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Sit, Pray, Love
Walking up the leaf-littered driveway off Old Canton Road, I almost miss the unassuming little brown building tucked away in the trees, but Bebe Wolfe is on the front porch …
2011 Budget Slashes State Jobs
Following Gov. Haley Barbour's cost-cutting lead, the Joint Legislative Budget Committee released their proposed budget for the next fiscal year, which begins July 2010. Among its recommendations is eliminating 3,600 …
Cheryl Keeton Shelton
One wouldn't necessarily connect a sixth grade teacher with the FBI, but Daniel McMullen, special agent in charge of the FBI's Jackson division, selected just such a teacher for the …
Mayor Proclaims Homeless Persons' Memorial Day
[verbatim] Jackson Mayor Harvey Johnson, Jr., will proclaim Friday, Dec. 18, as James Ivory Homeless Persons' Memorial Day at an observance scheduled for 9:30 a.m. that day at the Stewpot …
Childers to Tour Crop Disaster Areas
Today, Rep. Travis Childers, representing Mississippi's first Congressional district, will lead a crop disaster tour throughout his district in the company of U.S. Department of Agriculture Deputy Under Secretary Michael …
Happening's this Weekend
Bundle up this afternoon and head to the historic Farish Street district for an evening of holiday celebration. At 4 p.m., join the Farish Street/Main Street Project for the annual …
MDH Offering Free Flu Vaccines
The Mississippi State Department of Health is now offering free vaccines for the H1N1 flu, commonly known as swine flu, to Mississippians. Residents 6 months of age or older can …
Girl, 8, Shot at Boys & Girls Club
An 8-year-old girl was shot in the head while sitting inside the Boys & Girls Club on Sykes Road at around 2:30 p.m. today, according to Jackson police. The unidentified …
Howard Exec Pleads Guilty
Jose Humberto Gonzalez, 45, former personnel director at Howard Industries in Laurel, Miss., pleaded guilty yesterday to conspiracy related to the company's hiring of undocumented immigrants. On August 25, 2008, …
AG's Office Getting Tough on Rip-Offs
Attorney General Jim Hood has announced formation of Mississippi's first intellectual property theft task force, supported by the national business community, according to a release. "Operation Knock Out Knock-Offs" is …
Tonight: Ward 2 Community Meeting
Jackson Mayor Harvey Johnson Jr. will host a community meeting in Ward 2 tonight at 6 p.m. The meeting's purpose is to discuss city services and plans, and will include …
It's the Weekend
The place to be tonight is Hal & Mal's for the Winter 2009 Chick Jam. The fun kicks off at 8 p.m., with performances by Fedora Welty, Party Dots and …
Unity Conference Gets Underway
"Building Bridges Through Diversity: One Goal, One Vision" is this year's theme for the fourth annual Unity Conference, sponsored by the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and the Mississippi Immigrants Rights …
Jackson No. 3 'Best Bang-for-the-Buck' City
Americans are thinking differently when evaluating cities where they might settle down and raise a family. In the wake of the real-estate bubble and in the midst of major unemployment, …
State Revenues Under Estimate Again
State tax revenues were down again in November by 6.88 percent, making last month the 15th consecutive month in a row where the state's income fell below expectations. The Mississippi …
Elders to Speak at World AIDS Day Event
Jackson AIDS activist Robin Webb told the Jackson Free Press last month that AIDS disproportionately affects the South, African Americans and men. In Mississippi, Webb said, approximately 9,000 people are …
Belhaven ‘College' No More
After 126 years, Belhaven College, a private Christian liberal arts school in the heart of Jackson, is changing its name to Belhaven University. The school's president, Dr. Roger Parrott, will …
Council to Vote on Melton's Legal Fees
On tomorrow's agenda for the Jackson City Council is the question of whether to pay former Mayor Frank Melton's legal fees and those of his two bodyguards. City Attorney Pieter …
Lies, Damn Lies and ‘Dangerous' Rankings
Heard that Jackson is one of the "most dangerous" cities? Read the fine print.
