Jackson Free Press

"All right, let's get on board. We're rolling."

On June 28, Mayor Frank Melton, clad in a brilliant-white bullet-resistant vest and a sidearm, invited members of the media to join him in the hunt for Vidal Sullivan. A cameraman from WAPT, Richard Fausset of the Los Angeles Times and I boarded the Mobile Command Center (MCC), and then we thundered out of the compound, stopping traffic on Ridgewood Drive, with four police cruisers and three media cars in tow. The cruisers swept in from the left and right, their blue strobes flashing, as we penetrated to the Kroger on I-55 for water and soda.

Our next stop was a public park, where we met members of a lawn crew Melton has created to provide disadvantaged youths with jobs. Earlier that day, Melton acknowledged that two members of the lawn crew were arrested for missing a court appearance on armed robbery charges. Melton asked the teenagers how many lawns they had mowed that day. "Twenty-seven," one of them replied. All 12 boarded the MCC and crowded into the back to watch movies on a large plasma screen. Melton said he has 230 young men working for the city.

From there, we rolled to Wood Street, hot on the trail of Vidal Sullivan, who had become the object of an intense manhunt on two charges of kidnapping and one of aggravated assault. Sullivan is also suspected in a shooting on June 9. In February, Melton said he was considering a leave of absence to apprehend Sullivan, who had just been acquitted of murder in the February 2003 death of Carey Bias. Melton said he would bring new charges in a separate case against Sullivan. When Sullivan turned himself in to Melton on March 2, Melton took him into "protective custody."

"He's back on cocaine," Melton told us, as the MCC pitched and heaved over every bump in the road. "We have kept a close eye on him. Either (Police Chief) Shirlene (Anderson) or me calls him every day, making sure he takes care of himself."

Melton earlier told the JFP that he had given Sullivan money in May to buy school clothes for his 10-year-old son; thus, the reason Sullivan was spotted in City Hall.

The mayor met with a small group of young men and walked 40 feet down the road with one of them, who I soon learned was Maurice Warner, who Melton says he helped raise and who was also acquitted in the Bias murder. The two men embraced. I wasn't close enough to hear everything, but as Warner wiped tears, he begged loudly, "Just give me an hour!" Melton held Warner loosely throughout their conversation.

Back in the MCC, Melton said Warner was going to try to convince Sullivan to surrender. He said we would be there when he took Sullivan into custody—as he often helps "bring in" wanted men to law enforcement.

We stopped at a housing project in West Jackson. Melton was very familiar with the residents and the state of the property. He noted with approval that trash had been removed, but he was irritated that basketball goals had not been mounted as he had instructed. He questioned residents in detail on the algae-clogged concrete creek running through the center of the complex. "Mosquitoes are going to breed in that, and there's a lot of children out here," Melton admonished.

An elderly African-American woman in a loose summer dress complained about a white police officer who she claimed was rude and failed to take their calls seriously. Melton told the woman to contact Chief Anderson with complaints about the police.

When we pulled up in front of a group of African-American teenagers and young adults standing in an open stairwell, some of them disappeared behind apartment doors, though most stayed out to greet the mayor, many of them young children. The walls were covered in graffiti, including several tags from the Vice Lords. The mayor asked the children to hug him, and most did so in delight. Melton then pulled aside a young man who I will call Anthony and escorted him away from the crowd. Fausset and I followed, facing Melton and Anthony, openly observing their conversation. Anthony, who said he was 18, stared at the ground and hung his head.

"Have you been smoking marijuana tonight?" Melton asked.

"Yes sir," Anthony mumbled. "About an hour ago."

"Was it a joint or a blunt?"

"A blunt," Anthony replied.

Melton then asked Anthony how long he had been smoking (two months) and whether he needed treatment (no). When Melton heard that Anthony had dropped out of high school in his junior year, he was indignant. "You mean to tell me no one from the school, no teacher, no counselor, no one came to ask why you weren't in school?"

"No sir," Anthony muttered. Melton then gave the boy his home number and urged him to call for a job.

