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Analysis: Passion Ruled In Melton Trial

Photos by Jaro Vacek

On April 26, a Hinds County jury acquitted Mayor Frank Melton and Dets. Michael Recio and Marcus Wright of all 11 charges they collectively faced for demolishing a duplex at 1305 Ridgeway last year.

Three Candidates Vying for Ward 1

Three Ward 1 residents are jumping up to replace former Council President Ben Allen, since the councilman retired over health issues June 22. Allen abruptly resigned his post days after reporting chest pains, saying his doctor had advised him to reduce his stress level.

Community Events and Public Meetings

6 p.m., Jackson State of the Arts 2011 at North Midtown Arts Center (121 Millsaps Ave.). The open forum is for all greater Jackson arts scene participants: teachers, musicians, grant-organization members, gallery owners, etc. Free; call 601-497-7454.

Beta of JFP "Community Blog" Debuts

And that means, in a nutshell, it's tougher for a user-generated forum entry to "be seen."

Long time JFP visitors will know that we went through a major upgrade to the site's plumbing a year ago, and that while there are many strengths to the new system, one of the weaknesses is the way it treats comments in the Forums -- they don't feed through the Recent Comments feeds used elsewhere on the site, including on the main page.

Crossroads

It's three days until the election. (In my need to get it over with, I don't count the current day or Election Day. That makes it come sooner.) It is so stressful waiting to see which way America will turn on Nov. 4; will we choose hope and progress, or fear and regression? Will enough Americans buy Sarah Palin's hate-soaked tirades and give her the opportunity to further divide our nation, or John McCain the chance to fall apart on a national stage?

Jail: My Experience

Last week I was arrested for a charge I am legally not old enough to commit. I was transfered to the downtown jail in a car that the officer was driving 70 mph in a 35 with no lights on. I was processed and held in handcuffs and shackles for about three hours. We were then transfered holding at the Raymond Detention Center. I was made to put on a orange jump suit and sit in a concrete room with about ten other guys. I did not sleep or eat the entire time I was in there, and at about seven in the morning we were taken out and ready to go to court. I did not have my rights read, hardly got a phone call, have another court date. When I was waiting on the bench for my name to be called, the judge, DA and just about everyone else near the bench were looking through books to see what my charge would be if I pleaded guilty. As they were looking, I called the DA over to explain to him my situation. After I told him, he asked my age and I told him I was twenty, and he suggested I plead not guilty. After I said my plea, he told the judge my age and requested that I bring my ID to the court and that my charges be dismissed. The judge looked at the information and followed by setting another court date. After the trials were complete we were shipped back to Raymond. I waited in a cell knowing that my bond was already at the office waiting for my signing. After waiting a couple of hours I finally had the chance to sign the sheet. After I signed my bond sheet I was sent back into holding though my ride was waiting for me. My dad was the one who had to tell the officer at the front desk to call down for my release. If he didn't do so, I am sure I would have been sitting there much longer. When I got out, my dad told me they had all of the information ready around 4 p.m. and they were ready to release me, but since it seems they have no managing at the center, my paper work sat on their desk until they wanted to do it. I was finally released by 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday afternoon.

Sherr-ief, Please Scoop the Poop

OK, that's it. We just saw the Fondren deputy-horse in our parking lot, and as adorable as he is, we are really tired of the trail of poop that he is leaving behind in this, the best walking community in the city. It's in the parking lot in front of our building, and it is lining the parking lot leading up to Jerusalem Cafe. I stepped in it last week near Lenny's.

This is a poem?

Welfare Poem

While using a search engine, I saw a "poem" on an e-zine where the owner of the site says that he or she is not the author. Well, I'll give the person some credit for that. It sounds like the poem came from an e-mail that has probably been circulating for years. You can't get more anti-immigration than this - as far as I know, anyway. And now, for your reading pleasure:

Mental Illness Awareness Week, October 5-11, 2008: I Have a Challenge For You

This week's theme is, "Building Community, Taking Action," which includes Bipolar Disorder Awareness Day on Thursday, October 9. From NAMI:

A Correction Forthcoming, Mr. Agnew?

