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Council Re-Elects Prez and Targets Profiling
The Jackson City Council voted to retain current council President Frank Bluntson and Vice President Charles Tillman after a lightning-fast roll call during Tuesday's council meeting.
A Loud Voice Silenced
Jackson Advocate owner and publisher Charles Tisdale died July 7* after complications with diabetes. Tisdale, 80, fell into a coma during a routine dialysis at the G.V. "Sonny" Montgomery Veterans Affairs Medical Center and was on life support until family members removed him.
‘The Nightmare Is Over'
After serving 18 years behind bars for a crime he did not commit, Levon Brooks walked away from the Noxubee County courthouse a free man on March 13. Arrested for the rape and murder of his girlfriend's 3-year-old daughter, Courtney Smith, in 1990, Judge J. Lee Howard released Brooks on his own recognizance on Feb. 15, pending today's hearing. Brooks received a life sentence for the crimes in 1992 after two years in jail waiting for his trial.
'Seismic' Dems
Mississippi Democrats showed confidence and optimism at a state convention on Saturday, and heard from speakers whose sentiments mirrored their own.
Cold Case Revived
Jackson Mayor Frank Melton told reporters last week that he's getting telephone threats for pursuing a murder case against Jackson resident Sherrod Moore. Police arrested Moore last week in the deadly shooting of 37-year-old Jackson Police Officer Robert J. Washington, who disappeared Nov. 14, 1995, while patrolling his beat in Precinct 2. Police located his body the following day in a field near U.S. Hwy. 80 West and Whiting Road.
Opposition to University Mergers Strong
Gov. Haley Barbour's proposal to merge some state universities continues to draw ire. On Nov. 20, students rallied at Jackson State University to protest Barbour's suggestion that the state's other two historically black universities, Alcorn State and Mississippi Valley State, be merged into JSU.
The 2009 JFP Interview With Robert Johnson
Democratic mayoral candidate Robert Johnson is not a camera person.
Unlikely Endorsements
The weekly African American newspaper The Jackson Advocate endorsed avowed white racist Jim Giles as representative of House District 62 in its Nov. 1-7 edition.
ACLU to Protest JPD
When ACLU Public Education Coordinator Brent Cox attempted to observe a police interdiction in front of Rainbow Whole Foods Co-op Grocery on Sept. 14, police arrested and charged him with "disobeying a police officer" and "interfering with the duties of a police officer." Cox said the officers did not read him his Miranda rights, and refused to give him their badge numbers.
Madeleine Albright Weighs In
Former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright took questions from reporters, including the Jackson Free Press, after Friday's presidential debate. Here's what she had to say.
Second Thoughts On Privatization
The Jackson City Council got a taste of the realities of outsourcing at its Monday night work session when the council noted a $14,000 purchase order from Jackson business NAPA Auto Parts for city vehicle parts on the claims docket.
Bleak House: City Budget Goes From Bad To…Cuts
Jackson Chief Financial Officer Peyton Prospere painted a bleak picture for Jackson at the April 6 budget meeting.
DJP Proposes New Jackson Arena
Downtown Jackson Partner President Ben Allen is pushing the idea of a new arena in Jackson and wants to invest about $100,000 in a feasibility study to vet the endeavor.
Seale Granted Hearing
In a rare move Nov. 14, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit granted federal prosecutors an en banc rehearing on the court's Sept. 9 decision that overturned the conviction of James Ford Seale. In that decision, the court ruled that the statute of limitations had expired on the federal kidnapping charges prosecutors used to convict Seale.
Private Youth Prison Under Fire
By corporate standards, the Walnut Grove Youth Correctional Facility has been a success. Since opening in 2001, the private prison has generated roughly $100 million for the companies that have operated it.
Abortion: 'Issue of Our Day'?
40 Days for Life, a national pro-life campaign, is focusing its efforts on the only abortion provider in Mississippi, the National Women's Health Organization in Fondren. Described as "a unique approach to ending abortion," the campaign will hold a prayer vigil outside the clinic from Sept. 24 through Nov. 2.
Hands Off Farish
Mayor Frank Melton's plan to demolish almost 80 abandoned and dilapidated structures inside the Historic Farish Street District hit a speed bump June 14 after the Jackson Historic Preservation Commission made clear it was unwilling to approve the mass demolition.
Pearl Wetlands Worth Saving?
The wetland area just east of Jackson has seen better times.
Reeves Gets His Way
Weeks ago, an amendment to HB 284 spun heads in the House when Rep. John Reeves, R-Jackson, sought to add an amendment allotting Jackson seven of 13 seats on the Hinds County 911 Emergency Commission. Even without the amendment, HB 284 re-tooled the board, increasing Jackson's representation to five members, instead of its current two.
JPS' Special-Education Problem
Jackson Public Schools has trouble with special education, but it's hardly unique. The district's failure to provide adequate services to students with emotional and behavioral disorders came to light earlier this month with the release of a Nov. 22 state-agency finding.