Melton did nothing illegal, and Anthony answered voluntarily. Still, Anthony was clearly uncomfortable, staring at the ground and mumbling in a faint monotone, like a child before a stern father. If either Melton or Anthony had asked for privacy, I would have stepped away in some relief, but one reason why I am concealing Anthony's identity is that he really had no way to say no to anything.

We walked back through the stairwell, and Melton chided, by name, some of the people who had since emerged from behind closed doors. "This is true community policing," Melton declared. "Get out there and see the people yourself."

Soon, we stopped in the middle of the street in a neighborhood in West Jackson. The police blocked off traffic and then let cars through in a single lane. They checked the IDs of most drivers and then waved them through. I could not see the use of this spot-road block, as no police officer seemed to be running license numbers or names on the radio. There was simply too much traffic for that. Also, many cars turned onto side streets as they approached the roadblock, probably just to avoid the hassle. Most of the drivers who did approach the road block were professionals apparently returning home from work, as it was still early evening.

While the police checked IDs, Melton joined a group of young African Americans. "This one's a dope dealer," Melton said, grinning as he clapped one young man on the shoulder before pointing at another, "and this one's a dope smoker." I later asked the mayor if he was joking, and he said he was not.

"If I ever got in trouble, in a real tight spot, this is where I would go," he said. "I know what these boys are capable of, and I trust them with my life."

Then one of the teenagers showed the mayor the new issue of the JFP, with Melton on the cover bursting out of a birthday cake and the headline "Sex, Lies and Videotape."

"What is this trash?" Melton thundered. He tore up the paper in his hands and threw it on the ground. "How can you let children see this sort of trash?" Melton shouted at me.

"I don't see what's trashy about it," I replied. "It's just the title of a movie."

"It is just incorrigible to let children see this sort of filth," the mayor yelled, "and if you can't see that, you must not have gone to journalism school."

"I didn't."

"Well at least you're honest," the mayor replied. "But I'm going to tell you this. You are cut off. I have tried and tried to work with you people, but after tonight, it's over. Y'all are going to be out of business in six months."

Melton berated me about the cover for a full minute, with the crowd from the neighborhood gathered around in a crescent, and on the other side media from television and print, while a cluster of quizzical police officers listened from the periphery. The mayor seemed to take our cover as a personal betrayal. Finally, he stormed away, and I straggled back to the MCC, careful to keep my distance.

"Hey," an officer in body armor with a pistol strapped to his leg said, "you're pretty tough."

I laughed, not entirely convinced. "Thanks."

I stayed in the back of the bus for a while, with the teenagers, to avoid the mayor's wrath. We stopped to meet with another informant in the hunt for Sullivan, but something was wrong. Melton said loudly, "This is about the fourth time I've had to pick (Sullivan) up. I don't want to have to kill this boy."

We pulled onto the interstate, police cruisers darting in front of us to clear traffic. In the back of the MCC, the teenagers were watching "Blackhawk Down" on the plasma screen. Blue strobes from the cruisers danced around the walls while the teenagers watched Marines in Mogadishu fire rockets into buildings and rifles into crowds of gun-toting Africans.

"More skinnies!" the Marines shouted.

"You really don't have to use the foot straps on those helicopters," the police officer in body armor told the teenagers. They all stared at him enrapt. He told them what it was like to fire heavy weaponry.

The only thing that excited the teenagers more came much later in the evening, when Melton conversed with a transvestite in a tank top, a miniskirt and an ill-fitting wig of heavy platinum curls. When I got back aboard, the teens could hardly contain their excitement. "Did you see that?" one of them asked. "That was a punk!"

We stopped near Union Station, downtown, and approached a group of homeless African-American men who were talking out in an empty lot, sitting on the edge of a ruined concrete foundation. At every stop, the other media hung back and talked among themselves while Fausset and I followed Melton.

The mayor sat among the men, who seemed very pleased to welcome him. Melton asked the men their names and how long they had been homeless. He asked them if there was anything he could do to help, and wrote down numbers for them to contact. Then Melton's voice took on passion. "I need you men to help me figure out how we can help you. I am determined to help you."

