All results / Stories / Donna Ladd
JFP
The JFP at 15: Raising Hell, Having Fun
The Jackson Free Press' official birthday is Sept. 22, my late badass mother's birthday. She was illiterate, but loved to tell stories and encouraged me to say whatever I needed …
Crime
UPDATED: Darnell Turner Gets 45 Years, Judge Brings Up DA Smith
The young woman who accused Darnell Turner of beating her, dragging her, strangling her, shooting at her car, and dangling her off a bridge in the Washington Addition when she …
City & County
Murder in the City: Deep Causes, Harmful Biases, Unexpected Solutions to Gun Violence
On the night of Thursday, Feb. 9, a group of twenty-something Jacksonians were hanging out in Westwood Apartments at 3150 Robinson Road playing dominoes. Suddenly, several men walked in pointing …
Crime
Solutions: How to Prevent Gun Violence
Here is a sampling of evidence-based solutions for preventing and interrupting gun violence. See jfp.ms/stopviolence for links to learn more.
City & County
A Violence Talk That Might Have Been
It felt more like a bait-and-switch. But maybe the City Hall gathering was a start of a new way of thinking about crime prevention in the capital city.
City & County
A Sense of Urgency: Sen. John Horhn Pledges to Cure What Ails City Hall
Sen. John Horhn may have been in the Mississippi Legislature for 24 years, but the Jackson man doesn't always get what he wants.
Civil Rights
An Editor and a Gentleman
An odd fluke of fate brought me to the patch of dirt where three civil rights workers were murdered in my home county, holding the hand of James Chaney's daughter …
Development
‘One Lake’ Tax Sails Forward
Previous plans to dramatically remake the portion of the Pearl River that flows through the Jackson metropolitan area ran aground, but legislation is sailing toward the governor's desk that would …
Crime
A ‘Gang,’ By Any Other Name
The word "gang" means different things to different people—and the realities of organized gangs in U.S. cities have shifted over the years. One result is that many of them are …
City & County
UPDATED: Capitol Complex Bill with Funds for Jackson Passes, Heads to Governor
The year 2017 may be the charm for Jackson, at least when it comes to getting upward of $20 million a year from the State of Mississippi to help repair …
City & County
Ahem, City Candidates
Sixteen people may be running for mayor, but as of press time, only two of them had met the Jan. 31, 2017, annual reporting deadline—nearly two months later.
City & County
Rains Bring Flood Control Front of Mind; 'One Lake' Promised as Solution
The reality and unpredictability of the mighty Pearl waters bring the issue of long-delayed and debated flood control back front of mind in the metro, as the Rankin-Hinds Pearl River …
City & County
A Mayor's Story: Tony Yarber on His Past Mistakes and Evolving Vision
Mayor Tony Yarber is different this time around. During his first run for the job vacated when Mayor Chokwe Lumumba died in 2014, a bunch of urgent business suits surrounded …
Next Mayor Must Lead on Preventing Youth Crime
As I type, the polls for the mayoral primaries are still open, and the outcome is uncertain. What I do know is that Jackson must adopt a new attitude when …
Editor's Note
Donald and Melania, Stop Insulting Men
Wait, what? No, Melania, good men aren't "egged" into bragging that they can grab women's private parts any time they want. I get that you're trying to defend your husband, …
Civil Rights
Win or Lose, We Must Fight the ‘Trump Effect’
The white woman's name and phone number showed up clearly on the caller ID when she called the Jackson Free Press several times, angry about a column a young black …
Editor's Note
The Impolite Free Press in the Age of Trump
Let's get this straight off the bat: There is no one reason that Hillary Clinton lost and Donald Trump won enough electoral votes last week to become president.
Editor's Note
I’m a Patriot, Not a ‘Libtard’
A Republican friend from Mississippi State, whom I haven't seen in decades, wrote on my Facebook page recently that he reads my work, and he actually finds me quite conservative …
City & County
Making of a Landslide: Chokwe A. Lumumba and a Changing Jackson
Primary night wasn't supposed to end that way. Chokwe Antar Lumumba could not possibly beat nine Democratic opponents outright and avoid a run-off. Here's why he did.
City & County
Lumumba Files Finance Address Supplement, GOP Nominee Wells Unaware of Need to File
The Democratic nominee for Jackson mayor has filed a supplement listing missing campaign-donor addresses, while the GOP nominee says he didn't know he had to disclose the information.
