All results / Stories / Adam Lynch
Plaintiffs Seek Removal of Diaz in Minor Suit
The USF&G Insurance Company, from which former attorney Paul Minor won a large settlement in 2001, wants former state Supreme Court Judge Oliver Diaz removed from Minor's civil defense team.
Advocates Push for State Energy Program
Sustainable-energy proponents pushed utility-industry representatives and government staffers today to consider implementing a new statewide energy efficiency program funded by the utility industry.
JSU Advocates React to ‘Jacobs State' Merger
Ivory Phillips, former dean of Jackson State University's College of Education, said he suspected Jackson State University President Ronald Mason Jr.'s proposal to merge three majority-black state universities into Jacobs State University falls in line with his recent push to downsize the university's curriculum. The Jackson Free Press broke the story here Tuesday afternoon.
Mr. Washington Comes To Mississippi
Photos by Jaro Vacek and Roy Adkins
When Democrats speak of Gov. Haley Barbour, it's usually either with some degree of admiration or a great deal of venom.
The State Of JPD
Photos by Adam Lynch, Brian Johnson, Ronni Mott, and Kate Medley
Precinct 2 Patrolman Michael Braxton was on an evening shift in July when he got a vague call from dispatch telling him to head to Deer Park and Dalton Streets "to transport subjects from this location to an unknown location.
The New Jackson
Photos by Stephen Little
Even as the mayor and his administration are scrambling to collect overdue fees, hoping to make up for severe budgetary shortfalls, developers say the city is on the verge of a whole-scale Renaissance, with long-term plans coming online and new developments jostling to see the light of day -- with almost $200 million in development over the last five years.
Corn Hath No Fury: The JFP Interview With Billy McCoy
Photos by Mac Gordon
House Speaker Billy McCoy speaks in a halting stutter at times. A stroke shook his frame in 2004. He has recovered to a point, though the scars are still plain. But they don't slow him down.
2007 JFP Voter's Guide: Of Primary Importance
Photos by Adam Lynch & Roy Adkins
On Aug. 7, voters will turn out in droves—we hope—to make their voices known in the primary elections.
The Emerging Mississippi: Are New Voters Changing State Politics?
Photos by Kenya Hudson
When presidential hopeful Barack Obama entered the Rose Embley McCoy building at Jackson State University on March 10, he flowed easily into the hungry arms of the crowd. At least 100 young people—mostly females—pressed against the metal barricades, screaming and crying to shake his hand, crushing hapless reporters who had the misfortune of already standing at the barricade.
2008 Legislative Preview: New Session, Old Problems
Photos by Adam Lynch, Donna Ladd, and Jaro Vacek
The Mississippi legislative session is coming around again Jan. 8, bringing with it some tough decisions. The Legislature took a stroll through roses last year, oddly, thanks to Hurricane Katrina. To counter statewide storm damage, the federal government approved the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, which fully transferred the state's Medicaid budget onto the back of the feds. Normally, federal funds provide three-quarters of the state budget, with Mississippi matching those funds with another 25 percent. The Deficit Reduction Act saved the state from having to allocate this annual expenditure of about $850 million, garnering blessings and gratitude from representatives and senators alike.
A Blue Christmas?
The Rev. Jerry Falwell pulled no punches when he told an election training group of the Christian Coalition in 2004 who controls the Republican Party.
The Regulator: The JFP Interview with Gary Anderson
Photos by Roy Adkins & Adam Lynch
Gary Anderson wants to be Mississippi's insurance commissioner, and he's not pulling any punches in the race. The Byhalia native knows a thing or two about politics: He worked under former Gov. Ronnie Musgrove as chief fiscal officer and served as director of the Mississippi Department of Community Development. He broke ground as the first African American in both those positions. He made similar inroads in his private life, as the first African American to hold the position of senior vice president of Union Planter's Bank, and he put up a hard but unsuccessful fight against Republican candidate Tate Reeves in 2003 for the office of state treasurer.
Beat It? The JFP Interview With Michael Jackson Chaney
Photos by Roy Adkins
Michael Jackson wants to be your insurance commissioner. Yes, Sen. Michael Jackson "Mike" Chaney is running for Mississippi Commissioner of Insurance on the Republican ticket, and facing Democrat Gary Anderson, of Jackson, in the November election.
Fifty Years Of Unrest: The JFP Interview With Leslie McLemore
Photos by Roy Adkins & Brian Johnson
Ward 2 Councilman Leslie McLemore is rarely afraid to speak his mind. He started young when it comes to being vociferous. He began his career as a social activist fresh out of high school, traversing the state and helping to organize demonstrations and voter-rights campaigns in Mississippi during the Civil Rights Movement. He was vice chairman of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party's original delegation to the 1964 Democratic Convention in Atlantic City and remains an authority on the MFDP.
The Scruggs Saga Comes Home To Hinds County
Photos by Jaro Vacek
On June 11, 2005, Jackson Police Officer Jeffrey Middleton ran a red light on Highway 18 while coming back from Raymond. Middleton had no siren or police lights on at the time, and a cop car without a blaring siren is just another death machine when it decides to ignore a traffic signal. When Middleton slammed into a car making a turn under a green light, driver Desmonde Harris probably didn't know what hit him—and certainly not that it was a man pledged to uphold the law.
Replacing Ben: Four Men Compete in a Changing Ward
Photos by Darren Schwindaman
Retiring Councilman Ben Allen got a super send-off Monday from friends and family at Bravo! Restaurant in Highland Village. A crowd containing personalities such as secretary of state candidate Delbert Hosemann, fellow council members, Ward 1 residents—and even Gov. Haley Barbour—showered gratitude upon the former councilman for more than 10 years of service.
The Reality Of Tort Reform
Photos by Darren Schwindaman and Roy Adkins
On Aug. 31, 1999, 73-year-old McComb obstetrician Edsel Stewart signed a pack of Prudential Life Insurance papers that he believed gave him a million dollars worth of life insurance for his family for $105,000 a year. Getting insurance at that age was no easy feat, and Stewart counted himself lucky for nabbing a "Select Preferred Class H Rating" with Prudential.
Red And Ready To Rumble: The JFP Interview With Charlie Ross
Photos by Roy Adkins
Sen. Charlie Ross, R-Brandon, is confident this year. The 50-year-old senator is running for lieutenant governor against State Auditor Phil Bryant in the primaries, and possibly against Democratic Rep. Jamie Franks of Hernando in the November general elections.
Immigration: Myth Vs. Reality
Illustrations by Melissa Webster & Darren Schwindaman
"They can vote themselves in a pay raise, but they can't do nothing about all this illegal immigration," says Jackson talk show host 'JT,' of the JT and Dave show, after the House approved a raise for government officials, including a $10,000 raise for in-session work for legislators.
A Recovery For The Rich?
Thanks to Gov. Haley Barbour, federal Hurricane Katrina recovery money is benefiting the rich on the Mississippi Gulf Coast more than the poor, advocates for low- and moderate-income housing say. "We're finding that federal disbursements are not balanced among high- and low-income people," said Derrick Johnson, president of the Mississippi NAACP.