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Community Events and Public Meetings

JPS Pepsi Holiday Basketball Tournament Dec 28-30, at Jackson State University, Williams Athletics and Assembly Center (1400 John R. Lynch St.). The tournament features 11 girls' teams and 13 boys' teams throughout the state. Consolation games are at Forest Hill High School (2607 Raymond Road). Visit the JPS website for brackets and game times. $8 Dec. 28-29, $10 semifinals and finals.

Ward 1 Challenger Drops Out

Physician Jonathan S. Jones announced today that he is withdrawing his candidacy for the Ward 1 City Council seat currently held by Jeff Weill. In a statement, Jones, who was running as a Republican, said that he is dropping out because of the "difficult constraints placed on municipal primary elections."

DNA Exonerates Sunflower County Man After 16 Years

[Verbatim from Innocence Project] Sixteen years after his arrest, all charges were dropped against Arthur Johnson today when it was revealed that the DNA testing that led to his release in February pointed directly to another man who is in prison for sexual assault. Arthur Johnson is the fourth man to be exonerated in Mississippi since 2006. Kennedy Brewer and Levon Brooks were exonerated in January due to post conviction DNA testing. Cedric Willis was also exonerated in Jackson in 2006, but DNA testing in that case was completed before trial. As in this case, in the Brewer and Brooks cases, the DNA tests that exonerated them led to the identification of the real perpetrator.

Opposition to Iraq War Grows in South

A new poll of the region hit hardest by the war in Iraq finds that the South is steadily losing patience with the war in Iraq:

Mayor Goes Back on the Ballot

UPDATED

Circuit Court Judge Billy Joe Landrum put Jackson Mayor Frank Melton back on the Democratic ballot today.

Musgrove Camp Decries Scruggs Smear

Sen. Roger Wicker's supporters at the National Republican Senatorial Committee are attempting to link his Democratic opponent, Ronnie Musgrove, with incarcerated lawyer Paul Minor, as well as Mississippi attorney Richard "Dickie" Scruggs, who pled guilty this year for attempting to bribe a Lafayette County Circuit Court judge for a favorable ruling in a dispute over $26.5 million in legal fees from a mass settlement of Hurricane Katrina cases. A U.S. District Court found Minor guilty of corruption in March 2007 for racketeering and bribery, along with former Judges Wes Teel and John Whitfield, for accepting the bribes.

Attorneys Meet over Melton Trial Rules

JFP Coverage of Defense Witness Christopher Walker

‘We Aren't Santa Claus'

There is a showdown this week in the Magnolia State between Gov. Haley Barbour and the state Senate on one side and the House of Representatives on the other. Between them hangs a $108 million economic-development bond bill that Barbour wants passed before the regular session convenes in January. Most lawmakers agree on the need for the bonds, which would primarily honor commitments the state made in 2003 to Northrop Grumman Ship Systems.

Clarion-Ledger: A ‘Moral Contract' With Melton?

Rarely mentioned in the ongoing lawsuit between Mayor Frank Melton and former Lt. Col. Robert Pierce is the role of The Clarion-Ledger.

Felons Are (Back) In

Jackson Mayor Frank Melton, who refused to sit next to a "convicted felon" at a campaign forum back in April, is now a fan of granting second chances. Melton did a philosophical about-face last week when he hired former City Councilman Robert Williams as a mayoral assistant.

[Buzz] Don't Say ‘Tort Reform'; Collective Forms

DON'T SAY 'TORT REFORM': It's kind of fun to watch lawmakers try NOT to talk about a favorite topic: tort reform. Although legislating against "lawsuit abuse," especially with industry-friendly damage caps, is believed in these parts to be the cure to cancer, as well as a guaranteed treatment for unemployment, the erosion of the family and even young people's bubbling hormones, the new no-nonsense House Speaker Billy McCoy (D-Rienzi) seems determined to hear more than one side of the story this term.

Here Comes Da Judge

Damn, it's time for more Morgan-Quitno rankings. The last time we got dinged, it was for being the 10th most dangerous city, based on 2001 crime statistics and released last fall (and reported by daily media this spring as if they had just come out). In this round, though, the Lawrence, Kan.-based book publishers have the state of Mississippi in its sights. (Didn't that town learn anything about needless agitating back in frontier times?) This hellhole of a state we live in, it seems, is the 14th most dangerous, our second-worst ranking ever. We were more dangerous in 1999 (13th) and hit our safety peak in 1994 (the first year of the rankings). And, after all, Vermont is the safest state, and we wouldn't want to rank anywhere near them wussy-butts, even if they do, too, appreciate the right to arm bears, er, bear arms.

The Clean, Green Power Machine?

A pro-nuclear rally was held on the south steps of the State Capitol June 28 to gather support and attention for The Nuclear Regulatory Commission's public meeting later that evening at the Port Gibson City Hall, in Claiborne County.

Rape: The Forgotten Crime?

When The Clarion-Ledger recently published Jackson crime figures for 2004, numbers showed drops in most categories, including burglary, assault, robbery and larceny. The years 2002, 2003 and 2004 also saw reports of rape slide from 182, to 179, to 165, respectively. A more recent report, however, showed that both arson and rape saw a rise during the first few months of 2005, compared to last year.

Wanna Cig, Kid?

Gov. Haley Barbour, who was Big Tobacco's "go to" lobbyist when he was in Washington, D.C., is still maintaining that he'll veto any kind of tax bill that is laid on his desk, including a cigarette tax that most Mississippians support, according to a recent Stennis Institute of Government poll. Furthermore, Barbour thinks he has the perfect cure for Mississippi's impending Medicaid crisis—ransacking the state's health care/tobacco trust fund.

Constitution Man

Bill Marcy is a history buff and cites articles of the Constitution when making his case for the role of government. The Chicago native will challenge incumbent U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi's second congressional district this November.

Election Overview: Wards 1 and 5

Ward 5 Ward 5, which covers sections of West and South Jackson, has a single-term incumbent and a history of frequent turnover in its City Council representation. At a March 23 forum sponsored by the United Communities for Jackson, four candidates for the seat argued their case.

Managing Conflict

Jeff Weill is accustomed to disagreement. On the Jackson City Council, where he has represented Ward 1 since 2007, he is usually the first and sometimes only member to criticize city spending plans or support budget cuts. The council's lone Republican is now running for Hinds County Circuit Judge.

Ghosts of Frank Melton

Leave it to Frank Melton to live among strangeness even after his death.

Talking Heads Reflect on Election

U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson flexed his muscles over the U.S. Senate race, according to politicos, possibly influencing Democratic candidate Ronnie Musgrove's loss to interim Republican Sen. Roger Wicker. Clarion-Ledger columnist Sid Salter said Thompson's apparent lack of support might have injured Musgrove.

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