Top Stories – Page 116 – The Mississippi Link

Homicide suspected in mayoral candidate's death

Authorities said a mayoral candidate in the Mississippi Delta has been found dead and the case is being investigated as a homicide.

Coahoma County Coroner Scotty Meredith said the body of 34-year-old Marco McMillian was found on the Mississippi River levee Wednesday about 10 a.m.

McMillian was running for mayor of Clarksdale, a Blues music hub and home to actor Morgan Freeman.

Meredith said the body was found between Sherard and Rena Lara. He said it was sent to Jackson for an autopsy and declined to provide further details. […]

13-year-old killed in farming accident

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A 13-year-old boy was killed in a farming accident in Lauderdale County while trying to help his grandfather, WTOK reported.

Authorities said on Feb. 19, Ben Hammond was helping his grandfather attach a front-loader to a tractor when the equipment fell on him. Emergency responders and Lauderdale County sheriff’s officials arrived, but Hammond was pronounced dead at the scene by county coroner Ward Calhoun.

The sherriff’s department called the incident a “terrible” situation and said there was no suspicion of foul play. […]

Bond $1 million for man who shot wife while she was driving

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An Alabama man is being held on a $1 million bond after allegedly shooting his wife to death as she drove down the highway in Mississippi last Thursday.

Twenty-five-year-old Anthony Pace appeared before a Wayne County, Miss. judge Saturday on charges he killed his wife, 22-year-old Amber Andrews. Pace was arrested at his mother’s house in Choctaw County, Alabama.

Authorities said on Feb. 21, Andrews was driving alone on U.S. 84 outside Waynesboro, Miss. around 3 p.m. when she was shot at least once. Andrews ran off the road and crashed her vehicle. […]

New sentencing trial: man on death row since 1992

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A new sentencing trial begins this week for a man who has been on death row for more than two decades.

Fifty-two-year-old Jeffrey Keller Davis was convicted in May 1992 of capital murder for shooting and stabbing Linda Hillman.

The state Supreme Court overturned his death sentence in May, finding that a poor job by his trial attorney may have cost him a chance at life in prison. […]

Vicksburg mayor facing federal bribery charge

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Vicksburg Mayor Paul Winfield was granted bond Thursday after being arraigned on a federal bribery charge that says he was caught in an FBI investigation while seeking a $10,000 bribe for a city contract.

The 39-year-old Democrat wore an orange jail jumpsuit and shackles during his arraignment in U.S. District Court in Jackson. Magistrate Judge Keith Ball ordered Winfield to be released on a $10,000 unsecured bond.

Winfield answered the judge’s questions in a strong, clear voice during the brief hearing but did not address the allegations against him. He did not enter a plea. […]

Chickasaw County man charged in stabbing death of wife

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A Chickasaw County man is scheduled to appear in court Monday morning after allegedly stabbing his wife early Sunday, authorities said.

Will Porter was arrested at an unspecified location Sunday after county officials arrived at the home he shared with his wife, 23-year-old Amanda Porter, on Highway 8, just east of Houston.

When authorities responded to what they initially believed to be a domestic situation, around 5:30 a.m., they found Amanda’s body in the residence. Chickasaw County Coroner Andy Harmon said she had been stabbed to death. […]

Cleotha Staples of Staple Singers siblings dies

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Cleotha Staples, whose smooth and velvety voice helped set apart the sound of the influential and best-selling gospel group The Staple Singers, died Thursday, Feb. 21, at age 78.

Staples, the eldest sister and member of the group her father Roebuck “Pops” Staples started in the 1940s, was at her Chicago home and had been suffering from Alzheimer’s disease for the past decade, said family friend and music publicist Bill Carpenter.

The group included sisters Pervis, Yvonne, Mavis and Cynthia, but Cleotha was the backbone, defining herself by being the “strong, silent type,” said Carpenter, author of “Uncloudy Day: The Gospel Music Encyclopedia.” […]

Woman convicted in child's death up for parole

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Lisa Ameen Crevitt, who admitted taking LSD and tossing her toddler into a river canal, is up for parole in March after 27 years in prison.

The child’s father is fighting to keep her behind bars.

“She doesn’t deserve freedom,” Jeff Crevitt said.

Lisa Crevitt was sentenced to life in prison in 1985 for the murder of her 21/2-year-old daughter, Nikki. She had claimed the girl was abducted May 16, 1985, from a store in what was then Battlefield Mall in Vicksburg. […]

Mississippi finally abolishes slavery

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Due to a procedural glitch the last time around, Mississippi – this month – formally ratified the 13th Amendment abolishing slavery within the state.

It comes a bit late though.

The United States abolished slavery with a constitutional amendment in 1865. But, there were several states that opposed the 13th amendment. And Mississippi didn’t get around to voting on it until 1995. […]

From nine to two…

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Crisler vs Norwood in the home stretch of Senate District 28 race

By Othor Cain

Contributing writer

Vying to fill the unexpired term of the late Senator Alice Harden, Marshand Crisler and Sollie Norwood faced off at New Horizon Church International Monday, Feb 18, to a small crowd of supporters and interested voters.

With three years left on a four-year term, nearly 60,000 voters in portions of West and South Jackson will decide who will represent District 28 when they go back to the polls Tuesday, Feb. 26, for a runoff election…. […]