulf State victims filing claims for losses due to the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
New Charter School Law Brings New Costs
Former Jackson Public Schools Superintendent Earl Watkins said a new charter school law that both the House and Senate approved last month will carry additional costs to the local public-school districts, which already have strapped budgets.
Crime Plan Short on Specifics
Police Chief Shirlene Anderson gave the first few hints of a crime plan to the public this Monday following a City Council budget meeting. Anderson had stalled for months in response to calls by council members for her to present a crime plan, earlier telling the council that revealing the plan would give away too much information to criminals.
Upper Level Appeals
Jackson attorney Chokwe Lumumba said his client, Upper Level owner Sandra Moore Johnson, will appeal a recent decision by Hinds County Justice Court Judge Jimmy Morton finding Johnson and employee Eric Jackson guilty of interfering with the duties of a police officer.
Jobs-Gate Continues
Jackson Mayor Frank Melton vowed to divert young people to 70 vacant positions in the Public Works Department last week and recommended the city act as a job placement agency after the City Council shot down his last hour plan to tap the city's budget reserves to create 900 summer jobs last week.
City Writes Santa List
The City Council's Legislative Committee met last Friday to discuss a wish list for the upcoming state legislative session. Rep. John Reeves, R-Jackson, attended the meeting, chaired by Ward 7 Councilwoman Margaret Barrett-Simon.
Battle for the Library
Phtoto by Roy Adkins
The Mississippi Center for Justice has made clear its desire to occupy the old library on 301 N. State Street. The group is offering to pay more than the appraised market value for the building, which has been heavily vandalized in the last few years, and the non-profit said in a press statement that it will not seek its exemption from property taxes if it comes to own the property.
Tobacco Tout Out of Touch
Anti-smoking group Communities for a Clean Bill of Health released a poll this week revealing Mississippians' support for a $1 cigarette tax increase over Gov. Haley Barbour's proposed plan to tax hospitals to cover a $90 million Medicaid shortfall.
One Last Chance
The specter of the city claims and payroll docket continues to send Jackson City Council members into a frenzy. Two votes approving claims and payroll passed Monday on a 2-1 vote with one abstention. Shortly after those votes, however, Deputy City Attorney Michele Purvis said she believed docket approval required an affirmative vote, meaning that the earlier votes failed to pass.
JPD's High Gas and Low Morale
The Jackson Police Department's 330 patrol vehicles are constantly on the move, requiring engines and components designed for longer idle periods and higher speeds than standard car models.
Argument for Yearbook Refusal Unfounded, Says ACLU
The ACLU of Mississippi says the Copiah County School District was wrong not to allow a lesbian student to place a yearbook photo.
Short Circuit Downs 911
The city's 911 emergency answering service shut down over the weekend because of a blown circuit breaker. Ward 6 Councilman Marshand Crisler questioned the police about the shutdown after he received calls from at least five city residents complaining that calls to the emergency operation rang without answer.
Haley To Divide and Conquer?
Gov. Haley Barbour is proposing a budget with increases in K-12 education, but he refuses to fully fund the Mississippi Adequate Education Program (MAEP) formula because he says it will hurt higher education.
The Trial That Wouldn't Start
In the week leading up to Mayor Frank Melton's federal trial, the mayor's wavering health has become a factor in the possible postponement of his trial. U.S. District Judge Dan Jordan requested testimony from Melton's doctors, and decided Tuesday to delay his decision on Melton's Dec. 29 oral motion for a continuance until Wednesday morning.
High Noon in Jacktown
City Chief of Staff Marcus Ward is among 20 class members scheduled to graduate the 10th basic reserve law enforcement class on March 21.
A Spendin' They Will Go
On Feb. 28, four Jackson City Council members voted 4-3 to allow the city of Jackson to pay for the relocation of about 21 families left in the near squalor of the apartments formerly known as Maplewood Apartments.