News

Jackson police officer hit by car on I-55

Police Chief Lindsey Horton has confirmed the death of a Jackson Police Officer, his first since being named to his new post earlier this month. Horton said 35-year Bruce Jacob was killed Saturday afternoon after being hit by a motorist in the southbound lanes of I-55 and Northside Drive.

Jacob, a Precinct Four officer, and a five year veteran of the police force, received a call about debris on the roadway of I-55 south about 1:30 p.m. He had reportedly retrieved a barbecue grill that had fallen off a truck and was putting it in the trunk of his cruiser when another vehicle came from behind and hit him.

Jacob was taken to UMC where he died of multiple blunt-force trauma, Hinds County Coroner Sharon Grisham Stewart said.
[…]

News

Bodies of 6-year-old twins found in river

Officials in Greene County have found the bodies of 6-year-old twin boys who fell into the Chickasawhay River last Saturday.
 
Greene County Emergency Manager Trent Robertson told WLOX-TV in Biloxi that one of the boys was found late Sunday night and the other around 5:30 a.m. Monday.

James Scott and Isaac William McGowan, who lived in the St. Ellen community in Leakesville, disappeared Saturday in the Chickasawhay River, on the southern part of Greene County. Robertson said a friend of the family saw the two boys stepping into a deep part of the river and being swept away by the current. […]

News

Lumumba sworn in Monday as Jackson mayor

Chokwe Lumumba was sworn in Monday as the mayor of Jackson, Mississippi’s capital and the largest city in the state.

Lumumba is an attorney who served the past four years on the Jackson City Council. A civil rights activist, he was active in a black nationalist group decades ago, but ran as a mainstream candidate who would represent all city voters.

The Clarion-Ledger reports that the first true test for Lumumba will come quickly – a Sept. 15 budget deadline, which he’ll face with a new City Council. […]

News

Chokwe Lumumba, ex-black nationalist, wins Jackson mayor’s race

A Mississippi attorney and one-time civil rights activist who was involved in a black nationalist group decades ago has been elected mayor of Jackson, the state capital.

The Clarion-Ledger reported late Tuesday that Jackson City Councilman Chokwe Lumumba was elected mayor, receiving about 85 percent of the vote against three independent candidates.

He will succeed Mayor Harvey Johnson Jr., who finished third in this year’s Democratic primary. […]

News

Dems pick Lumumba in Jackson mayor runoff

Jackson City Councilman Chokwe Lumumba (SHOW-kway Lu-MOOM-bah) has defeated businessman Jonathan Lee in the Democratic primary runoff for Jackson mayor.

The Clarion-Ledger reports that unofficial results show the 65-year-old Lumumba winning 55% of the vote Tuesday.

The Democratic nominee is expected to become mayor. No Republican is running, though independent candidates Francis Smith, Jr., Richard Williams, Jr., and Cornelius Griggs are on the June 4 general election ballot. The new term begins July 1. […]

News

Miss. mayoral candidate: Radical or mainstream?

An attorney who was active in a black nationalist group decades ago and still refers to a client as a “former Black Panther heroine” is running for mayor of Mississippi’s capital city.

Can Chokwe Lumumba persuade voters that he’s a mainstream politician concerned about a diverse swath of people?

That’s a big question he faces businessman Jonathan Lee in Tuesday’s Democratic primary runoff in Jackson. […]

News

Jackson mayor Harvey Johnson defeated in primary

Local businessman Jonathan Lee will face city Councilman Chokwe Lumumba in a May 21 primary for the Democratic race for mayor.

Incumbent Mayor Harvey Johnson, who was facing 10 Democratic challengers on the ballot, conceded defeat Tuesday evening.

“I’m obviously disappointed in the results of the election, but this is the American way. We have to respect the Democratic process, we’ll do that and move forward,” Johnson said. “I’m looking at accomplishments. I’m looking at a legacy and I’m fairly sure whoever assumes the office of mayor in the next four years will build on that foundation we’ve built over the past 12 years.”

Businessman Jonathan Lee and Jackson Councilman Chokwe Lumumba advance to a mayoral runoff election on May 21. […]

News

Most Miss. cities hold mayoral primaries Tuesday

Most Mississippi cities are electing mayors this year, and party primaries Tuesday will narrow the fields of candidates.

Some of the toughest primaries will be in Jackson, Vicksburg and Madison, where incumbents are seeking re-election, and in Clarksdale, where the seat is open because the current mayor chose not to run.

Primary runoffs are May 21 and the general election is June 4. New four-year terms begin July 1. […]