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Police: Theater Gunman was 'Drifter' who Planned to Escape

The movie theater gunman who stood up about 20 minutes into the showing of "Trainwreck" and began firing into the crowd, killing two people, was described as a drifter from Alabama whose escape plan was thwarted by police officers who arrived almost immediately, authorities said Friday. The gunman killed himself.

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Theater Gunman's Family Called Him Mentally Ill, Violent

The family of the man who killed two people and wounded nine others before killing himself at a crowded showing of "Trainwreck" showing said he was mentally ill and so violent that they needed police help to keep him away and removed his guns from their home, court documents show.

Call Him Irresponsible

Mayor Frank Melton's stated desire to take a leave of absence from his job as mayor to become a vigilante lawman and "bring in" a former gang member and alleged murderer was disturbing to us here at the Jackson Free Press. Not only does it sound like the plot line for a relatively rote episode of "Walker, Texas Ranger," (which is, no doubt, a popular show in part because its characters can be counted on to present such "can-do" attitudes on a regular basis), but it also suggests a larger pattern with this particular mayor and his young administration.

The Wind in My Fro

Mississippi in July, ah. What joy the summer sun brings to us southerners!

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Halloween Event Roundup

"Spooky season" is around the corner. Check out our listings for great things to do and eat around Jackson this Halloween.

Help ‘N the Hood

You may not have heard of the other CIA—Christians in Action. CIA is a children's advocacy group that sponsors an emergency shelter for abused or neglected children. Their facility is currently located in the Poindexter neighborhood west of downtown. It has been in existence since 1977 and provides residential care for children from birth through age 12. The shelter holds up to one dozen children.

Most Intriguing Jacksonians 2010

Every year, the JFP staff revisits the big newsmakers of the year to recap the "most intriguing" Jacksonians to make the news. Some are heroes; others are, let's face it, scoundrels, but they all made us take notice in 2010.

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Divided We Fall: The Killing of James Craig Anderson

Jordan Richardson was fishing at Cornerstone Lake in Brandon in 2009 when a pickup truck pulled up. Three teenagers got out of their trucks and started walking toward him, and he knew he was in trouble.

[Kamikaze] Re-Shaking Things Up

Even I get discouraged. As much as I champion Jackson, there are times that its outdated vestiges rear their ugly heads. There are times when the corporate status quo takes a few slow promising steps forward, then a disappointing few steps backward.

Festival Weekend

When I was in college, I was a music festival fanatic. Even though I'm older now, when I see the lineups for all the jam-packed music festivals in Mississippi, I still get giddy.

Making a Place

Author Lalita Tademy describes Mississippian Lynne Bryant's debut novel "Catfish Alley" (New American Library, 2011, $14) as being "In the tradition of 'The Help,'" by Kathryn Stockett. True, both Mississippi authors have white women as central characters and black women struggling against racial hatred. Both novels have multiple perspectives. That's where they diverge.

To Be a Music City, Support Musicians

Who will step up in the public and private sectors to really make Jackson into the music city we should and can be? We believe; do you?

Paul DeBoy

Paul DeBoy's first stage was the backyard of his Baltimore, Md., home. His older brother wrote plays that DeBoy would star in, and the two would charge admission when DeBoy was just 5 years old.

Pseudopolitics Equals Pseudofailure

Recently the Mississippi Legislature passed legislation outlawing the sale of medical products containing pseudoephedrine without a prescription. The intent of this legislation is to reduce the rampant methamphetamine epidemic.

Leaks Caused JPD to Dump Sergeant Exams

Civil Service Commission members said questions from the Jackson Police Department's recent sergeant's exam might have found their way to the officers prior to testing, causing the city to trash all of the recently completed tests. The commission discovered after administering the test to 180 officers that it was identical to an earlier, leaked version, despite instructions to the testing company to rewrite the exam.

Mixed-Use at JSU, Fondren Market, County PR

Jackson State University is seeking retailers for a four-story mixed-use development on track to open this fall. One University Place will host 78 apartments on its top three floors. JSU's Center for University-Based Development is currently soliciting potential retail tenants for the building's ground floor, director Kimberly Hilliard said. The Center hosted an open house for retailers last week.

Going ‘Round in Circles

What's the toughest thing to get people to talk about? Crime? Race? How about commercial development? Funding city services? These are the types of social topics that are being tackled around the country in "study circles," an approach to community-building and public forums championed by the Topsfield Foundation of Pomfriet, Conn., which created the Study Circles Resource Center in 1989.

State Lacks Affordable Legal Services

The state needs attorneys to donate their legal services in order to overcome a shortage of free civil legal service aid for residents, Mississippi Supreme Court Justice Jesse Dickinson told reporters at the Mississippi Supreme Court today.

Jackson Roads Close for Filming

The city of Jackson released the following statement about street closures during the filming of "The Help" in Jackson: (verbatim statement)