Jackson Free Press

Jackson State University got off to a rough start at the beginning of the Tony Hughes era with three losses out of the gate.

The University of Nevada, Las Vegas pounded the Tigers 63-13 in the season opener. UNLV had the game well in hand at the half with a 42-7 lead, and JSU got outscored 21-3 in the second half.

The team looked to have righted the ship in the first half against Tennessee State University with a 23-19 lead at the break. The second half was another matter, as TSU outscored the Tigers 21-0 and won 40-23.

Entering SWAC play, Grambling State University jumped out to a huge 28-0 lead in the third quarter. JSU added a touchdown in the third and another in the fourth, but GSU’s lead was too large to overcome in the end.

The first win of the season came in the fourth game against the University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff. JSU jumped out to a 25-10 lead at halftime with a 71-yard interception helping the Tigers build it.

UAPB began a comeback in the second half, as the team scored 10 points in the third quarter and cut the JSU lead down to 25-20. The Tigers added a late third-quarter touchdown, sealing the 32-20 victory.

JSU looked to begin a winning streak against Mississippi Valley State University. The Tigers fell behind 7-0 early in the first quarter against an inspired Delta Devils team. JSU added a field goal late in the quarter, cutting the deficit to 7-3.

MVSU made another touchdown in the middle of the second quarter, building the lead to 14-3. JSU scored 13 points in a furious rally before halftime, taking a 16-14 lead.

Neither team could score in the second, so the Tigers notched the second season win. JSU, which is currently at 2-1 in the conference, owns first place in the SWAC East, with Alcorn State University in second at 2-2.

The team comes off a bye week and looks to win its third straight game for first time since 2013, when the Tigers won six straight. During the winning streak, the Grambling State game ended up being cancelled after the GSU players began boycotting athletic department conditions.

In the SWAC East, it looks like a two-horse race between JSU and ASU. Alabama A&M University and Alabama State University are both 1-4 in SWAC play, and MVSU is 0-4 in conference play.

If you throw out the UNLV game, JSU has been outscored 45-24 in the second half. In SWAC play, the Tigers have been outscored 69-62.

The second-half struggles cost JSU wins against Tennessee State and nearly allowed UAPB’s comeback. Finishing games in the second half might be the difference from reaching the SWAC Championship game or watching Alcorn State play in it again.

JSU hosts Southern University this weekend as it looks for win number three. The Jaguars …

Things can change quickly in the NFL. One year a team may be raising the Lombardi Trophy at the end of the season and the next, the team may be sitting at home waiting for another one to raise the trophy.

The Denver Broncos, who were last year’s Super Bowl champions, are sitting at home, and another team will win a title this year. Runner-up the Carolina Panthers missed the playoffs, too.

Denver finished last season 12-4, and Carolina went 15-1. Both teams won the AFC and NFC titles. This year the Broncos went 9-7, and the Panthers went 6-10 in disappointing seasons.

A multitude of reasons for teams falling off after making the playoffs, including free agents leaving, player retirements, coaching changes and, of course, injuries, exist.

The exact opposite can happen for teams that make the playoffs after missing out the year before, with reasons such as key free-agent signings, injury-free seasons, smart draft choices and a great coaching hire.

The Broncos struggled in the first season after Peyton Manning retired. While the defense was its dominant self, the offense struggled without a strong quarterback.

Injuries and free agent losses were big reasons for the Panthers’ slide, but so was quarterback Cam Newton’s play. He wasn’t nearly as good this season as last. Denver also struggled at quarterback due to the lack of a halfway decent running game.

Of the 12 teams that reached the playoffs last season, only six reached the postseason again this year. Four of those were in the AFC: the New England Patriots, Kansas City Chiefs, Pittsburgh Steelers and Houston Texans.

Things are drastically different in the NFC. Just the Seattle Seahawks and Green Bay Packers returned to the postseason.

In the AFC, the Cincinnati Bengals went 12-4 last season but went 6-9-1 this season. Nearly every team in the AFC playoff field bettered its record from 2015, except the Houston Texans, who finished 9-7 both years.

Top seeded New England went from 12-4 last year to 14-2 this year, and that was without quarterback Tom Brady for four games. Second seed Kansas City went 11-5 in 2015 and finished 12-4 this year.

Third-seeded Pittsburgh improved one game from 10-6 in 2015 to 11-5 this season. The Miami Dolphins and Oakland Raiders went from out of the playoffs to in the playoffs.

