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Education
Mississippi Teachers’ Union Sues Jackson Chapter President for Embezzlement
American Federation of Teachers Mississippi is suing Jackson Federation of Teachers President Akemi Stout in the U. S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi for alleged embezzlement of …
Civil Rights
60th Anniversary of the Freedom Rides: The ‘Accidental Freedom Rider’ Locked up in Parchman at 13
Hezekiah Watkins was looking for a hero. As a 13-year-old middle schooler in 1961 in Jackson who had lost his father three years earlier, he thought that seeing and possibly …
State
‘It Was Hard For Me to Stop’: Hinds Circuit Drug Intervention Court Graduates 26
Veronica Coleman, 33, graduated from the Hinds Circuit Drug Court on July 28, 2021. The mother of four believes the program was a lifeline.
City & County
City Uses $2.95 Million to Remove 117 Blighted Properties in Jackson
The City of Jackson, working with blight-elimination partners, has demolished 117 properties across the city using a $2.95 million grant from the Mississippi Home Corporation, officials announced at a press …
City & County
'Crazy Times': Mayor Lumumba Defends Vaccine Mandate for City Workers
Jackson Mayor Chokwe A. Lumumba signed an executive order Wednesday requiring all City workers to produce proof by Aug. 31 of receiving at least one vaccine dose or a negative …
State
Marshand Crisler New Interim Hinds Sheriff, As Mayors Honor Lee Vance
Friends, family and associates of Sheriff Lee Vance, along with local leaders, gathered at the Mississippi Coliseum on Saturday, Aug. 14, the Jackson native’s burial ceremony. Vance died Aug. 4 …
Education
Indigent Jackson Children Increased Kindergarten Readiness Score Via City Program
Children at the Jackson Early Childhood Development Centers recorded a 40% increase in kindergarten readiness scores in the 2020-2021 session.
City & County
City Council Rejects Garbage Collection Contract Twice Citing Confusion, Bad Timing
The City of Jackson has until Sept. 30 to get a new garbage-collection contract after the city council voted twice in two weeks—Aug. 9 and 19—against approving the agreements that …
City & County
JPS Board Approves Virtual Learning Option for PreK-6th Grade Starting Sept. 2
Jackson Public School District parents have until 5 p.m. Friday, Aug. 27, to fill out a survey indicating if they want the virtual-learning option for their pre-kindergarten to sixth-grade students.
City & County
Hinds County Reentry Program Starts Collecting Applications Sept. 1
Hinds County will take applications from intending participants of its reentry program on Wednesday, Sept. 1, at the Jackson Convention Center from 9:30 a.m to 4 p.m.
City & County
Group Plans Black Business Expo in Jackson and Gulfport in 2022
The Mississippi Black Business Pages will host two events in Jackson and Gulfport next year, bringing together Black-owned businesses at those locations.
Cover
Lost in a Broken System: Why Detainees Spend Years in Hinds Jails Without Trial
Fifty-eight people in Hinds County Detention Centers by July 2, 2021, had spent more than two years there, documents the Jackson Free Press obtained show.
City & County
City Council Approves $2 Million for Multi-Use Trail, Questions Data Scientist on Deliverables
"While we've been doing walking trails in various parts of the city, we wanted to connect west Jackson, make sure that there were no parts of our city that were …
City & County
Jackson Rescinds $1 Million Plan to Rent Misdemeanor Jail Space, Fund Deputies
The Jackson City Council has reversed its controversial 2020 decision to use $500,000 to rent jail spaces in Holmes and Yazoo counties for people charged with low-level misdemeanors in the …
City & County
Interim Hinds County Sheriff Moves to Curtail Violent Crime with Gun Suppression Unit
Interim Hinds County Sheriff Marshand Crisler plans to set up a gun suppression unit to arrest convicted felons caught with guns.
City & County
Jackson Planning Director Confirmed As Two Councilmen Question Her Record
Two Jackson City Council members voted against Director of Planning and Development Jordan Hillman's official confirmation to a new term on Thursday, Sept. 10.
City & County
Illegal Dumping: City-wide Clean-up Planned
It will take a city-wide cleanup effort to move the needle against the menace of illegal dumping in Jackson, Solid Waste Division Manager Lakesha Weathers told the city council at …
City & County
Mayor Declares State of Emergency As Waste Disposal Negotiations Hit Snag
Getting a garbage-collection contract for the City of Jackson is coming down to the wire after Mayor Chokwe A. Lumumba declared a state of emergency on Friday, Sept. 17, saying …
City & County
(UPDATED) Jackson City Council Rescinds Mayor's Emergency Order, Nixes Garbage Disposal Contract
A war of words has continued between Mayor Chokwe A. Lumumba and Waste Management over a new garbage disposal contract.
Politics
Matory, Harris-Williams, and Green Running for Hinds County Sheriff
Cheryl Matory, Beverly Harris-Williams and Colendula Green are among the 13 candidates running for the Hinds County sheriff’s position in a special election on Nov. 2.
