Jackson Free Press

‘Mississippi Rising' Concert Diversity Challenged

Dale Danks Working For, and Against, the City

The 10 Most Active Jackson Free Press Threads, Ever

Happy birthday, Todd! Thanks to you and Donna for getting this paper running. You have affected the culture of Jackson in more ways than anyone can know, I think.

Mayor Walks Out On Citizens

Community policing took a body blow last week when Mayor Frank Melton and Jackson Police Chief Shirlene Anderson—a man and a woman put there to be anti-crime crusaders—suddenly dumped the …

Trapped In Left Field

The first week of September was a turning point for the Left Field Sports Grill, says President Dan Keith. Katrina blasted through the streets of Jackson, and the grill suffered …

Citizens Protest Crime Firings Tuesday at City Council

(Update: Supporters of community policing are calling for Jacksonians to go to City Council meeting at 10 a.m. Tuesday downtown at City Hall to call for the mayor and police …

Evacuees Face Confusion, Long Lines

Stories are still trickling in from major damage zones across the south. Disturbing tales of personal failures and the greater breakdown of government in the face of unconscionable disaster roll …

Does GOP STILL Want to Cut Taxes, Services for Poor?

New York Times editorial today:

The Place To Be: Developers Catering More To City's ‘Creative Class'

Since the early 1970s, an outflow of businesses and residents to the suburbs has decimated downtown Jackson. Until recently, the lower taxes demanded of cow pastures and the cheap gas …

Melton Tells City Workers to Help Red Cross

Facing a growing crisis with evacuees who have been ejected from the Mississippi Coliseum and other shelters, with some now reportedly without a shelter over their heads and now sleeping …

Focus On The ‘Mayor Stuff'

It wasn't until Friday, five days after Katrina had blown through Jackson, that a visibly uncomfortable Mayor Melton fielded questions about city response from what was a visibly frustrated, angry …

‘Destroyed' By The Curfew

Mayor Frank Melton announced Sept. 9 that the emergency curfew issued for the city of Jackson—a curfew that some city officials called "unenforceable"—in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina had been …

‘This Don't Make No Sense'

The tone was tense at a hastily called Sept. 2 emergency briefing between City Council members and Jackson Mayor Frank Melton. Though slow to release public statements in the days …

Melton's Lies Cost Taxpayers

Jackson Mayor Frank Melton admitted to lying in legal documents for more than two years on Aug. 22, saying he had been confused, as he stood before a judge in …

Destruction and Hot Tempers

"They said I needed to get out, and that's what I did," said Tony Porter, who says he owned a photo and camera repair shop not too far off the …

Jackson Power May Be Out for Weeks

The Clarion-Ledger reports today that the 75 percent of Jackson resident still without power could face weeks in the dark:

Just Wait 15 Minutes

Jackson Mayor Frank Melton rode a "no new taxes" bandwagon into the office that he took over July 4. "I'm not going to burden you with more taxes. I'm just …

I Lied, But I Didn't Swear

(Update: Download Circuit Judge Robert Bailey's decision in PDF.)

Guilty By Default?

When Mayor Frank Melton held the post as head of the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics, he leaked a memo containing accusations against MBN employees that were later disproved by the …

Robbed At The Pump

Gas prices at the pumps hit an all-time high last week, but even before the price whacked $2.46, some gas station workers said theft was already on the rise.