Miami was 6-10 last year but improved to 10-6 this year, and in 2015, Oakland was 7-9 but went 12-4 in another dramatic turnaround in 2016. These two teams give hope to every AFC team that finished with a losing record.

Things were vastly different in the NFC, where four teams from last season failed to make the playoffs. The two repeat teams, Green Bay and Seattle, basically held serve from 2015 to 2016. The Packers went 10-6 both seasons, and the Seahawks went from 10-6 to 10-5-1.

Besides the Panthers, last year’s second seed in the …

Former University of Mississippi Damore’ea Stringfellow is one of 95 underclassmen to declare for the 2017 NFL Draft. Monday, Jan. 16, was the deadline for players who are three years out of high school to announce their intentions.

Some players who decided to forgo their college eligibility received information from the NFL’s College Advisory Committee, which graded them as a first- or second-round pick. An interesting article on ESPN.com from Kevin Seifret took a closer look at the process.

Those who received a favorable free evaluation from the CAC are graded just on their football potential. The CAC doesn’t look at their off-the-field issues, or academic or medical problems.

A great example used in the story is University of Oklahoma running back Joe Mixon. There is no doubt that Mixon has first- or second-round talent on the field, but it will be interesting to see how teams view his year-long suspension for assault in 2014.

A video of Mixon punching a woman in the face and breaking her jaw, cheekbone and eye socket came out in December 2016. Recently the NFL has mishandled some very public cases of domestic assault .

Mixon entering the draft is another case where the league could be scrutinized depending on where he is drafted. If the talented running back is taken in the first round, it proves that winning in football matters more than off-the-field issues.

Just looking at football talent, it makes sense for players such as former Louisiana State University running back Leonard Fournette and Texas A&M University defensive end Myles Garrett to leave school early. That is not the case with every player who does, though.

Some get bad advice from friends and family or look to improve their life and their families’ lives by becoming a professional player. During the NFL Combine, it is good to hear NFL Network’s Mike Mayock’s evaluation of players.

Mayock is quick to point out that he doesn’t know a player’s personal situation, but he can tell if the player should have stayed in school and might be hurt by coming out early. That doesn’t mean Mayock is correct on every case.

In the 2015-2016 season, 322 players were evaluated, and 73 were told to return to school but declared for the draft anyway. Of those 73, 11 went in the first or second round, but 20 went undrafted.

That is the tricky part of the draft. It only takes one team to fall in love with a player and have need at that position.

Sometimes draft order hurts a player. One prime example is current Green Bay Packer quarterback Aaron Rodgers. The draft order of the 2005 NFL Draft meant that Rodgers could, and eventually did, slide after the San Francisco 49ers made their pick at No. 1.

That meant Rodgers fell all the way to the 24th pick, mainly because teams after the 49ers felt …

The day after the regular season ended, Monday, May 22, turned out to be a great day for Mississippi State University first baseman Brent Rooker. He is in the midst of one of the greatest offensive seasons in the history of college baseball in our state.

Rooker became the first MSU player to be named SEC Player of the Year. He is leading the conference in batting average at .415, total bases with 179, hits with 85, RBI with 73, doubles with 28 and home runs with 20.

The Germantown, Tenn., native is second in the conference in stolen bases with 18 steals out of 23 attempts.

But it isn’t just the SEC that Rooker is leading or near the top with his statistics.

He is first in the nation in slugging percentage at .873, total bases and doubles, second in batting average, third in RBI, fourth in home runs and on-base percentage, and seventh in the nation in hits.

Rooker was named First Team All-SEC and is the second MSU first baseman to be named All-SEC in the last two seasons. Last season, Nathaniel Lowe earned First Team All-SEC at first base.

Short stop Ryan Gridley joins Rooker on the First Team All-SEC, and outfielder Jake Mangum landed on the Second Team All-SEC. Mangum landed on the All-Defensive team as well.

Rooker beat out a trio of players from the University of Southern Mississippi and one from Delta State University for the 2017 C Spire Ferriss Trophy. He is the sixth MSU player to win the award in the 14 years it has been handed out.

Every winner for the Bulldogs has come in back-to-back years. Thomas Berkery was the first MSU player to win the award in 2006, and Ed Easley won in 2007. Chris Stratton took home the trophy in 2012, and Hunter Renfroe won in 2013.

Rooker’s current teammate, Mangum, took home the award last season. The University of Mississippi has produced five winners, Southern Miss has two past winners, and Belhaven University has one winner.

