Jackson Free Press

State Executions Illegal, Attorneys Say

Two Jackson attorneys are asking the state to delay multiple executions to get itself legal on the use of a new euthanasia drug.

How to Be Safe

When I lived in the Washington, D.C., area, I knew a woman who was repeatedly on the receiving end of crime. She was mugged in the subway, had her purse …

[Balko] Bad Prosecutors, Mississippi and Beyond

Anthony Caravella walked away from a Florida prison last month. He served 26 years for a rape and murder that DNA testing has shown he didn't commit. Caravella was 15 …

Melton Draws Attention of A.G.

Attorney General Jim Hood told the Jackson Free Press that he has not opened a formal investigation into any possible lawbreaking by Jackson Mayor Frank Melton, despite headlines in the …

BREAKING: Mississippi Supreme Court Censors Dissenting Opinion

The Mississippi Supreme Court censored the dissenting opinion (PDF, 456 KB) of Justice Oliver Diaz yesterday, a possibly "unprecedented" move "in the history of American jurisprudence," according to Diaz.

Senate Committee to Kill Override Attempt

A resolution passed by the House last month in an attempt to override Gov. Haley Barbour's rejection of $56 million in federal stimulus dollars will likely never get out of …

City Council Feuds Over Secrecy

A meeting of the City Council descended into bitter acrimony Monday over whether or not to go into closed session regarding a construction contract. Reginold Harrion, deputy city lawyer for …

BREAKING: Supreme Court Reinstates Re-vote

The Mississippi Supreme Court has granted Rep. John Reeves' emergency petition and reversed Hinds County Judge Winston Kidd, who ruled earlier in the week that the re-vote in the election …

Melton Came Within Two Votes of Conviction

Within days of coming within two votes of going to federal prison, Mayor Frank Melton revealed to the Jackson Free Press last Thursday for the first time publicly that he …

Undocumented Workers, Felons and Fines

Illegal immigrants and employers of illegal immigrants beware. The House passed Senate Bill 2988 by a wide margin today. The bill, called the Mississippi Employee Protection Act, forces all employers …

Mississippi GOP Politicizes Scruggs Plea

The head of the Mississippi Republican Party is using the guilty plea of Richard "Dickie" Scruggs to try to focus the scandal spotlight away from Republicans and put it squarely …

Willie Morris Library Opens Today

The brand spanking new Willie Morris branch of the Jackson-Hinds Public Library opens today at 10 a.m. at 4912 Old Canton Road. Willie's wife (and JFP senior editor) JoAnne Prichard …

Crime High, Perception Bleak

Recent Jackson Police Department statistics reveal that major crime this year remains stubbornly high compared to last year's figures. Though the May 8-14 ComStat Overview Report reveals that crime is …

Defense More Difficult This Time

Jackson Mayor Frank Melton will be back again in court July 16 for the Aug. 26, 2006, destruction of a duplex on Ridgeway Street—an incident first reported by the Jackson …

Community Events and Public Meetings

Monday, April 19

2 p.m., "Global Warming: Attribution, Who is to Blame?" at Jackson State University (1400 John R. Lynch St.) in Just Science Hall, room 209. Dr. Anthony Lupo of the University …

Barbour Rips Media over Health Care

It's the "liberal media elite" that is to blame for passage of the health-care bill, according to Gov. Haley Barbour. Speaking on ABC's "This Week" yesterday, Barbour insinuated that media …

Compromise Sex-Ed Bill Moves Ahead

School districts would have to choose between implementing an abstinence-only or an abstinence-plus sex education curriculum by June 2011 under a bill the House Education Committee passed Wednesday.

Come All Ye Faithful

In his column last week, The Clarion-Ledger's Sid Salter quoted the fifth chapter of Matthew to justify Gov. Haley Barbour diverting federal money away from low-income Katrina re-housing and into …

Will You Bother to Vote?

There's no argument that the right to vote has been hard won in Mississippi, but this election year only a fragment of the state's citizens, black or white, is likely …

Dear Meadville: Thomas Moore Tries To Wake Up His Hometown

Photo of Mac Littleton by Kate Medley

On his July pilgrimage back to his native Mississippi, Thomas Moore got his hopes up. With the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. and the Jackson Free Press documenting his effort, Moore went …