Jackson Free Press

Jackson Resident Claims Racism

Jackson resident Robert Shoulders is suing Utility Constructors Inc. and its owner Terry Lovelace for racial harassment.

A couple of things you should know about

Ledger Publishes Old News on Michael Taylor

Oddly, The Clarion-Ledger today published a news story about Frank Melton's young friend, Michael Taylor, pointing out that new D.A. Robert Smith will have a conflict prosecuting him. This is …

Legislative Black Caucus Foils Plan to Unseat McCoy?

Rep. George Flaggs, D-Vicksburg, told the Jackson Free Press Friday that the Mississippi Legislative Black Caucus adopted a position on Thursday against the candidacy of Columbus Rep. Jeffrey Smith's run …

Mayor Re-instates, Discredits JPD Promotion Exams

Jackson Mayor Frank Melton announced today that the police department will again administer police officer promotion exams to officers currently serving in acting sergeant and lieutenant positions because the city …

Does This Make Sense?

The Clarion-Ledger has a story about D.A.-elect Robert Smith not showing up for a docket call and needing to resolve his pending cases before he takes office in January. The …

The Politics of Voter ID

Photos by Adam Lynch and Kate Medley

Candidates tend to look for issues to separate themselves from their opponents. It's a tough order in conservative Mississippi, where many nominees on both sides of the political spectrum agree …

Dreaming Through Adversity

"What happens to a dream deferred?" asks Langston Hughes in his poem "Harlem." "Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun?/Or fester like a sore—/And then run?"

[Dickerson] How Much Justice Can You Afford?

Have you ever purchased an insurance policy, confident that your check (and the insurance agent's pledge that "you're now covered") would be enough to protect you?

What's In A Label?

Photos by Katrina Hercules, Jaro Vacek, Darren Schwindaman, and Nate Glenn

It's a Thursday evening in late August. For some reason, the AC's on the fritz, but who cares? Hal & Mal's Red Room is slammed. Through open doors, overflow—sound and …

Cops Vow to Air Dirty Laundry

The day after City Council refused to fund the promotions of Mayor Frank Melton's bodyguards, a local police union said today that talks with the mayor about the appointments were …

Oxford Cop Killer Pleads Down to Manslaughter

The Clarion-Ledger is reporting:

Libertarian Magazine Probes State Medical Examiner

Over the last week, an investigative story in Reason magazine by Radley Balko probing Mississippi medical examiner Steven Hayne has attracted national attention, even drawing an editorial in the Wall …

Doris Shavers' Family: Melton Lied

Shalandria Shavers, the 21-year-old daughter of domestic-violence victim Doris Shavers, and James Hopkins, Shavers' brother, served notice today to the city of Jackson and Mayor Frank Melton of a wrongful-death …

Thirteen-story Ridgeland High Rise Passes 4-3

The Ridgeland Board of Aldermen voted 4-to-3 in favor of the construction of a 13-story office building. Ridgeland codes currently limit building heights to four stories, so developer Buster Bailey …

Good Times with Recio & the Gang

Michael Recio was big and hulking and provided decent cover for a reporter who wasn't used to walking up to people's homes unannounced in the middle of the night. I …

Eaves' Health-Care Plan Touches Nerve

Photos by Kate Medley, Roy Adkins, & Adam Lynch

Brookhaven resident Washuma Murphy faces more than $3,500 in medical bills every year, without the benefit of medical insurance. Doctors diagnosed her 12-year-old son, Devon Murphy, with Sturge-Weber Syndrome at …

Recio Promotion Insult to JPD

Last week Mayor Melton appointed his bodyguard, a 15-year police officer with little supervisory experience, to the position of assistant chief, granting him a $31,000 raise and, presumably, a considerable …

Eco-Campus

On cold Virginia evenings at the College of William and Mary, mittened passers-by on the sidewalk below my second-story dorm room window could see me wearing my favorite lightweight striped …

Crossing Gallatin

So the JFP celebrated its fifth birthday a couple of weeks ago. I have long exercised the privilege of celebrating my birthweek and birthmonth, rather than just a flimsy day, …