Taylor Braley, Matt Wallner and Dylan Burdeaux of USM, and Zack Shannon of DSU of were the other 2017 Ferriss Trophy finalists. Rooker led the fan-voting with 1,728 votes, Burdeaux ended up second with 987 votes, Braley ended up third with 548, Shannon landed in fourth with 197 votes, and Wallner came in fifth with 57 votes.

Hello readers. You might remember me from my time at the JFP as the writer of the bi-monthly column “The Key of G,” where I covered local and national music, as well as just musing about different topics related to music in general.

One of the things I liked to do was to make top 10 release lists at the end of the given year. While I did enjoy that, I always felt a little disingenuous, because I don’t listen to that much new music; I spend most of my time digging for and listening to old records. Hence, my top 10 lists would barely be made, as I squeezed in a few listens right at the end of the year to go with the few albums from artists that I always check for. Further, I never kept a running list, so my top 10 would have omissions, on top of my already poor sample size. (For instance, I somehow left Robert Glasper’s “Black Radio” off of last year’s list).

But this year has been different. I made it my mission to listen to as many new releases as possible, and to document them. What I have now is a list of 60 new albums that I have listened to and ranked in order. Mind you, this list is not meant to be definitive; there is a lot that I didn’t listen to for several reasons, mainly just because there isn’t enough time in the day to hear everything. I did listen to almost everything from artists that I am a fan of, which is something I have done a poor job of over the years. I also branched out to some artists I never was a fan of before, even though I knew who they were and ignored them on purpose. The results are fairly predictable. I also discovered some new artists I had never heard of at all, which was quite nice in most instances.

So, over the next several weeks, I am going to present you all with a ranked list of the 60 albums I listened to this year. Again, this list is not intended to be definitive at all; it is just a list of what I listened to, ranked solely by my opinions. I am sure there will be some disagreement and head scratching, but some of you might also see some new things that interest you that you go check out. And that’s what it’s all about anyway. Thanks for reading and indulging my opinions.

Click HERE for 60-51

Click HERE for 50-41

40) Disclosure “Settle” If I were making a list of most impressive debut albums of 2013, “Settle” would probably be at the very top. These two guys, brothers from Surrey who are only 21 and 18 years old, came out swinging hard. Many reviewers have given “Settle” the title of best dance album of the year (or a close second to Daft Punk). In my estimation, …

I say all the time on the @jfpsports Twitter account that one of the biggest parts of sports is responding. If the other team scores can you respond with a score of your own or if your team scores can the defense respond with stop and so on. The New Orleans Saints got punched in the mouth (repeatedly) last week by the Washington Redskins. Washington dominated the New Orleans offensive and defensive line most of the game.

Nate Silver at Five Thirty Eight gives Obama a 91% chance of winning tonight; PPP, a left-leaning pollster, predicts over 300 electoral votes for Obama.

But others show the race closer, and the Electoral College race could be nail-biter, based on all sorts of factor such as weather, long lines, voter ID, GOTV efforts and some election officials in swing states who seem to be hell-bent on confusing folks on their way to the polls.

So here's a quick guide to watching the results tonight and getting a sense of how things are going for either side.

First, a summary: You've got to get 270 electoral votes to win the Electoral College; 269-269 is a tie (which would be decided in the U.S. House of Representatives, probably in Romney's favor).

The New York Times' Electoral Map suggests that Obama has 243 electoral votes that are totally safe or lean toward him; Romney has 206. That means Obama needs to hold those states and get just 27 more electoral votes to win; Romney needs to hold his and win 64 more electoral votes.

The Swing States in this math are New Hampshire, Ohio, Virginia, Florida, Wisconsin, Iowa and Colorado. (Others that lean Obama that Romney might pick off are Pennsylvania, Michigan, Minnesota and New Mexico. States that Obama could pick up from leaning Romney are North Carolina and Arizona.)

Now, the timeline... all times are Central.

5:00 p.m. Some polls close in Indiana and Kentucky. Obama won Indiana in 2008, but it's polling strongly for Romney this cycle. Interesting to watch, though, is the race between Tea Party GOP favorite Richard Mourdock (rape pregnancy is a gift from God) and Congressman Joe Donnelly, the Democrat. Mourdock knocked off Richard Lugar in the primary, but may now lose the seat for the GOP thanks to his national renown -- and Tea Party-vs.-normal-people schisms in the Indiana state GOP.

