All results / Stories / Donna Ladd
Let’s Talk About Violence, Then Take Action
It's a problem when all cops are stereotyped, but it's also wrong that more law enforcement won't speak out publicly like that about bad cops and, too often, will defend violent actions.
White America’s Overdue Leap of Faith
Many white people want to just "move on." They'll shudder dismissively if you challenge the myths, preferring to leave the statues and flag and true history alone because it's just "dredging up the past."
America, We Sink or Swim Together
As Houston and surrounding cities drowned, Trump was pushing the bigotry that fueled his rise to power. Meantime, America was proving our inherent greatness, despite the incessant efforts by certain leaders to trump it and force us to distrust and despise each other.
DJP ‘Whistleblower’ Indicted for Five Felonies for Allegedly Forging Checks
The former Downtown Jackson Partners secretary who blew the proverbial whistle on her boss, Ben Allen, may end up guilty of more felonies than her former employer for "intentionally" methodically forging checks on DJP's account, the indictment says.
UPDATED: Hinds DA Wants Rankin Charges Quashed, Again Cites AG 'Overreach'
District Attorney Robert Shuler Smith wants a Rankin County judge to quash another set of criminal charges against him—for domestic violence, stalking and robbery charges.
UPDATED: Darnell Turner May Serve 45 Years for 'Heinous Crimes'; Feds Earlier Tied Him to DA
A Hinds County jury yesterday convicted Darnell Turner, who also goes by Donald Dixon, in three separate counts related to a 2014 domestic incident—aggravated assault with a firearm, aggravated domestic violence and shooting into an occupied vehicle.
Flashing a Kid’s Mugshot Is No Way to Prevent Crime
Disseminating mugshots of minors should be rare due to the harm that it can cause to that kid and society to treat children as adult criminals, especially before they even get a trial.
The JFP at 15: Raising Hell, Having Fun
The Jackson Free Press' official birthday is Sept. 22, my late badass mother's birthday. She was illiterate, but loved to tell stories and encouraged me to say whatever I needed to say—so it was only appropriate to start the JFP on the day she would have turned 78.
UPDATED: Darnell Turner Gets 45 Years, Judge Brings Up DA Smith
The young woman who accused Darnell Turner of beating her, dragging her, strangling her, shooting at her car, and dangling her off a bridge in the Washington Addition when she was 22 was in the courtroom this morning when Hinds County Circuit Judge Jeff Weill sentenced the 39-year-old to 45 consecutive years in prison on three felony counts.
Murder in the City: Deep Causes, Harmful Biases, Unexpected Solutions to Gun Violence
On the night of Thursday, Feb. 9, a group of twenty-something Jacksonians were hanging out in Westwood Apartments at 3150 Robinson Road playing dominoes. Suddenly, several men walked in pointing guns and demanding their belongings.
Solutions: How to Prevent Gun Violence
Here is a sampling of evidence-based solutions for preventing and interrupting gun violence. See jfp.ms/stopviolence for links to learn more.
A Violence Talk That Might Have Been
It felt more like a bait-and-switch. But maybe the City Hall gathering was a start of a new way of thinking about crime prevention in the capital city.
A Sense of Urgency: Sen. John Horhn Pledges to Cure What Ails City Hall
Sen. John Horhn may have been in the Mississippi Legislature for 24 years, but the Jackson man doesn't always get what he wants.
An Editor and a Gentleman
An odd fluke of fate brought me to the patch of dirt where three civil rights workers were murdered in my home county, holding the hand of James Chaney's daughter 40 years after he died there.
‘One Lake’ Tax Sails Forward
Previous plans to dramatically remake the portion of the Pearl River that flows through the Jackson metropolitan area ran aground, but legislation is sailing toward the governor's desk that would pay for the project by taxing selected property in the new "One Lake" footprint.
A ‘Gang,’ By Any Other Name
The word "gang" means different things to different people—and the realities of organized gangs in U.S. cities have shifted over the years. One result is that many of them are not the hierarchical organized-crime syndicates of past years.
UPDATED: Capitol Complex Bill with Funds for Jackson Passes, Heads to Governor
The year 2017 may be the charm for Jackson, at least when it comes to getting upward of $20 million a year from the State of Mississippi to help repair crumbling infrastructure around where lawmakers and most state workers drive, meet, dine and debate for four months a year, give or take a special session or two.
Ahem, City Candidates
Sixteen people may be running for mayor, but as of press time, only two of them had met the Jan. 31, 2017, annual reporting deadline—nearly two months later.
Rains Bring Flood Control Front of Mind; 'One Lake' Promised as Solution
The reality and unpredictability of the mighty Pearl waters bring the issue of long-delayed and debated flood control back front of mind in the metro, as the Rankin-Hinds Pearl River Flood and Drainage Control District, commonly call the Levee Board, prepares to unveil specifics of its "One Lake" plan to dredge and widen parts of the Pearl.
A Mayor's Story: Tony Yarber on His Past Mistakes and Evolving Vision
Mayor Tony Yarber is different this time around. During his first run for the job vacated when Mayor Chokwe Lumumba died in 2014, a bunch of urgent business suits surrounded and handled him amid a certain amount of arrogant campaign chaos.