September 2013 – Page 5 – The Mississippi Link

Navy Yard accused shooter was a 34-year-old contractor; Senate placed on lockdown; 13 dead

September 16, 2013 admin 0

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Officials released the name of the shooter killed after opening fire on the Washington Naval Yard.

Law enforcement have identified the gunman as Aaron Alexis of Fort Worth, Texas, according to NBC News.

Twelve people, including Alexis, have been killed in the shooting that began at 8:20 a.m.

Officials said the 34-year-old had been recently hired as a civilian contractor. He reportedly entered the Naval Yard using another person’s ID… […]

No. 25 Ole Miss gets big road win at Texas

September 16, 2013 admin 0

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Jeff Scott ran for 164 yards and a touchdown and also scored on a 73-yard punt return, helping No. 25 Mississippi roll over reeling Texas 44-23 on Saturday night.

Bo Wallace passed for two touchdowns and ran for another for the Rebels (3-0), who led 14-0 midway through the first quarter before Texas scored 23 straight points.

The Rebels rallied when Andrew Ritter kicked a 52-yard field goal on the last play of the first half and Wallace directed consecutive touchdown drives in the third quarter… […]

Alcorn State rallies for 35-28 SWAC win over Mississippi Valley

September 16, 2013 admin 0

LORMAN, Mississippi (AP) — Arnold Walker rushed for two fourth-quarter touchdowns, leading Alcorn State to a comeback win over Mississippi Valley State 35-28 Saturday in the conference opener for both teams.

Down 21-13 in the fourth quarter, Alcorn State’s (2-1, 1-0 Southwestern Athletic Conference) Terrence Green recovered a fumble at the MVSU 17-yard line. Walker carried three straight times for a Brave’s touchdown and John Gibbs, Jr. connected with Tavoris Doss on a two-point conversion… […]

Mississippi accountability ratings district-by-district (list)

September 16, 2013 admin 0

JACKSON, Mississippi — Here’s how the 151 Mississippi public school districts in 2013 were rated under the state’s A-to-F grading system for their 2013 performance, along with how they were rated in 2012. Not rated in 2012 were the Clarksdale, Corinth and Gulfport districts, which used non-standard curricula as part of a state-sponsored effort. Sunflower and Drew were separate districts in 2012 but merged for 2013… […]

Officials misused US surveillance program, according to documents

September 15, 2013 admin 0

(AP) – Government officials for nearly three years accessed data on thousands of domestic phone numbers they shouldn’t have and then misrepresented their actions to a secret spy court to reauthorize the government’s surveillance program, documents released Tuesday show.

The Obama administration had earlier conceded that its surveillance program scooped up more domestic phone calls and emails than authorized. But until Tuesday, the depths of the program’s abuse were unknown.

According to the documents released by the administration, a spy court judge in 2009 was so fed up with the government’s overreaching that he threatened to shutter the surveillance program designed to fight terrorism… […]

Meet Debra Brown, awaiting confirmation as Mississippi’s next federal judge

September 15, 2013 admin 1

TUPELO, Mississippi – (AP) — Mississippi’s likely next federal district jurist admits she’s been a judge only for the state’s High School Mock Trial Competition.

People who know Debra Marie Brown say she’s plenty ready to don the black robe.

Brown, 49, of Jackson, isn’t a judge yet — she merely lacks consent from a majority of U.S. senators to become the state’s first black female to assume that lifetime appointment… […]

PEER report shows Port of Gulfport job promises unlikely to materialize for 20 years

September 14, 2013 admin 0

JACKSON, Mississippi (AP) — A legislative watchdog report warns that Mississippi’s state-owned Port of Gulfport may not meet a goal of creating 1,300 jobs from its Hurricane Katrina recovery program until 2035.

The report by the Joint Legislative Committee on Performance Evaluation and Expenditure Review was released Friday after months of delays… […]

Everett Dutschke’s attorney asks judge to delay Mississippi ricin letter trial

September 13, 2013 admin 0

JACKSON, Mississippi (AP) — A lawyer asked a federal judge on Friday to delay the October trial of a Mississippi man charged with sending poison-laced letters to President Barack Obama and other officials.

Kenneth Coghlan filed the motion Friday in the federal case of James Everett Dutschke, a former martial arts instructor from Tupelo. Dutschke is charged with sending ricin-tainted letters on April 8 to Obama, U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker and Lee County Justice Court Judge Sadie Holland… […]

Takeovers planned for 2 of 3 Mississippi school districts

September 13, 2013 admin 0

JACKSON, Mississippi (AP) — The Mississippi state Board of Education is seeking to take over the Claiborne County and Leflore County school districts, but will grant the Yazoo City system a reprieve.

The board voted Friday morning to ask Gov. Phil Bryant to declare states of emergency in Claiborne and Leflore. Byrant could act as early as Friday.

Under an agreement with Yazoo City, the district would lose accreditation and the state would appoint consultants to oversee improvements… […]

NJ boardwalk fire: ‘It looks like a couple of bombs went off’

September 13, 2013 admin 0

SEASIDE PARK, N.J. (AP) — Firefighters poured thousands of gallons of water Friday on the smoldering remnants of a massive fire that destroyed part of an iconic Jersey shore boardwalk as officials began counting the cost of once again rebuilding a walkway that had been wrecked less than a year ago by Superstorm Sandy.

About a quarter of the 400 firefighters who battled the blaze Thursday remained on the scene Friday morning, and heavy equipment was poised to move in and start poking through the rubble once firefighters extinguished the last burning pockets… […]