6:00 p.m. Final polls in Indiana/Kentucky. Polls close in Virginia. (They also close in Georgia, South Carolina and Vermont.) It may not be called all that quickly but Virginia is the first toss-up state to watch closely. If Obama wins it, he's probably having a good night -- he would only need one other swing state (other than New Hampshire) to get to 270 if he holds his "leaners." If Romney wins Virginia, his path to victory could tack "Southern" and he could still win without Ohio.

6:30 p.m. Polls close in Ohio and North Carolina (and West Virginia). Ohio may still have long lines and provisional ballots to count, but it'll be one of the most important states to watch.

One particular House race to watch while the results are coming in, according to PolicyMic, is Ohio District 16, which pits "business" against "labor" in an expensive House showdown between GOP Rep. Jim Renacci and Dem. Rep. Betty Sutton. If Sutton wins, that's one sign that Obama will, too; if Renacci wins, then Ohio may be trending …

Join the JFP, the Center for Violence Prevention and the Chick Ball Committee for a free JFP Chick Ball happy hour Thursday, May 31, at Hal & Mal's downtown (200 S. Commerce St.).

Favre watch is never over.

The former NFL quarterback has been in the news quite a bit this week. In an interview with Deion Sanders, Favre spent time discussing how he doesn't need his jersey retired in Green Bay to validate his career and that he played in 2010 for, wait for it, the money.

Now comes reports from Biloxi-Gulfport Sun Herald that Favre is expected to return to football as offensive coordinator of Oak Grove High School. Favre's agent Bus Cook confirmed the legendary quarterback is taking the job.

"He is taking a job out there," Cook told the Sun Herald. "He is going out there, and it will give him something to do."

Oak Grove coach Nev Barnes told the paper nothing is official but the two sides will talk on Monday to gauge how much the former three-time NFL MVP wants to be involved with the program. Favre is currently on vacation in Colorado.

Favre has worked out with the football team at Oak Grove for several years. His workouts at the high school have often sparked "Favre Watch" in recent summers.

There were some high-dollar contributors at a private meeting Speaker Philip Gunn had in his office last night. An unusual amount of activity at the Capitol yesterday evening led a TV news crew and a print reporter to investigate, but the journalists were turned away by Capitol security, wrote Clarion-Ledger political editor Geoff Pender today.

According to Pender's report, Gunn's policy director Nathan Wells called the meeting small and consisting of Gunn supporters who hadn't had a chance to visit the speaker's office.

Attendees included oilmen Billy Powell and Billy Mounger as well as Wirt Yerger and their spouses. All the men are high-rollers when it comes to political donations.

Mounger, who has worked in oil and gas development, gave more than $100,000 in both 2007 and 2011, but a quick review of those disclosure filings reveal that Gunn was not a recipient from Mounger in those two cycles.

Mounger has also given handsomely to federal campaigns, including former Gov. Haley Barbour's political action committee and to Republican members of Mississippi's congressional delegation. Powell of Powell Petroleum has also given while Yerger, president of Cavalier Wireless, gave $3,500 to candidates in 2011, including $1,000 to Gunn.

Wells insisted that the meeting was not a fundraiser. He told Pender: "We have food brought in for meetings all the time. This was completely paid for by (Gunn). There were no contributions, and none asked for. It’s not an event. We eat food here at meetings all the time.”

Last week, Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood was in Geneva, Switzerland representing the U.S. before the United Nations Human Rights Committee.

Hood, the only Democrat holding statewide office in Mississippi, serves as president-elect of the National Association of Attorneys General, and "responded to the committee’s questions concerning the death penalty, domestic violence, human trafficking, corporal punishment, zero tolerance in schools, life without parole for juvenile offenders, and reinstatement of voting rights for felons."

It would be interesting to know exactly what those questions, and Hood's responses, were. Especially considering that just a few weeks ago, Hood requested execution dates for two condemned Mississippi prisoners.

At Hood's request, Charles Ray Crawford and Michelle Byrom are scheduled to be put to death on March 26 and March 27, respectively.

Crawford was convicted of the 1993 killing of a college student named Kristy Ray in Tippah County.

Byrom was convicted of murder-for-hire in 1999 in connection with the death of her husband, Edward Byrom Sr. Even though big questions hang over Byrom's case, whose son wrote several letters confessing to the crime and that his mother did not participate in it, Hood moved ahead with planning her execution anyway.