The men told Melton what they needed, which was shelter, rehab and job training, and Melton listened carefully.

"Hey," one of the police officers said, patting me on the arm, "y'all are popular." He pointed at a man in a torn jacket who was reading the new issue. "Even the homeless read you."

"You know," Melton said to the men, "sometimes I think I would love to trade places with you. Not to have any worries."

The men laughed kindly. "You don't know what it's like out here, Frank," one of the men said.

"I mean you don't have to worry about nonsense like the IRS or the media," Melton said, looking at me.

"You gotta spend a night out here, Frank. I don't think you could do it."

"Oh yes, I could. Hey, Recio," Melton called.

Recio approached warily. "These men say I should stay out here with them some night."

Recio made a face like he had just bitten down on a lemon.

"All right, gentlemen," Melton said. "I want you to take care of yourselves." He then signed autographs for several of the men.

As we walked back through the overgrown lot, the wreck of the King Edward Hotel prominent on the skyline, Melton took me aside. "I want to apologize for before," he said. "You seem like a respectful young man, and I know it wasn't you who did the cover."

"I'm sorry it upset you. You should talk to Donna about it."

"It won't do any good," he said, shaking his head.

I was already exhausted, with hours of raids still ahead, the chief joining us at some point. We stopped and questioned many youths who were out past the "emergency" curfew but who all claimed to be 18. We approached porches that smelled of marijuana, and the police searched the ground for evidence while Melton chatted amiably with residents, urging them to find steady work and to take care of themselves. The only arrest of the night was one African-American male with one rock of crack . Sullivan was arrested three days later—but by U.S. Marshals, not the JPD.

For now, though, there was a moment of peace while Melton talked on his cell phone. Fausset leaned against the MCC while we waited. "Is it always like this?" he asked in amazement.

"Welcome to Jackson," I replied with weary bravado. ӑCircus' doesn't quite do it justice, does it?"

Previous Comments

ID

80164

Comment

“Was it a joint or a blunt?” Melton to a youth... Are we supposed to be impressed? Would it have made a difference if it was a "blunt" or a "joint?" One is not independent of the other, nor does a "blunt" have any other drug in it that makes it extra special or extra illegal! Republican Meltonites, do you think Haley knows what a "blunt" is? “I mean you don’t have to worry about nonsense like the IRS or the media,” Melton said, looking at me. Melton to homeless man I didn't know Melton had IRS troubles! More to come Brian? And I'm glad to see that my tax dollars for fighting crime are being used so some kids can watch movies in the Command Vehicle. I haven't seen the Melton-mobile in my neighborhood playing movies for kids and making sure they get home after smoking blunts!

Author

pikersam

Date

2006-07-06T09:45:44-06:00

ID

80165

Comment

Good story and reporting, Brian. I like how Melton fronts to audiences - like tearing up the paper in front of the boys. He knows they will talk about that for days and years. Somtimes, he's crazy like a fox; but most of the times, he's just crazy.

Author

Ray Carter

Date

2006-07-06T10:42:41-06:00

ID

80166

Comment

I am befuddled over why these kids are in the Command Center -- which isn't exactly bulletproof! If Melton is in such danger, why is he carting these kids around with him!?! This is weirder than the schoolbus-hugging-on-the-interstate stunt. And if they are working so hard, shouldn't they be resting to mow the 27 lawns!?! This whole story is surreal to me. Best part: where Melton tells the homeless men he wants to trade places with them so he will have no worries. Is he so self-focused that he thinks no one has bigger problems than the need to be honest with the media and the public, and to do the job they were elected to!?! It all gets weirder by the day.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2006-07-06T10:52:15-06:00

ID

80167

Comment

So...how much of my tax money goes to pay for that plasma TV and the DVDs that those kids watch? This is just my opinion, but I don't think FM really wants these kids off the street. I think he wants to be their leader. There is something really cult-like about this man.

