All results / Stories / Ward Schaefer
Arizona-Style Immigration Bill Advances, In A Hurry
The Mississippi Senate passed a bill modeled after Arizona's anti-immigrant law SB 1070 today, despite protests by some Democrats that the measure was rife with errors carried over from the …
State Has Highest Rate of Unbanked
Limited use of traditional banks threatens the ability of Mississippi's working class to improve its economic situation, a report released yesterday says. The report, issued by the Mississippi Economic Policy …
Hinds Ends Interest-Rate Swap
A multi-year financial transaction will provide Hinds County a final payment of $1.52 million next month. The transaction, an interest-rate swap on two bond issues, has saved the county money …
JRA Refinancing, Renovating
The Jackson Redevelopment Authority took initial steps toward lightening its debt burden today, with a vote to authorize the refinancing of $9 million in debt. The vote also paves the …
Blues Marathon Growing Boon for City
When 2,000 people swarm Jackson streets tomorrow morning, they'll be bringing dollars and a growing sense of prestige to the city. Saturday's Mississippi Blues Marathon is only the fourth year …
Advocates Urge Canceling of Youth Prison Contract
Mississippi should cancel its contract with private prison company GEO Group, juvenile justice advocates said today. GEO Group, which operates the Walnut Grove Youth Correctional Facility, is the subject of …
Judging Carefully
For Judge Leslie King, serving on the Mississippi Supreme Court is a natural career move, if not necessarily one he expected. Last week, Gov. Haley Barbour appointed King to the …
Jackson ‘White Flight' Slows In Last Decade
The release of 2010 Census data earlier this year may have been a gut-check for Jackson's leaders, but the numbers were hardly surprising. News reports, however, were quick to seize …
The Slippery Arena Study
The push for an entertainment arena in downtown Jackson, once a private endeavor, is now a matter for city government. Last month, the steering committee of business leaders that has …
Out of Time
Once the drugs started to flow, it took only a minute for Benny Joe Stevens' lips to stop moving. He slipped out of consciousness, and soon his heart stopped.
Catherine Sherer Bishop
A random Thursday night at Fenian's Pub in 1998 sparked a long-term love of Irish dance for Catherine Sherer Bishop. That night, Bishop saw the Jackson Irish Dancers, then a …
The Cheering Section
As Jackson Public Schools Superintendent Lonnie Edwards makes the case for keeping his job, he has relied on the support of a variety of visible community members.
Caring for Criminals
Inmate medical care is an unpopular business, at least in Hinds County. The Hinds County Board of Supervisors learned that lesson the hard way in January, when it found itself …
GOP Official Threatens Hinds With Lawsuit
The Hinds County Board of Supervisors may face a lawsuit over its decision to hire Mississippi NAACP President Derrick Johnson to oversee its redistricting process. Hinds County Republican Party Chairman …
State ‘Backward' on Transparency?
A new state law could take Mississippi from the middle of the pack among states, in its government transparency and accountability to near the bottom.
Un-gifting JPS
State budget cuts are forcing Jackson Public Schools to scale back its gifted-education classes to the bare minimum required by state law. With their emphasis on hands-on learning and critical …
Showdown Ahead on Immigration Lawsuits
Mississippi lawmakers are headed for a standoff on two provisions of a proposed Arizona-style immigration bill. The House of Representatives passed Senate Bill 2179 yesterday but stripped a controversial section …
Dirk Dedeaux
Dirk Dedeaux knows the cost of obesity to Mississippi taxpayers. Dedeaux, a Democratic representative from Perkinston, chairs the House Medicaid Committee, giving him a front seat to witness the economic …
Gwendolyn Magee
Jackson-based artist Gwen Magee, whose vibrant quilts elevated a traditional craft to nationally acclaimed works of art, died yesterday. Magee, who was intensely private, had been battling a long-term illness, …
State's African Americans See Higher Unemployment
Like many things in Mississippi, the hardship of unemployment during the Great Recession has fallen unequally on the state's population. African American workers in Mississippi experienced an 18 percent unemployment …