Through a news statement, Hood said of his trip to human-rights mission to Geneva:

“It was indeed an honor to be one of the attorneys to defend America’s human rights record. ...It was rewarding to clarify many international misconceptions about Mississippi’s civil rights record and that of other states and our federal government.”

Wayne Lewis, a Jackson native and longtime resident of Ward 6, called the Jackson Free Press office today to announce that he is entering into the election for the Ward 6 City Council seat. He also emailed the following verbatim biography:

A native of Jackson, MS. Wayne L Lewis was born and raised in the Shady Oaks Subdivision. He has lived in Ward 6 for the past 19 years. A product of the Jackson Public Schools, Lewis received his Bachelors of Science in Business Administration from Mississippi College in Clinton, MS and a MBA from Millsaps College Else School of Management.

He has served in various leadership roles in the faith based community impacting the lives of families while serving the public as a Jackson Police Office for many years. He is currently employed at Eaton Aero- Space with 17 years of service. He is the Founder of Rhema Word Ministries where he serves as Senior Pastor, and uses this ministry to give back to the community and youth around the city by sponsoring youth initiative programs, including sporting events in Ward 6, where he volunteers to serve as Coach, mentor and counselor for Little League Baseball teams.

Lewis has a wealth of leadership experience from the manufacturing industry and faith based arenas. He has a passion for the youth of the community and gives of himself to take an active role to impact their lives, where he will continue to serve his community as a servant of the people. Wayne Lewis is well connected to Ward 6 where he and his wife, Roberta Lewis are raising two boys.

• Former JPD Officer • Lived in Ward 6 for 19 years • Pastor / Teacher • Wayne Lewis, BSBA, MBA

WASHINGTON, DC—This week, Starkville became the first city in Mississippi to extend essential medical benefits to the partners of city workers who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT). Today the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation’s largest LGBT civil rights organization, commended the Mayor and Board of Aldermen for acknowledging the dignity and worth of LGBT citizens in Starkville.

“Loving LGBT couples should have equal access to medical care, and we applaud the Mayor and the Board of Aldermen for their leadership on this critical issue,” said HRC Mississippi Director Rob Hill. “This measure successfully provides the necessary benefits that the partners of hardworking LGBT city workers deserve, and the city of Starkville demonstrated its commitment to upholding the Golden Rule by treating them with dignity and respect.”

The item passed by a unanimous 7-0 vote Tuesday night. This week, Mayor Parker Wiseman also announced plans to appoint two LGBT liaisons to support the needs of and provide resources to the LGBT community, including working with the city’s police department. Earlier this year, Starkville was also the first city in the state to pass a resolution welcoming LGBT people and their families. The resolution recognizes all citizens should be treated with respect and equality.

According to a 2014 study by HRC, 57 percent of LGBT people surveyed have called Mississippi home for more than 20 years, however, almost half have experienced harassment in a public establishment; 41 percent of those earning less than $45,000 have experienced at work; and roughly a quarter have experienced harassment from a public servant like a police officer or firefighter. HRC Mississippi is working across the state to change hearts and minds, advance enduring legal protections, and build more inclusive institutions from the workplace to the church pew.

Well-known in progressive political circles, Cristen Hemmins and Joce Prtichett today announced that they would run for elected office.

In 2012, Jackson Free Press readers opined that Hemmins should seek public office. Hemmins, chairwoman of the Lafayette County Democratic Party, will challenge state Sen. Gray Tollison, R-Oxford, for the Senate seat he has held since 1996. Tollison, a one-time Democrat who switched over to the GOP in 2012, had been eyeing late U.S. Rep. Alan Nunnelee's House seat but announced this week that he wouldn't run for Congress.

Joce Pritchett, an engineer who lives in Jackson with her wife, Carla Webb, and their children will make an announcement Friday at the Capitol that she will run for state auditor. So far, two Republicans have announced intentions to run, incumbent Stacey Pickering and Madison Mayor Mary Hawkins Butler. Charles E. Graham has also said he would run as a Democrat; Pritchett did not indicate which party primary she would run in.

Pritchett and Webb are plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit challenging Mississippi's same-sex marriage ban. That case is pending in a federal appeals court.

This is full, verbatim release from City Hall:

The City of Jackson recently implemented Phase One of its new Customer Care & Billing System (CC&B). The system went live across the City on September 1 and we are currently in the verification process, which allows the City to ensure account accuracy and that all of the new system’s capabilities are fully functional.

