JSU's Ronald Mason: Gee Whiz, I'm SorryJackson State University President Ronald Mason mea culpas to residents he had earlier tried to displace from their homes.
Voter ID: Up for the Final CountVoter ID may be an issue in the Legislature again this week, though the bill ultimately has a slim chance of getting anywhere this session.
Be Part of the Crime SolutionThe town-hall meeting that the local police union and the Jackson Free Press sponsored last week downtown was eye-opening and sobering. Audience members seemed genuinely flummoxed when they saw the PowerPoint slides of how few police officers are available in …
Walker, Belafonte Appearing at JSU Civil Rights ConferenceActor Harry Belafonte Jr., writer Alice Walker and filmmaker Keith Beauchamp are headlining the third annual Conference of the Veterans of the Mississippi Civil Rights Movement at Jackson State University starting this Thursday.
Workers Rally Against Human TraffickingA group of about 70 Indian workers marched onto the Mississippi State Capitol Thursday, March 20, protesting treatment by Pascagoula construction company Signal International, LLC.
The Rocky Race to the White HouseWarning: If you're considering running for president, there are several pitfalls to expect, as we've learned over recent weeks.
Let's Make a DealThe Mississippi Center for Justice is still looking to buy the old library building at 301 N. State Street, the site of the historic "read-in" by nine Tougaloo College students during the Civil Rights Movement. MCJ, a nonprofit, public-interest law …
‘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 …
One in 100 Behind BarsAmerica reached a new record this year, but it's not one that comes with bragging rights: We've reached the point where one in every 100 adults is behind bars. In Mississippi, one in every 97.3 adults is in prison or …
Pandering for Cheap VotesSenate Bill 2988, a bill making felons out of employed undocumented immigrants and their employers, is now law. Mississippi Building and Construction Trade President David Newell says the law will help prevent the displacement of working U.S. citizens, while associations …
The Emerging Mississippi: Are New Voters Changing State Politics?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 …
[Dickerson] Shame on You, HillaryThe weekend after the Texas debate, I saw Hillary Clinton on television losing her cool over Barack Obama's criticism of her health-care plan. I don't think that I will ever recover from the image of her looking a bit like …
The Scruggs Saga Comes Home To Hinds CountyOn 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 …
Finding James Ford Seale Alive: A TimelineMedia folks often ask the Jackson Free Press to clarify why the timeline in the original story, "I Want Justice, Too," published in the JFP on July 20, 2005, about Thomas Moore's July 2005 trip to Meadville varies from the …
Dongles Back in Action?One of the most conservative U.S. appeals courts in the nation outlawed Texas' ban on sex toys last week, and local retailers could use the decision to overturn a local municipal ban. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled …
Immigration: Myth Vs. Reality"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 …
Corn Hath No Fury: The JFP Interview With Billy McCoyHouse 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.
DNA Says 'Not Guilty' 16 Years LaterArthur Johnson may be returning home in a matter of days, 16 years after his arrest for a rape he did not commit. On Friday, Jan. 4, the Mississippi Supreme Court ordered Sunflower County to review Johnson's case based on …
The Case For InnocenceIt was Ron Williamson's obituary in the Dec. 9, 2004, issue of The New York Times that caught attorney and author John Grisham's eye.
‘These Are Not Fair Trials': The JFP Talks With John GrishamSince publication of "The Innocent Man" in 2006, author John Grisham has become a strong advocate for the Innocence Project, lending his name and voice to help establish the organization's Mississippi office in Oxford. "The Innocent Man" was Grisham's first—and …
2008 Legislative Preview: New Session, Old ProblemsThe 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 …
Important Legislative DatesHere's a calendar of prominent legislative actions for the upcoming session. Voters may want to consider attending and showing support for bills they favor on certain deadline dates. Call your local legislator for more information.
Hate-Crimes Grossly Under-ReportedThere were no hate crimes in Mississippi in 2005 or 2006, according to the most recent FBI statistics. Nationwide, say the stats, hate crimes rose 7.8 percent in '06, with 7,722 incidents.
Jackson's "No. 1" IssueIn an editorial last week, The Clarion-Ledger climbed dramatically onto its bird's eye perch of deniability and proclaimed: "Mayor Frank Melton was elected to do something about the No. 1 issue in Jackson—crime. But it is apparent that Jackson's No. …
ACLU to Protest JPDWhen 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 …
MBN Confiscates, Returns ACLU TapeLast month, a Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics officer confiscated a videotape of an interdiction from ACLU workers who had gathered outside their offices on Jefferson Street to observe the arrest, which was taking place in a parking lot across the …
A Minor InjusticeAlexandre Dumas' most popular novel, "The Count of Monte Cristo," revolves around the narrative of Edmond Dantès, the captain of a merchant vessel who visits Napoleon on the isle of Elba and where the deposed emperor entrusts him with a …
Dem At Your Own RiskThe year 2000 was the dawn of the tort-reform craze in Mississippi, when out-of-state groups like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce poured money into state elections in an attempt to roll back court regulation. The Chamber interpreted Supreme Court Justice …