Jackson Free Press

Ricin-Laced Letters Leading to a Miss. Mystery

Of three ricin-laced letters mailed this month to public officials, only one made it into the hands of an intended target, 80-year-old Mississippi judge Sadie Holland.

Why the hell not?

Toxic Turtles: Long-Lasting Chemicals Could Be Harming Sea Turtles

Scientists are discovering that sea turtles, long ignored by toxicologists who study wildlife, are highly contaminated with industrial chemicals and pesticides.

Transcript of Melton Interview About Firefighters

Verbatim interview with Frank Melton conducted by JFP Managing Editor Brian Johnson on Tuesday, Aug. 15. Any use of of quotes from this interview without express attribution to the Jackson …

Who You Callin' Dumb

SPECIAL AND PRICEY: It seems Gov. Haley Barbour can't call a special session of the Legislature without causing controversy. His latest, which convened Monday, is to authorize $103.7 million in …

Ex-Mississippi Governor Mabus Endorses Kamala Harris for President

Former Mississippi Gov. Ray Mabus endorsed U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris in the Democratic Party’s presidential primary in a Friday statement that her campaign sent out to members of the press.

UM Faculty Senate Votes 'No Confidence' In IHL; Media Leak 'Suspicious'

The Faculty Senate of the University of Mississippi passed a resolution late last night declaring "no confidence" in the Institutions of Higher Learning board's search process to find a replacement …

EDITOR'S NOTE: Right, Left Must Work Together for Criminal Reforms

It is time that criminal-justice reform be on every candidate's agenda in Mississippi, regardless of party. The goal should be to lower mass incarceration, especially for drug and victimless crimes—which …

Reimagining 9 Acres Downtown

If downtown Jackson were a person, she would be an upstanding woman with a lot of scars, living in the shadows of painful memories.

‘Believe Survivors,’ Baria Tells Wicker and Hyde-Smith on Kavanaugh Vote

Democratic U.S. Senate candidate David Baria, who serves as the House minority leader in the Mississippi Legislature, called for halt in the process to confirm U.S. Supreme Court nominee Brett …

Yarber Campaign Funder Mitzi Bickers Indicted in Atlanta

Jackson and Atlanta have been interconnected since the Mayor Tony Yarber era. Mitzi Bickers is one of those common threads, having worked on both Kasim Reed's campaign in 2009 and …

‘I’m So Scared’: Saving Kids from Suicide

In 2016, 385 Mississippians committed suicide, statistics from the Mississippi Department of Health show, which means more than one person per day took his or her own life in the …

Beyond Mississippi’s Dark Days of Judicial Injustice

On Sept. 27, Mississippi justices, lawyers and law students celebrated the state judicial branch's 200th birthday, along with U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, who visited Jackson for the …

Exploding the Myth of the ‘Welfare Queen’

High poverty means that Mississippi gets a lot of federal assistance—but the "Becoming Visible" report shows that those in poverty often do not use the programs intended to help them …

What Black Dads Do: First Class Father Present for Duty

This year, Jackson Public Schools named Steve Collins Parent of the Year for his efforts. Yet, Collins is like a lot of other African American fathers: involved with their children's …

Human Trafficking: Unseen and Unaddressed

Victims of human trafficking need a place to go in Mississippi. The Center for Violence Prevention in Pearl has an emergency shelter for victims of domestic violence, and Executive Director …

Yarber Running into Council Wall on Contracts

During a June 3 gathering at Koinonia Coffee House, Mayor Tony Yarber lamented the lack of progress the City has made on infrastructure issues and blamed it on poor confidence …

D.C.-based PAC, Outside Money Funded Initiative 42’s Demise

Post-election campaign filings are revealing that opponents of Initiative 42, mostly from outside the state, spent much more money to defeat it than they were required to report before the …

'Islam for Dummies': IS Recruits Have Poor Grasp of Faith

The jihadi employment form asked the recruits, on a scale of 1 to 3, to rate their knowledge of Islam. And the Islamic State applicants, herded into a hangar somewhere …

In Crowded Skies, Lost Plane's Request for New Path Denied

The plane sought permission to climb above threatening clouds. Air traffic control couldn't say yes immediately—there was no room. Six other commercial airliners were crowding the surrounding airspace, forcing AirAsia …