City & County
DOSSIER: County Documents At Risk, Public Meeting Confusion, No to WJTV
The Jackson Free Press scored a transparency victory this week, at least for now, when the Hinds County Board of Supervisors provided us a list of the documents it plans …
City & County
UPDATED: Abortion Clinic 'Buffer Zone' Draws Ag Commish, Protesters to City Hall
The City is set to vote on a proposal to limit protest activities outside the state's only abortion clinic.
City & County
DOSSIER: Hitting Transparency Brick Walls, Scolded for Immigration Coverage
"I'm officially launching my new weekly Dossier, which will spotlight our accountability journalism, whether about how ICE raids are conducted or when public officials aren't being transparent or not following …
Immigration
Caller Demands JFP Not Sully Football Issue with Stories About 'Illegals,' ICE (Listen)
"Y'all get all this crap in there about this damn illegal raid on these illegal aliens that stole jobs from American citizens," he lectured. "I think that really sucks because …
City & County
Judge Disqualifies Attorneys In Water Lawsuit Against City of Jackson
The City of Jackson, a defendant in a lawsuit over how it is handling the current water-billing crisis, sent out two press statements Wednesday night announcing a victory for its …
Immigration
Beto O'Rourke: Trump Used ICE to 'Terrorize' Mississippi Hispanics
"(Donald Trump) is terrifying this community. People who have done nothing to anybody else posed no threat to America. So there's no other reason to raid this community than to …
Immigration
Rep. Bennie Thompson Demands Answers, Details from AG Barr on Mississippi ICE Raids
Congressman Bennie Thompson sent an eight-page letter and attachments to U.S. Attorney General William Barr demanding answers on why many children were "separated from their parents and terrified because they …
Immigration
UPDATED: Mississippi ICE Raids: How to Help Children, Families (New Funding Links)
After news broke Wednesday of the workplace immigration raids in Mississippi, with 696 arrests and leaving many children stranded at school with nowhere to go, local ministers, advocates and lawyers …
Immigration
After ICE Raids, Some Kids Reunited with Parents or Relatives in Mississippi
Scott County Youth Court Prosecutor Constance Slaughter-Harvey watched Thursday morning as a few children reunited with and embraced parents whom, just a day before, they had been separated from after …
Politics
Reformer Jody Owens Wins Hinds DA's Seat, Other Races Head to Runoff
Jody Owens, a civil-rights attorney running on a "decarceral" platform with national backing, will become Hinds County's new district attorney following the Aug. 6 primary.
City & County
Cedric Willis: Honoree of YMP Crime Forum at Walton Elementary
The late Cedric Willis is the honoree of a youth-crime forum tonight in Jackson where participants will brainstorm both causes and solutions of violence in the capital city.
Crime
Reforming Hinds Criminal System Takes Center Stage in DA Race
The national trend of reforming the criminal-justice system, even from inside prosecutors' offices, emerged dramatically in Hinds County during the current campaigns for the next district attorney, who will be …
Cover
Hinds DA, Sheriff Hopefuls Share Plans, Philosophies in Primary Bid
During the run-up to the Hinds County primaries on Aug. 6, the word "reform" flies around a lot in the two races that have the most direct effect on the …
Business
Jackson Sues Siemens, Local Businessmen for ‘Bait and Switch’ Contract
Mayor Chokwe A. Lumumba announced today that the City of Jackson has filed a lawsuit against Siemens Industry Inc. and associated divisions in the U.S. and Germany, along with multiple …
City & County
Mayor Lumumba Endorses Former JPD Chief Lee Vance for Hinds Sheriff
Jackson Mayor Chokwe Lumumba announced his endorsement of former Jackson Police Chief Lee Vance for Hinds County Sheriff at a press conference outside the Hinds County Courthouse on May 24.