Author

James Hester

Date

2006-07-06T11:04:19-06:00

ID

80168

Comment

It is something that he brings them to his house to watch the huge TV, and now they can ride around in the Command Center and do the same thing while he's wearing a sidearm and looking for the "most dangerous man in Jackson." Just when is someone going to get hurt here? Does all vision have to be hindsight in these parts? And since when is TV the answer to their problems? Violent movies? Also, note that he apparently wore the guy into a public park — one of the places where Hood explicitly told him not to take his gun -- or he "will be prosecuted." He also can't legally take his gun where drugs are used or dealt.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2006-07-06T11:07:55-06:00

ID

80169

Comment

I can't state enough that no one is trying to kill Melton. Thousands of us would like to whup his ass for snowing or pulling the wool on us about his ability to get things done. He knows this, and this is the only reason for the protection.

Author

Ray Carter

Date

2006-07-06T11:20:56-06:00

ID

80170

Comment

FM's life has to be threatened to justify the weapons carry in FM's mind. (MS is a "Shall issue" state - no justification needed). Odd that noone has ever been arrested or charged for any of these death threats he gets all the time

Author

JLYerg

Date

2006-07-06T11:34:07-06:00

ID

80171

Comment

I can confirm that Melton did wear his sidearm, holstered and in public view, at a city park. Also, the kids in back weren't watching DVDs, because the MCC isn't quite THAT tricked out. They had to settle for VHS.

Author

Brian C Johnson

Date

2006-07-06T13:01:24-06:00

ID

80172

Comment

That was a good run-down of the events that took place. Why does the Mayor make it so hard for people to support him and his antics? Damn. I really admire that he is trying to put on a postive image for the kids but he is only one person and can't offset nearly what the average kid sees in the streets. These kids need active Community Centers & Computer's with Internet Access things of that nature. Frank can't just swoop around the city like a crime fighter and not take on the real issues that lead to kids hanging out on the streets 7 days a week 24/7 they are bored, need something to do & learn. And if he was as dedicated as he says he is he COULD help fund somethings like this, and get the parents motivated to donate their time and money to the efforts also.

Author

JAC

Date

2006-07-06T13:27:52-06:00

ID

80173

Comment

When we pulled up in front of a group of African-American teenagers and young adults standing in an open stairwell, some of them disappeared behind apartment doors, though most stayed out to greet the mayor, many of them young children. The walls were covered in graffiti, including several tags from the Vice Lords. The mayor asked the children to hug him, and most did so in delight. Melton then pulled aside a young man who I will call Anthony and escorted him away from the crowd. Fausset and I followed, facing Melton and Anthony, openly observing their conversation. Anthony, who said he was 18, stared at the ground and hung his head. “Have you been smoking marijuana tonight?” Melton asked. “Yes sir,” Anthony mumbled. “About an hour ago.” “Was it a joint or a blunt?” “A blunt,” Anthony replied. Melton then asked Anthony how long he had been smoking (two months) and whether he needed treatment (no). When Melton heard that Anthony had dropped out of high school in his junior year, he was indignant. “You mean to tell me no one from the school, no teacher, no counselor, no one came to ask why you weren’t in school?” “No sir,” Anthony muttered. Melton then gave the boy his home number and urged him to call for a job. Melton did nothing illegal, and Anthony answered voluntarily. Still, Anthony was clearly uncomfortable, staring at the ground and mumbling in a faint monotone, like a child before a stern father. If either Melton or Anthony had asked for privacy, I would have stepped away in some relief, but one reason why I am concealing Anthony’s identity is that he really had no way to say no to anything. I disagree with Melton's tactics quite a bit but the tone I get from this passage and correct me if I am wrong is that Melton was being heavy handed with this guy. He is smoking dope, dropped out of school, and its not too hard to figure out he will probably not amount to much in life as he is on that track already to failure. So Melton confronts him about what he has been doing and also what he is doing in his life. I wonder how many people have done that to this kid? Heaven forbid a mayor should do something like that. I do like the way Melton asked if someone from school contacted him etc (although I suspect they tried and never did reach him or he is lying). Pretty clear the sympathies of the writer lie with the kid when it is the kid who needs the help, not for his right to privacy but to become a productive citizen. No, I don't think Melton is the answer but I see nothing wrong with Melton questioning the kid as he did.

