The New JacksonEven 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 …
Judge Yerger: A ‘Racist' Sentence?Johnathan Jones walked back into Pops Around the Corner on Dec. 28, 2005, after leaving earlier to go home to Brandon. He told the bartender that "some n*gger" had thrown a beer bottle through his window and that he was …
Doris Shavers Killed in Domestic DisputeWAPT is reporting that Doris Shavers, 40, has died after being shot in the head, allegedly by Henry Phillips in a domestic dispute last night on Ludlow Street. While Shavers was in UMC fighting for her life, police had originally …
George Bell III in Women's Jail, Not Detention CenterWJTV—which has done stellar reporting in the Heather Spencer rape/murder—is reporting that the accused murderer is being housed in the women's jail downtown, not the Hinds County Detention Center where murder suspects would normally be. The reasons are unclear. WJTV …
BREAKING: RTI to Build Titanium Sponge Plant in MississippiRTI International Metals Inc. today announced both plans to supply titanium products "that support the production of the Airbus family of commercial aircraft, including the A380 and the A350 XWB programs" and to build a titanium sponge plant in Hamilton, …
BREAKING: JPS Settles Ellis CaseJackson Public Schools has reached a settlement with Michael and Rachel Ellis in the Ellis' Title VII lawsuit filed in January against JPS Superintendent Dr. Earl Watkins.
Haley's Shadow MoneyBarbour's confidence going into his re-election campaign is formidable. But the former Washington lobbyist and former chairman of the Republican National Committee may not be such a "former" lobbyist after all, critics are charging, and he may be using his …
Parker AndrewsParker Andrews is an intriguing enigma. At first glance, he is a typical 11-year-old fifth-grade student whose recent acquisition of Healy skate shoes has transformed him into a full-fledged speeding bullet. But beyond first impressions, Andrews is unlike many his …
Hurricane Recovery, Barbour - StyleAs residents of Mississippi's Gulf Coast gathered to commemorate the second anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, they recalled a cataclysmic storm that spared no one, rich or poor, from its destruction. Virtually every structure along the 90-mile stretch of coastline was …
Scandal, Fraud And AbuseTwenty-four months in, the Katrina information firestorm has been dampened down to the size of a birthday candle fl ame in mainstream media, leaving the 60,000 still living in FEMA trailers and the quarter-million still displaced after two years without …
Crisler: We Want Temp Worker Details NowThe Jackson City Council Budget Committee asked the Melton administration again Monday to cough up more information on its temporary and contract employees for the 2006-2007 fiscal year (PDF, 592 KB). "We have real basic requests about information concerning employees …
Fondren ARTMix TONIGHT, 5 to 8 p.m.Come out to Fondren for one of the coolest nights in Jackson. Shops and galleries will be open from 5 to 8 p.m., with lots of fun entertainment indoors and out. Stop by the JFP table in Fondren Corner (near …
Ramsey Wise"It's sort of like a dumpling," Ramsey Wise explains with hand motions.
City Council: Desperately Seeking MoneyAdministration Department Director Rick Hill told City Council today that possible solutions to the city's $3.4 million shortfall include increasing water and sewer fees, refinancing the city's debt, tapping the city's $7.4 million budget reserve fund, making cuts in city …
BREAKING: House Speaker on GOP Hit ListThe House Republican Conference officially declared war on House Speaker Billy McCoy today. The conference agreed this afternoon that GOP members will vote together as a group to elect a new House speaker to replace McCoy, D-Rienzi, at the next …
Audio of Melton and Smith's Remarks"Robert, you're like a little brother to me. I love you and I'll always love you, and I had to distance myself from your campaign ...."
Fate Sealed for Ex-KlansmanThroughout his trial, James Ford Seale appeared in court wearing slacks and a dress shirt. This morning, as he walked in shackles into a U.S. District Court in Jackson, he wore an orange Madison County-issued jumpsuit. In the courtroom, neither …
Broken Katrina PromisesRacial discrimination, housing crises and neglect of prisoner rights in the wake of Katrina is the subject of a new ACLU report released Monday, Aug. 20. In anticipation of the two-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina on Aug. 29, the ACLU …
Zikri ArslanFor a man who has moved to a different place almost every year since he came to the United States from Turkey in 1996, laying down roots is a new experience for Jackson State University professor Zikri Arslan. "I'm getting …
The Cavalry ArrivesRobert Smith is getting a nice boost from the Supreme Court less than 24 hours into his successful run-off against former Hinds County District Attorney Faye Peterson. Using $160,000 in grant money obtained by Gov. Haley Barbour, the Mississippi Supreme …
D.A. Peterson Concedes, Goes HomeWith 98 percent of precincts reporting and Robert Smith leading by 1,183 votes, District Attorney Faye Peterson just conceded defeat in the Red Room at Hal & Mal's, saying that she hopes that the next D.A. will be as tough …
BREAKING: Leslie McLemore Elected Council PresidentJFP reporter Adam Lynch called in from the City Council meeting tonight to report that new Ward 1 Councilman Jeff Weill provided the swing vote to elect Leslie McLemore Council president, and to reject Melton's good friend, Frank Bluntson, who …
BREAKING: Smith's Response ‘Blatant Lie,' Father SaysDistrict attorney candidate Robert Smith held a press conference today—not inviting the Jackson Free Press—to respond to Freddie Patton, a father he features in a campaign ad blaming D.A. Faye Peterson for not prosecuting the drunk driver who killed his …
UPDATED: Father Says Smith Campaign Ad ‘a Lie'As the district attorney's runoff looms, challenger Robert Smith is combing the alleys of the criminal justice system, looking for people unhappy with Peterson's performance. One such foray produced a couple who claim in the footage that Peterson failed to …
Judge Sentences Seale to Three Life TermsThroughout his trial, James Ford Seale appeared in court wearing slacks and a dress shirt. This morning, as he walked in shackles into a U.S. District courtroom in Jackson, he wore an orange Madison County-issued jumpsuit. Neither his siblings nor …
BREAKING: James Ford Seale Receives Life in PrisonA former Klansman, who was thought to be dead until the brother a man he kidnapped and helped kill went to Franklin County with the CBC and the Jackson Free Press and found him living in a trailer, was sentenced …