City & County
State May Block Naming Jackson Officers Involved in Shootings
The public-transparency efforts of the City of Jackson in the last year may be for naught if legislation working through the Mississippi Legislature to protect identities of officers who shoot …
City & County
Behind the Badge: Two JPD Officers Who Shot Multiple People in Jackson
After about a year of asking, the Jackson Free Press learned the names, current status and in eight out of nine cases, the details of officer-involved shootings since Mayor Chokwe …
City & County
Jackson Cop Involved in 3 Shootings; Teen Shot 2 Times in Back, Family Says
Officer Anthony Veasey was involved in three separate shootings in Jackson in 14 months since November 2017, including an exchange of gunfire that hit an 18-year-old two times in the …
City & County
Mayor: No ID of Cops in Head Trauma Death; Other JPD Officers in Shootings Finally Revealed
The mayor will not reveal the names of officers accused of killing George Robinson with a head blow, but the City of Jackson finally provided names and details about 12 …
City & County
Lumumba Added to 'Smart Crime Initiative' Despite Policing Decisions at Home
Mayor Chokwe A. Lumumba is joining 15 mayors from cities in the U.S. in a Mayors for Smart Crime Initiative, the Center for American Progress, announced today.
Civil Rights
Mississippi Leaders Still 'Honoring' Racists, After All These Years
The head of the Mississippi state agency that sent out a tweet this week honoring Confederate General Robert E. Lee once attended a rally of a racist organization that refers …
City & County
City: Man, 62, May Have Died After Altercation with Jackson Police
The City of Jackson sent out a cryptic and short press statement at 5:12 p.m. today, indicating that an older man may have died from an encounter with Jackson police …
City & County
Mayor Lumumba on Murders: Police Cannot 'Enter the Minds and Stop These People'
Mayor Chokwe A. Lumumba sent out a statement addressing several murders that roiled the capital city over the weekend—from a preacher killed in the Washington Addition to a teenager killed …
City & County
Former Criminals Training to Stop Violence in Jackson with $150,000 Grant
Terun Moore and Benny Ivey will be Jackson's first official, trained "credible messengers," working to prevent violence in the metro area.
Civil Rights
End Near for Racist Politics in Mississippi?
Wearing a long coat, she stood in front of a statue of Elvis Presley when she told the crowd that if her friend Colin Hutchinson "invited me to a public …
Politics
The Right, and Wrong, Way to Change the Mississippi Flag
It's hard to know whether it cost him votes, but there was a moment during Mississippi Rep. David Baria's unsuccessful campaign for the U.S. Senate that caused a surprised buzz …
Abortion
Governor Calls Abortion ‘Black Genocide,’ Defends Hyde-Smith on ‘Hanging’ Tape
As state and national controversy swirls around U.S. Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith’s comment about a public hanging” in her race against an African American opponent, Gov. Phil Bryant opened a press …
City & County
New Delays for 'One Lake' Likely as Bipartisan Concerns in Congress Grow
One U.S. Senate bill currently waiting on President Donald Trump's signature could have major ramifications for the long-planned and controversial "One Lake" development and flood-control project along the Pearl River …
City & County
Forest Hill Band Skit Causes Stir; School Has Old History of Offensive Displays
Mayor Chokwe A. Lumumba is rebuking Forest Hill High School after social media exploded this morning over a Friday-night half-time skit depicting students supposedly shooting police officers on the field …
Development
U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson Says 'One Lake' Violates Federal Laws
In a surprise move, U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson and a coalition of businesses, public-interest organizations and citizens are speaking out against a draft plan to dam the Pearl River and …
City & County
New Orleans Opponents of 'One Lake' Push Letter Campaign to Stop It
The New Orleans-based Gulf Restoration Network, which formed a coalition in 1995 to "restore the natural resources of the Gulf Region," is pushing a letter-writing campaign against the proposed "One …
Cover
Brotherhood of Destruction: An Addiction-Fueled Journey to Hell and Back
Benny Ivey met former Vice Lord and prominent drug dealer John Knight at a June people’s assembly at New Horizon Church on Ellis Avenue, and the two bonded as they …
City & County
Body Cams, Community Policing, Mental Health Funds on JPD's DOJ Wish List
The Jackson Police Department hopes to equip its officers with body cameras and increase its "community policing" capacity with funds from U.S. Department of Justice.