In his "we do community journalism, too; really, we do" column today, Clarion-Ledger Executive Editor Ronnie Agnew makes an interesting statement about his paper's Web site that we believe deserves a bit of a factcheck. When discussing his paper's stories about the state's health department, he states: "Some 60,000 of you have have used our online forums, now called StoryChat, to offer comments on that investigative series."

Read This. Get Angry.

This is a good piece by Charlie Savage in the Boston Globe.

Two Nights with King Edward

Prior to 2009, the most interesting thing I'd ever heard about The King Edward Hotel was as follows: "One time, I threw a toilet off of the roof." A friend of mine had chuckled this statement while bellied up to the bar at Hal & Mal's, as we discussed some apparent construction going on at the Jackson landmark. It seemed everyone had some story about playing around in the bones of the old man... tales of the clandestine feats of bored youth, possibly illegal activities, and the lifestyles of the destitute. And through the laughs about stumbling upon homeless enclaves or dead animals, there was always an underlying sadness. Held aloft miraculously by the condemnable structure underneath, the rusty letterforms of the name ironically proclaimed a regal past. I imagined standing on top of the building, as would one of those letters, surveying the ragged edifices of Capital and Farish below. It seemed, to me, a kingdom of blight. Here stands Edward, master of all he surveyed.

Child Abuse, Bad Diets Lead to Brain Issues Lead to Crime?

It's kind of one of those scientific findings that ought to be obvious, but here it is: Children who are physically and emotionally abused often become violent criminals. In the exciting world today that is neuroscience—that has really taken off in the last 20 years with myriad discoveries about our brains—study after study is helping us look at the roots of criminality in our society, if we bother to pay attention and think about the different society we could have if we collectively ensure that children are adequately cared for. (Don't balk at "collectively"; plenty of mean people want us to collectively punish, imprison, disparage and neglect the same children. I argue at we do something else before it gets to that point, and science backs me up.)

New Katrina Reports Rips Bush ... Again

Don't we know it. AP is reporting:

[Web exclusive] JFP Talks to Jucifer's Amber Valentine

Amber: I'm a vegan, and we have been looking all over for a health food store. We finally found one today. The fridge [in the r.v.] shut down on us, so I'm not only looking for vegan food, I'm trying to find vegan non-perishables!

Threading Our Path

Sixty-one-year-old Gwen Magee grew up surrounded by arts and crafts, immersed in her mother's passion for knitting, crocheting, ceramics—anything except sewing. "She hated anything to do with sewing. I took a home-ec class in high school, can't remember what I made, but it wasn't wearable," Magee told me, laughing softly at her memories.

BeerTalk: Mississippi Brewing

Back in the days of bootlegging moonshine, the town of Kiln became known as the bootleg capital of Mississippi. Given its secluded location and proximity to the Gulf Coast, it was the perfect site for distributing illicit libation made around the state. Even though alcohol is no longer illegal, in most counties at least, the reputation that Kiln acquired during prohibition lives on to this day.

FOOD: Monroe's Holey Trinity

"Take the first step in faith. You don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step." —Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

How to Make Enemies

When award-winning journalist Curtis Wilkie sets out to cover the downfall of Mississippi's foremost trial attorney, he goes at it like a neurotic terrier digging in a graveyard--with a macabre cloud of grotesque tidbits flying out over his furry back. And unlike partisans who try to twist the saga their direction, he then lets the bits fall where they may.

Gay Ban Firm As Eagle Scouts Return Medals in Protest

"I can no longer maintain any connection to an organization which actively promotes such a bigoted and misguided policy," Dr. Robert Wise of Chicago wrote to Scout headquarters in Texas.

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