Author

Kingfish

Date

2006-07-07T09:31:38-06:00

ID

80174

Comment

Really great piece. I got my husband to read it and he was absolutely floored. He also noticed something interesting that I didn't. Having lived in New York for 10 years, my husband can spot mob-style behavior pretty well, and thought Melton's comment about hoping he doesn't have to kill Vidal was very telling. Like, if this guy keeps screwing up and getting press attention for it, we're gonna have to whack him. Any thoughts on this?

Author

Belhaver

Date

2006-07-07T20:45:32-06:00

ID

80175

Comment

I know that there is no record of formal training in police work to include that of carrying centain weapons for Melton. My question is: Does FM have any experience in killing folks since he made the statement that " I hope that "I don't want to have to kill this boy." Was this a vicarious threat on Sullivan's life? Brian Johnson, you seemed to be taken aback by Melton's comments about "journalism school." Keep in mind that Melton calims to be a journalist but there isn't any proof of any school for "formal training."

Author

justjess

Date

2006-07-10T11:43:47-06:00

ID

80176

Comment

This is priceless. I repeated had to recheck the web address to ensure that I wasn't on a prank or fiction site of some kind. Truly amazing that Sex, Lies, and Videotape is so "shocking" and terrible for kids to see, but hunting a fugitive and watching war movies is just where the kiddies should play at night! Great reporting. Perhaps we need more journalists who haven't gone to journalism school!

Author

AstroJones

Date

2006-07-10T22:22:38-06:00

ID

80177

Comment

Mayor Melton, I would like a job also please. Thanks!

Author

KC

Date

2006-07-11T08:38:16-06:00

ID

80178

Comment

I, too, thought it was funny that Melton, of all people, would question Brian's journalistic integrity. Anyone ever watch the Bottom Lines? There wasn't a factchecker in site. Certainly, I will have to agree with y'all that journalism school does not, in itself, create good journalists. The evidence of that is in plain view. Even when I teach journalism at the college level, I tell that to my students. It's not simply a matter of learning how to write a good lede (although if the professors don't train you to edit out your own passives, you ought to get a refund). The best journalists have an innate curiosity and question everything. They do not get into the profession for a paycheck, or to support the status quo. You're supposed to be in this business to tell the truth, regardless of whom that makes mad. And the best journalists I have ever known have trained on the job. I also find that most journalism students get less out of their academic studies if they haven't had good hands-on internships or worked as a journalist before they get there. Journalism is a very difficult profession, and you must have passion for what you do in order to be a good journalist. It must motivate you beyond anything else. Period. Personally, I taught myself to be a journalist because that apparently was my calling. I found good mentors along the way (meaning people who were lovingly hard on me)—and finally went to journalism graducate school when I was almost 40 in order to earn a better paycheck as a journalism professor, which I was already doing. (I didn't think I was going to start any more newspapers at that point!) When I got there, they put me in a mid-career program, and I still didn't study much journalism, other than what I wanted to study (narrative writing, for instance). I studied more in the law school, Teachers' College and the Institute for African American Studies. Why? Because I need a real grounding in the issues that I want to write about, which is too often missing in journalists. Anyway, that's my journalism lecture of the day. But I will add that everyone should keep an eye on Brian. He's got IT, just as Adam does. He will continue to wow you.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2006-07-11T10:27:47-06:00

ID

80179

Comment

Also, I will assure you that in journalism school they do not teach you that you can lie in court documents or to judges as Mr. Melton did in the Meridian lawsuit, and then said he was protected as a "journalist" (when he was a public servant as director of MBN). Journalists sometimes to to jail to protect sources, but we cannot lie to judges without getting in trouble for it. That's kind of 101.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2006-07-11T10:31:09-06:00