Hinds to Receive Federal Transportation Funds
The U.S. Department of Transportation announced yesterday that Hinds County will receive $1.425 million to replace pavement on Siwell Road. The road is a key link in the 18-mile corridor …
New Breast Cancer Guidelines Spark Controversy
Last week, two separate groups released new recommendations regarding cancer screening for women. On Nov. 16 the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force reversed decades of previous recommendations regarding mammograms to …
MDE Releases New School Ratings
This morning, the Mississippi Department of Education released the details of its new public school ratings system, after more than two years. The MDE needed the new accountability model "to …
Happenings in Jackson This Weekend
If finding the perfect, one-of-a-kind holiday gift is what you're after, this is one weekend to get it done. Head to the Mississippi Trademart today until 6 p.m. today or …
FBI Seeks Cold-Case Next of Kin
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is reassessing more than 100 unsolved civil rights era cold cases, and is searching for victims' next of kin to notify the families of their …
Corps Responsible for Katrina Flooding, Court Rules
More than four years after Hurricane Katrina roared out of the Gulf of Mexico, yesterday a federal court ruled against the Army Corps of Engineers for their failure to properly …
Nature vs. Nurture
In the western world, the earliest works depicting homosexuality come from the ancient Greeks, where the practice of adult men having sexual relations with male youths was considered quite normal. …
Capital Murder Conviction Reversed
The Mississippi Appeals Court has reversed Cory Maye's murder conviction for the Dec. 26, 2001, killing of Ron Jones, a police officer in Prentiss, Miss., a tiny community of 1,000 …
JPS Extends Strings Program
The Jackson Public Schools Board of Trustees has approved a revised contract with the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra to extend the strings program through the end of the current school year, …
JFP Hosts Domestic Abuse Forum at Welty Library
Why do men abuse? Why do women stay? How can the community stop the cycle of domestic abuse in a state that is among the most dangerous for women?
Robin Webb
Concert pianist, composer and activist Robin Webb, 52, has been living with HIV and AIDS for more than two decades. Diagnosed in 1988 as HIV positive, his doctor told him …
State Earns "F" from March of Dimes but Shows Improvement
Mississippi received a failing grade from the second annual March of Dimes Premature Birth Report Card, but the organization states that it showed improvement on some criteria. The report, released …
Barbour to Announce Budget Recommendations
Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour will provide the state with his recommendations for the budget today. With revenues lagging behind estimates for the last year, politicians and pundits expect the announced …
It's the Weekend!
Disregarding any gloom and doom on this Friday the 13th, go start the weekend right at the Eudora Welta Commons with gumbo and tunes at 7 p.m. For a mere …
Barbour Visits Iraq; Talks State Budget Cuts
Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour spent Veteran's Day in Iraq visiting some of the 124,000 American troops there, including more than 3,500 from the Magnolia state, mostly from the Tupelo-based 155th …
Judges Order Two Off Mississippi Death Row
In separate cases, federal judges have ruled that two Mississippi inmates on death row in Parchman are mentally ill. Both cases stem from 1981 crimes, and the two inmates have …
National HIV/AIDS Town Hall Comes to Jackson
The White House Office of National AIDS Policy selected 14 cities for community discussions to develop and implement a national HIV/AIDS strategy. Among the stops is Jackson on Monday, Nov. …
Smoking Ban Results in Fewer Heart Attacks
While many Jackson citizens have yet to see the health benefits of a smoking ban enacted by the city last February, the city of Starkville, which banned smoking in 2006, …
Free Flu Meds Available
The Mississippi State Department of Health is making antiviral medications available to uninsured and underinsured patients. In an agreement with selected pharmacies, the department is offering Tamiflu and Relenza from …
Ida Weakens to Tropical Storm
This morning, the National Hurricane Center downgraded Ida from a hurricane to a tropical storm, with maximum sustained winds of 70 mph. The late season gulf storm was off the …
Attorney General Info Initiative Launched
In an effort to have Mississippi residents understand the resources available to them through his office, Attorney General Jim Hood announced a statewide educational initiative yesterday.
Toys for Tots Registration This Weekend
The City of Jackson and the U.S. Marine Corps has announced its annual child signup for the coming holiday season. Registration will be held at the Jackson Medical Mall near …
Burnham Selected as Superintendent of Schools
The Mississippi Board of Education announced its unanimous selection for Superintendent of Schools yesterday: Dr. Tom Burnham, 56, who held the position from 1992 to 1997. Burnham replaces Interim Superintendent …
State Tax Revenues Down Again
Mississippi tax collections for October were behind estimates for the month by 6.74 percent, or $28.5 million, Gov. Haley Barbour stated yesterday. For the year to date, the first four …
Laurence C. Jones
A hundred years ago, Laurence Clifton Jones established The Piney Woods School in rural Rankin County with $2 and three students. Jones, born Nov. 21, 1884, in St. Joseph Mo., …
U.S. Supreme Court Rejects Plea in Seale Case
In a statement today, the U.S. Supreme Court has rejected a plea from the 5th U.S. Court of Appeals to decide whether the statute of limitations had run out in …