The necessity to estimate bills is primarily due to the testing of the network in conjunction with moving to a monthly billing cycle. It is not unusual when implementing this type of system upgrade to go through a transitionary period when bills are estimated based on an average of actual consumption from prior billing periods. Estimated bills will be identified on the bill with the abbreviation (EST) immediately after the reading. Once the system is fully verified and implementation is complete, bills will begin moving to the monthly cycle and eventually will be based on actual meter reads/consumption each month. The City anticipates moving to actual billing in the coming months as the electronic meter reads are introduced into the billing system by geographic area. After the transitionary period concludes, the bills will only be estimated if a read cannot be reasonably obtained.

Key benefits of the new CC&B include increased efficiency of meter reading and water billing, eventual elimination of the need for estimated bills, and a reduced need for personnel to enter property. The system will also be able to track usage patterns, allowing the City to potentially detect leaks on a property through abnormal usage patterns. Implementation of the new system will occur in two phases. During Phase One, all customer accounts will be moved to the new system and reviewed to ensure that accounts were properly transitioned to the new platform before the CC&B’s broader capabilities are implemented.

New Orleans-based hip-hop artist Boyfriend released a new single Wednesday, Aug. 17, that features fellow New Orleanian Big Freedia, known to her fans as the "Queen of Bounce."

The track, titled "Marie Antoinette," is an ode to lavish lifestyles and over-the-top indulgence, all built on a bass-heavy, harpsichord-laden track from New Orleans deejay DXXXY. And of course, the song includes a few references to its famously extravagant - and very deceased - namesake, such as the oft-attributed quote, "Let them eat cake," and the lyric, "I go so hard I might just lose my head."

Besides their shared hometown, the two artists have another common distinction: Both have run into censorship troubles over Mississippi performances this year.

In February, the Dollar Box Showroom in Hattiesburg cancelled Big Freedia's performance due to pressure from the state Alcoholic Beverage Control's laws regarding "gyrating." In April, Oxford restaurant and music venue Proud Larry's cancelled Boyfriend's show, which would have featured burlesque elements, to avoid similar problems with the ABC.

The Department of Justice announced a series of reforms for federal prisons today. Reforms include building a school district within the system and improving the halfway houses that serve as re-entry homes for inmates in the system.

The DOJ also announced plans to improve programs for women in prison and provide inmates that are released with ID cards, free of charge. The reforms are a part of the department's intense focus on lowering recidivism rates across the country and rehabilitating former inmates. Earlier this year, the DOJ announced that they would phase out all contracts they had with private prisons due to the lowering number of inmates in the country as well as not finding real advantage in cost savings or enhanced services with private facilities.

There are two federal prisons in Mississippi: one in Yazoo City, and one in Natchez. The facility in Yazoo City is privately operated and run by the Corrections Corporation of America, or CCA, whose stocks soared after Donald Trump won the projected electoral college votes on Nov. 8.

President-elect Donald Trump's nomination of Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions for attorney general could change some of these reforms, and Democrats fear what Sessions' prosecutorial reputation and Trump's promises for "law and order" on the campaign trail could mean for reforms made in the past eight years.

Seventeen weeks of the regular season has reduced the NFL down to 12 teams. Only two of those 12 will play in the Super Bowl.

In a response to a release from the city yesterday citing decreasing crime numbers you can read about here, the campaign to elect Regina Quinn put out this press release Thursday afternoon:

"Today the Jackson Police Department released statistics stating that overall crime is down 16.2%. As of December 2012, three months ago, the City of Jackson reported 66 homicides, compared to 54 in 2011. Police also said violent crimes were up in 2012, with rape and aggravated assault up 8 percent. The current administration emphasized the fact that property crimes were reduced. Yet, they have offered no strategy to deal with the constant increase in violent crimes in our capital city. What does it say about the quality of life in Jackson when the city boasts a decrease in property crime, and offers no solution to loss of 66 lives? Just this year alone, two young people lost their lives over a dice game. We must take control of crime, especially violent crime. I want you to trust that you can count on Regina Quinn to take Jackson in a New Direction."

A release also included a link to a WAPT report with some background on those homicide numbers. JPD has maintained that it cannot do much about murders aside from solving them, which they have become remarkably apt at doing. Nearly 65 percent of murders in Jackson were solved in 2012, 15 percent higher than the national average of 50, according to WAPT's report.

Despite the storm, there's some good shows in New Orleans this weekend...