ID

80180

Comment

Brian: Then one of the teenagers showed the mayor the new issue of the JFP with Melton on the cover bursting out of a birthday cake and the headline "Sex Lies and Videotape." Melton: What is this trash?" Melton thundered. He tore up the paper in his hands and threw it on the ground. "How can you let children see this sort of trash?" Melton shouted at me. Brian: I don't see what's trashy about it," I replied. "It's just the title of a movie." Melton: "It is just incorrigible to let children see this sort of filth," the mayor yelled, "AND IF YOU CAN'T SEE THAT, YOU MUST NOT HAVE GONE TO JOURNALISM SCHOOl." The intent of my comment about journalism school had absolutely nothing to do with one's ability to practice the art: The best in most things are the naturals and the self-taught. My dad graduated from 8th grade and he was the person who helped me with algebra, chemistry and edited the award winning paper that paid my tuition to college. This has all to do with the fact the fact that melton would question the work of this obviously very talented young man and use the question of school or formal training as a yardstick for his publishing an article about him. Translation: Who in the he$$ is melton to question anyone's credentials? If he had only read Brian's article, the question would not have been asked. Melton's Translation: If you say anything about me that I doesn't like, YOU must be untrained, dumb and stupid. What a MESS!

Author

justjess

Date

2006-07-11T11:41:15-06:00

ID

80181

Comment

I know what you meant, justjess. I just tangented and expressed something that had been on my mind since BRIAN told me that story. Remarkable, really. Role models who lie regularly are not good for young people, either. Just sayin'.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2006-07-11T11:48:29-06:00

ID

80182

Comment

Donna, I am willingi to bet that law school helped you more in being a journalist than most journalism courses. call me a heretic. Friend of mine was in law school with you by the way.

Author

Kingfish

Date

2006-07-11T12:59:56-06:00

ID

80183

Comment

Agreed, Jimmy. I always dismay my journalism students when I tell them that some of the best electives they can choose are math, logic and law courses, if they have the opportunity. And I had a fine, fine media law class at Columbia, taught by two of the finest in the business. I'm no lawyer, which makes me happy, but I tend to know the questions to ask. ;-) Where was your friend in law school with me? I've managed to pass through a couple now.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2006-07-11T13:03:33-06:00

ID

80184

Comment

I've had dealings with alot of reporters and unfortunately, found in most cases that they reflected "How I Edited an Agricultural Newspaper" by Twain. My own personal philosophy would be to make them minor in something that will help them know a subject. Make them minor in Business, science, etc. Too many of them just don't know basic accounting, economics, science etc and alot of times you have to know the subject at a rudimentary level to even ask questions or probe deep enough into a story. One of the worst things the ABA did was when it banned taking law courses at law schools unless you were a full time student working towards a degree.

Author

Kingfish

Date

2006-07-11T13:16:57-06:00

ID

80185

Comment

Agreed, Jimmy, on the "minor." You need to KNOW stuff to write about it. Alternatively, one can really do deep research on issues they're interested in. But too many journalists today are "hit and run"; they get a quote for and against, put a passive lead on the story, and they're done. That's pitiful. Now, though, we've really gone off-thread. ;-) If you want to discussion the practice and craft of journalism more, feel free to start a thread and I'll follow you.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2006-07-11T13:23:40-06:00

ID

80186

Comment

One more, though: It wasn't easy at Columbia to slink into the other schools, either -- especially since the journo school is so hoity-toity that it won't let "outsiders" in. Tit for tat, and all that. However, I established relationships with professors I wanted to study under, and either took or audited courses I wanted. When there's a will ...

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2006-07-11T13:25:09-06:00

ID

80187

Comment

deal

Author

Kingfish

Date

2006-07-11T13:26:50-06:00

ID

80188

Comment

This reporter thought he was in Jackson's "warzone". Israeli soldiers caught on video shooting at FOX reporters. Donna, being a reporter, what do you think about this video? Israelis Shoot at Fox Reporter

Author

Joerob

Date

2006-07-17T09:41:27-06:00

ID

80189

Comment

Look's who on the cover of the Memphis Flyer this week. Story by the JFP's Brian Johnson; cover photo by our own Kate Medley. ;-)

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2006-07-20T13:03:08-06:00