Jackson Free Press

How It Works: The Journalism Awards Process

Every year, Jackson Free Press editor-in-chief Donna Ladd chooses a wide selection of the newspaper's best work to submit for awards in a variety of contests.

[Balko] Getting Forensics Right

by Radley Balko March 14, 2011 After countless scandals in recent years, the problems with America's forensics system are finally getting some national attention. In December, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) …

Hate Is as Hate Does

"So when is the Southern Poverty Law Center going to file a lawsuit against the man who killed Mr. Patel?" This was only one of many comments I've seen since …

[Balko] Failing Upward in Criminal Justice

When the SWAT team came for Richard Paey in 1997, officers battered down the front door of the Florida home he shared with his wife and their two children. Paey …

‘It Won't Be Long'

Before Martin Luther King Jr. stood on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., telling the nation of his dream in 1963, Medgar Evers also had a dream. The civil-rights activist …

For Them, the Brave

It used to be that murders of black people didn't matter. They still don't matter enough, but they get taken a lot more seriously than they did back when I …

Minor Gets Three Hours with Dying Wife

Bill Minor, the father of convicted attorney and Democratic fundraiser Paul Minor, told the Jackson Free Press that his son only has three hours to visit his dying wife in …

Feds to Pay Recio's Legal Fees

The federal government will take up the burden of Michael Recio's mounting legal expenses. Cynthia Stewart, Recio's attorney, requested that the court appoint her as a public defender, and yesterday, …

PSC Creates New Hurdles for Coal-Burning Plant

The Mississippi Public Service Commission met last Friday to consider multiple motions submitted by Mississippi Power, the Sierra Club, Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood and others regarding Mississippi Power's proposed …

Dealing With The Bad Guys

Precinct 4 COPS meetings have proved a reliable format for city figures to meet with concerned residents and discuss problems facing the community, particularly infrastructure and crime issues. The Aug. …

‘Take The Fight To The People'

Jackson County Chancery Court Judge Jaye Bradley reversed her own December 2000 decision earmarking $20 million to The Partnership For a Healthy Mississippi, possibly jeopardizing the program's smoking-cessation programs.

Not So Happy New Year

Jackson resident Oliver Bass, a 56-year-old Vietnam veteran, has been unable to get a job since 2009. He has experience in machine operation and cooking, and he can run a …

Accused Can't See Evidence Against Them

On July 4, 2009, Basil DeJuan Sullivan was arrested for disorderly conduct at Freelon's Bar and Groove. Sullivan alleges that a group of Hinds County deputies threw him out of …

Student Exchange Sponsor Hounded by Complaints

An organization suspended from bringing foreign exchange students to the U.S. was hounded in recent years by allegations of mismanagement.

What will become of Journalism?

Recent bad news among newsprint papers such as the Clarion Ledger (see postings here) and today's announcement of the Tribune Company's bankruptcy filing underscore a tectonic shift in the viability …

Personhood Stalled in Nevada, Arkansas

As Mississippi voters rejected a proposed personhood amendment last November, Personhood USA and other supporters of the measure already had plans underway to promote similar initiatives in other states.

Great Moments in Law

I ran across this while researching my new crime history book for Facts on File, and just about cracked up.

College Promises: Too Good To Be True

Shirley Washington and Tiffeny Anderson had been kicking around the idea of going back to school when they came across advertisements for Virginia College. Actually, Washington stresses, the college ran …

Jackson Bans Facial Recognition Tech; New Airport Academy, Sewer Repairs

The Jackson Police Department will not be able to use facial recognition technology to identify people after the city council voted to preemptively ban the practice on Tuesday.

Re-elect Harvey Johnson Jr.

We liked the idea of new blood in city government in 2013. We are, therefore, both excited and encouraged by the prospect of a number of new, younger city council …

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