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Person of the Day
Wayne Brent
Jackson State wasted no time selecting a new coach when Tevester Anderson retired after 10 years of leading the Tigers basketball program. JSU announced last week that the school selected …
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Judge Dismisses Greenwood Capital Murder Charge
A judge has dismissed a charge of capital murder against Greenwood Dr. Arnold Smith, who is charged in arranging an attack on a local attorney.
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Southern Won't Seek U.S. Loan Aid for Miss. Plant
The Southern Co. has withdrawn plans to seek a federal loan guarantee for the power plant its subsidiary, Mississippi Power Co., is building in Kemper County.
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Want a Business That Lasts? Start One With Family
If you want to go into business during tough economic times, you might want to do it with family.
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Obama to Return 5 Percent of Salary to Treasury
Sharing a bit of budget pain, President Barack Obama will return 5 percent of his salary to the Treasury in a show of solidarity with federal workers smarting from government-wide …
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Conn. Governor Set to Sign Gun Control Law
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy was expected to sign a wide-ranging bill that includes sweeping new restrictions on weapons and large capacity ammunition magazines, a response to last year's deadly school …
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North Korea Still Far from Backing up Nuke Threats
Despite the bluster, it could be years before North Korea completes the laborious process of creating more weaponized fuel.
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The Slate
This is one of my favorite weekends in sports and entertainment. WrestleMania is sandwiched between the Final Four and national championship games.
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Bryan's Rant
Last Cinderella at the Ball
Florida Gulf Coast's flameout against Florida leaves Wichita State as the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament's only Cinderella team. The Shockers lived up to their nickname when they shocked Ohio State …
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Sports
Mind Over Muscles
Jarrett Becks began studying martial arts when he was 5 years old. He started with Tae-Kwon-do and moved on to other styles throughout the years.
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Music
Locked in a Darkroom
I hate to admit my insurmountable shame this early into my career in music journalism, or even this early into my column, but it can't be helped.
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Music
Back with a Vengeance
While he may be a relative newcomer to Jackson and to our music scene, Eric Blackwell is no newbie to music.
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Wellness
Miracle Juice
Smoothies blend every part of the fruit or vegetable (or other item) together into a thick concoction. Juicing, on the other hand, extracts only the watery but nutrient-filled juice from …
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Feature
Fondren’s Newest Flavor
I walk into the brightly lit Cafe Ole off State Street where I introduce myself to the owner Alex Sivira, an older man from Venezuela who is currently looking for …
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Civil Rights
A Chokwe Lumumba Primer: His 2013 JFP Interview, Audio, Campaign Reports
Chokwe Lumumba first came to Jackson in the early 1970s as a civil-rights activist. He returned to Michigan shortly after to attend law school, returning to Mississippi in 1988.
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Remembering Hal
Long before he became a restaurateur, raconteur and half of the namesake for Jackson's famous Hal and Mal's, Hal White was a quarterback.
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City Rolls Out New Tech For Cops
By Tyler ClevelandJackson Mayor Harvey Johnson Jr. introduced two new pieces of technology designed to make the Jackson Police Department more efficient, transparent and accountable.
The first demonstration was technology that will allow the city to track city vehicles in real-time on an online map of the city. Johnson said they have already outfitted 50 city vehicles - including work trucks, police cars and heavy equipment - with trackers and are working out the bugs before they put the technology into all the vehicles.
The Mayor said that technology will make the vehicle operators more accountable, make the police department more efficient in their coverage and reduce the carbon footprint from vehicles in the city by helping them map out the most direct route to their destinations. That project has a $55,000 price tag.
The second piece of technology is an e-ticketing system that will allow traffic stops to easier and more efficient. The handheld devices, already issued to 37 officers, allow them to scan a drivers license using a card-swiper, and enter the information for the citation digitally. If he/she issues a ticket, it will be printed instead of hand-written, and the information will insert itself directly in the county or municipal clerk's office instead of having to be filed manually.
Those devices cost $3,300 per unit.
Mayor Johnson also gave out the COMSTAT trophy for the most-improved precinct to Precinct 1 (Jackson's south side), where crime has dropped nearly 30 percent in the past three months.
The JFP received this release from the mayor's office Wednesday afternoon:
South Jackson has dramatic decrease in property crimes
Recent Jackson Police Department statistics reveal that South Jackson’s Precinct 1 led the entire city in crime reduction for the first Quarter of 2013. The Precinct saw a 28.9% drop in overall crime. Property crime decreased by 28.2% and violent crime decreased by 32.5%.
Each quarter the Jackson Police Department recognizes the precinct with the greatest drop in overall crime. That precinct is then awarded the traveling COMSTAT Trophy.
For Precinct One to win the COMSTAT Trophy represents a “remarkable turnaround” said, Police Chief Rebecca Coleman.
She further stated, “This is a tribute to the hard work, dedication and perseverance of the police officers that are assigned to Precinct One. Working in conjunction with the citizens of South Jackson, and implementing several crime fighting strategies, we have seen great success. Commander Wallace of Precinct 1 and her staff are very deserving of this recognition.”
In recent years, Precinct 1 has routinely led the city in the number of House Burglaries committed. They have averaged as many as fifty a week. Beginning in 2009, Chief Coleman implemented strategies aimed towards reducing these numbers. These included the following:
- Increasing the number of beats from 8 – 10
- Re-assigning support personnel to patrol duty in areas most affected
- Using the D.A.R.T. Unit in these areas as much as possible
“The biggest impact we have seen has been in the individual beat officer’s response time, …
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Justifying Foolishness
At times, this country is a model for intolerance. Our compassion is thrown to the wind, and our grand ignorance is on display for all to see.
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Business
Dine-in Cinema Survey
Groups of college students with the Else School of Management at Millsaps College are conducting surveys to determine the market viability of bringing a dine-in cinema concept theater---similar to the …
