Jackson Free Press

The wait is over, kids. Mississippi House members finally have a new legislative district map to vote on. The maps, which add two districts in rapidly growing DeSoto County, were unveiled at the Capitol today. Under the plan, several Democrats could lose their seats either by hasquaring off with fellow Democrats or by having to compete in mostly GOP districts.

Pew Research survey gives Obama an 8-point lead over Romney.

Jackson residents are invited to take part in a second telephone town-hall meeting with Jackson Mayor Harvey Johnson.

The state of Mississippi is moving closer to carrying out the first execution of 2013.

The Mississippi State Supreme Court denied today Willie Jerome Manning's requests for a rehearing and a stay of execution. Manning wants DNA tests that were not available at the time of his conviction in the early 1990s. Manning received the death penalty for the December 1992 killings of two Mississippi State University students, Tiffany Miller and Jon Steckler.

Manning has maintained his innocence. This Mississippi Innocence Project filed a brief in support of Manning. Innocence Projects usually don't get involved with cases that lack compelling evidence of innocence. Of the seven people Innocence Project helped exonerate, six of them were freed because their DNA was absent from the scene of the crime, the brief states.

In addition to the DNA request, Manning's attorney said one of the prosecution's jury-selection tactics in Manning's trial was discriminatory. Voisin said some candidates listed publications such as Jet and Ebony magazines on a jury questionnaire. Prosecutors dismissed some of the potentials because they read liberal publications.

In 2012, Mississippi tied with Arizona and Oklahoma for second-most executions carried out in the United States, with six in each state. Texas led the nation with 15 executions in 2012. Manning is scheduled to be executed May 7 at Mississippi State Penitentiary in Parchman.

The city of Jackson has issued two precautionary boil-water notices due to loss of water pressure during water-main repair.

Jackson Mayor Chokwe Lumumba is attempting to end his representation of another client, Reggae star Buju Banton, in Tampa, Fla.

The withdrawal comes on the heels of the news from Oktibbeha County, where Lumumba last week relinquished his role in the murder case against Archie Quinn, which was scheduled to begin Monday. Lumumba first filed a motion with the court saying his duties as mayor were too burdensome to continue his representation of Mr. Quinn, but that request was denied by the court. He then raised health concerns, according to an account in the Starkville Daily News.

According to the Tampa Bay Times, Banton, born Mark Myrie, is serving a 10-year prison sentence for helping set up a deal to buy and sell 11 pounds of cocaine.

Lumumba had already won Banton the dismissal of a gun charge and left one juror facing a misconduct charge for researching the case during trial.

Lumumba and Imhotep Alkebu-lan, his recent appointment as special assistant to the city attorney, both filed a motion Wednesday in U.S. District Court to withdraw, stating that their new duties "will prevent them from representing him in future proceedings."

Those requests were referred to a magistrate judge.

The Animal Rescue Fund of Mississippi is making a desperate plea for donations.