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Mississippi Executes Benny Joe Stevens
The state of Misssissippi has executed death-row inmate Benny Joe Stevens. Sunflower County Coroner Heather Burton pronounced Stevens dead at 6:22 p.m. Stevens is the first person executed in Mississippi …
Sounds Like …
No one likes talking to a music snob. Statements like "This isn't psych-pop, it's proto-shoegaze with a proggy, math-rock attitude" don't lend themselves to conversation. As a recovering snob, I …
School Board Grows
The Jackson City Council voted Friday to confirm Mayor Harvey Johnson Jr.'s two additional nominees to the Jackson Public Schools Board of Trustees.
Hinds DA: Castle Doctrine Has Gray Areas
Mississippi's "castle doctrine" law, which allows for the use of deadly force in certain self-defense situations, has some gray areas, Hinds County District Attorney Robert Shuler Smith acknowledged in a …
Eminent Domain: A Lawsuit Waiting to Happen?
The Mississippi Constitution is a tough thing to change. While state law allows voters to amend the Constitution by approving a ballot initiative, it also prohibits ballot initiatives from changing …
Farish Street Nightclub to Increase Security
Attorneys for the Birdland Restaurant and Lounge reached an agreement with Jackson city attorneys yesterday to close the Farish Street nightclub for 30 days while addressing security concerns stemming from …
Big Fair Numbers, Medical Mall Groundbreaking, Creative Class Conference
The Mississippi State Fair is attracting much larger crowds than it did last year, when rain kept attendance low. An estimated 307,052 people attended the fair through Monday, according to …
Burnin' Down the House: DIY Concerts
It's not just for sweaty, basement punks anymore. Do-it-yourself house concerts are cropping up all over Jackson, the perfect expression of the city's collaborative, welcoming music scene.
Medical Mall Pitches Projects
The Jackson Medical Mall Foundation has several large economic-development projects pending, but Hinds County appears unable to support them, for the moment. Primus Wheeler, executive director for the foundation, asked …
Coal Plant Cost Painful
The Mississippi Public Service Commission is taking its time approving rate increases funding a $2.88 billion coal-burning plant already under construction in Kemper County.
Melton Objects To Gulf Coast Jury
Following a federal judge's decision yesterday to hold Mayor Frank Melton's retrial in Jackson, with a jury from the Gulf Coast, Melton has filed a motion to reconsider the ruling. …
Politics
Melton's ‘State': ‘A Bit Of Hyperbole'?
Mayor Frank Melton praised Jackson's economic progress and outlined some of the city's persistent problems in his State of the City address this morning at the TelCom Center.
JPS Cited For Handling of No Child Left Behind Funds
The Jackson Free Press has obtained Mississippi Department of Education documents that raise concerns about how Jackson Public Schools spent nearly $1.3 million in federal No Child Left Behind funds. …
Politics
WJTV Defends Web Poll Focusing on Obama's Race
Two polls on the Web site of Jackson CBS affiliate WJTV reveal an inordinate focus on Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama's race. The first poll deals with Republican presidential nominee …
County Audit Reveals Swap Risk
Hinds County may have earned almost $4.5 million from a complex financial deal, but few in the county appear able to explain where the money went.
Talk
One for the Price of Two
In its zeal to find a new superintendent, Jackson Public Schools has hired one administrator for the price of two. A day after the school board selected Georgia education specialist …
McCoy, Bryant Announce Dueling Oil Spill Panels
Two newly-created committees of state legislators will begin hearings on the Gulf oil spill as early as next week. Yesterday morning, House Speaker Billy McCoy, D-Rienzi, announced the formation of …
A Sordid History: Manhunt Leader Has History of Violence
The man who allegedly led a group of armed white citizens assisting in a search for a black burglary suspect in Sumner had a history of taking the law into …
Judges Building War Chests
With the November judicial elections still months away, many candidates for circuit and county judge positions have not begun campaigning in earnest. If a recent round of campaign-finance records is …
