Justice

Mississippi and Secret Service Work on Cybercrime Task Force

Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch said Tuesday that her office has established a partnership with the U.S. Secret Service and in-state law enforcement agencies to investigate financial crimes that occur online.

Parole Reform Passes to Governor’s Desk Amid Murky Future

Accessibility to parole hearings would extend to more inmates across Mississippi’s state prison system if Gov. Tate Reeves signs legislation passed in the state Senate this week.

'We Are Beat Down’: Citing Crime and Defying Mayor, Council Clears $500,000 for More Deputies

The Jackson City Council has approved $500,000 for the Hinds County Sheriff’s Department over the objection of the mayoral administration and two council members in an agreement that no one has put on paper, yet.

Mississippi Told to Pay $500K to Wrongfully Imprisoned Man

A judge is ordering the state of Mississippi to pay $500,000 to Curtis Flowers, a Black man who was wrongfully imprisoned more than 22 years and was tried six times in a quadruple murder case.

Seeking Solutions to Illegal Dumping: Education, Citation, Action

"(Illegal dumping) poses a big problem in the city of Jackson," Ward 6 Councilman Aaron Banks acknowledged at the Feb. 2 council meeting. "As soon as we organize cleanups to pick it up, it's back out there (in) three or four days."

City Imposes Night Security Requirement on Jackson Convenience Stores

Convenient stores in Jackson must have security personnel between midnight and 5 a.m., under an ordinance the city council passed to help curb crime.

Capitol Police Could Gain Extradition Power Inside Jackson Under Divisive Bill

Mississippi Capitol Police are set to gain lead jurisdiction in parts of Jackson, as well as the ability to eject those it arrests on misdemeanor charges out of Hinds County, if a bill that passed the Mississippi Senate last week becomes law.

Violence Experts: Mayor's Youth Curfew Order May Prove Counterproductive

Mayor Chokwe A. Lumumba imposed a five-day curfew order for those under age 18 from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. due to rising crime in the capital city.

Public Shooting, Doing ‘Donuts’ Could Become Felonies with Full Jackson City Council Support

Concerns about indiscriminate shootings spurred the Jackson City Council to support House Bill 854, which proposes increased penalties against the practice. At its Jan. 27 meeting, the council voted unanimously for a resolution to support Rep. Debra Gibbs’ proposed legislation.

District Attorney Owens: Hinds County Diverted 300 From Criminal Justice

Three hundred first-time non-violent offenders went through a diversion program last year in Hinds County in exchange for dropped charges, District Attorney Jody Owens said at a press conference Tuesday.

Legislators Push for More Felony Expungements, Prison Labor Minimum Wage

Sen. Derrick Simmons, D-Greenville, is asking the Legislature to add several felonies to the list of possible expungements from an inmate's permanent record five years after the offender’s sentence was fulfilled.

Murder Charge Dismissed After Debunked Bite-Mark Testimony

A Mississippi judge has dismissed a murder charge against Eddie Lee Howard, a Black man who spent more than a quarter-century on death row in the 1992 killing of a white woman.

JPD Arrests Second Person In New Year’s Day Interstate 55 Obstruction

The Jackson Police Department made a second arrest six days after a group of people blocked Interstate 55 and had vehicles racing and doing donuts on the highway.

Three Mississippi Inmates Die; One in Privately Run Prison

An inmate was pronounced dead Monday at a privately run prison in Mississippi after an officer found him lying unresponsive on a floor.

Audit Blasts 'Widespread Misspending' at Mississippi Prisons

Mississippi's prison system used tax dollars to buy massage chairs, Himalayan salt lamps and a bedroom set and illegally paid some employees for extra work time they had accumulated, the state's auditor said in a scathing report that found widespread misspending at the agency while it struggled to fill jobs for guards and was plagued by violence.

Ellington