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More than a year after President Joe Biden nominated Scott Colom to fill a vacant federal judicial seat in north Mississippi, the prosecutor’s nomination still appears stalled in the U.S. Senate.

Fresh off winning reelection to a third term as the district attorney in Clay, Lowndes, Noxubee and Oktibbeha counties, Colom has not withdrawn his nomination, and Biden has not put forward a new nominee. 

But beyond the nomination being referred to a Senate committee for consideration, no federal official has offered major updates on the status of the pending nomination.

A White House spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment on the status of the judicial seat. Colom also declined to comment.

The reason for previous gridlock over Colmon’s elevation to the federal bench is opposition from Cindy Hyde-Smith, Mississippi’s junior U.S. senator. 

A spokesperson for Hyde-Smith, a Republican from Brookhaven, did not respond to a request for comment. But she previously said she opposes Colom’s nomination because of progressive organizations supporting his initial campaign for district attorney.

George Soros, a New York billionaire who backs some criminal justice reform efforts, gave money to Mississippi Safety and Justice, a political action committee that supported Colom’s 2015 race for district attorney. Soros did not contribute to Colom’s personal campaign.

Colom later wrote to Hyde-Smith in a letter that he never requested the donation from Soros and did not know he contributed to his campaign until a news outlet reported it.

Despite the senator’s opposition, a bipartisan group of former Mississippi politicians and current officials in Washington still publicly support the nomination. 

“Congressman Thompson believes there is no other qualified person than Colom and highly recommends him,” Yasmine Brown, press secretary for U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, said in a statement. “If there are any problems with the nomination, Congressman Thompson is sure they can be solved.”

U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, a Republican from Tupelo, and the state’s senior U.S. senator, returned a blue slip for Colom and his office recently told Mississippi Today that he still supports the nomination.

The New York Times also reported that former Republican Gov. Phil Bryant, the person who first appointed Hyde-Smith to the Senate, and former Republican Gov. Haley Barbour also support the prosecutor’s elevation to the federal bench.

Hyde-Smith is able to thwart the nomination because of a longstanding tradition in the U.S. Senate that requires senators from a nominee’s home state to submit “blue slips” if they approve of the candidate.

If both senators don’t submit a blue slip, the nominee typically does not advance to a confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Senate Judiciary Chairman Dick Durbin, a Democrat from Illinois, could upend the blue slip tradition and ignore Hyde-Smith’s opposition by conducting a confirmation hearing for Colom.

A spokesperson for Durbin’s office did not respond to a request for comment, but his office told Mississippi Today in April that Durbin is “extremely disappointed” in Hyde-Smith’s decision to block Colom.

A native of Columbus, Colom is a Democrat and the first Black prosecutor in the circuit court district, winning that seat in 2015 by defeating the long-serving incumbent Forrest Allgood.

He ran unopposed for reelection 2019 and won reeleection in November by capturing more than 56% of the total votes cast, according to results from the Secretary of State’s office.

Colom was nominated in October 2022 by Biden to replace U.S. District Judge Mike Mills of the Northern District of Mississippi who is stepping down from full-time service on the federal judiciary.

Mills, who is still hearing cases, has previously said he would like for a replacement to get confirmed soon so he could begin overseeing a reduced number of cases — and, he said, so he can spend more time touring with his band.

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The state and attorneys representing two men on death row are in conflict about whether legal options still exist for them to challenge their convictions or to proceed with their executions. 

In court documents, attorneys from Attorney General Lynn Fitch’s office said Willie Jerome Manning and Robert Simon Jr., who have each been on death row for 30 years, have exhausted their legal options at the state and federal level, so it’s time to set their executions. 

But attorneys representing them from the Office of Post-Conviction Counsel disagree, saying the men’s post-conviction relief petitions are still making their way through the court system and note that the Supreme Court, by law, is not required to set an execution if there is pending litigation. 

“If a death-row inmate whose state and federal remedies have been exhausted could create an impediment to setting an execution date simply by filing another successive PCR motion, the State could never carry out lawful death sentences,” Fitch’s office wrote in its motion to set Manning’s execution. 

On Monday, a spokesperson from Fitch’s office cited statute and case law, saying those determine the number of appeals a person is entitled to, and the courts ultimately decide whether someone has exhausted all of their legal remedies. 

It would appear the court and even the AG’s office already did decide these two death row inmates haven’t exhausted them.

Last week, all nine justices of the Supreme Court agreed that it would not set Manning’s execution date until his post-conviction relief petition is reviewed. With the state’s Dec. 29 deadline to respond to Manning’s petition and his attorney’s 15-day deadline to respond, the earliest his execution could take place is mid January 2024. 

In an April hearing for a federal lawsuit challenging the state’s lethal injection protocol that Simon has joined, the state recognized Simon was pursuing post-conviction relief. 

“Until that habeas (post-conviction) petition is filed and resolved, the State would not move for execution in his case,” Special Assistant Attorney General Gerald Kucia told U.S. District Judge Henry Wingate. 

A spokesperson for the attorney general’s office did not comment specifically about how attorneys from the office determined that dates should be set for Manning and Simon despite ongoing legal action. 

One remaining avenue for relief is clemency from Gov. Tate Reeves, who during his first term in office has not granted it to anyone. 

Simon, now 60, was convicted with co-defendant Anthony Carr, who is also on death row, of killing the Parker family in Quitman County in 1990. Simon and Carr broke into the home of Carl and Bobbie Jo and their two children while the family was at church. They shot the family members when they returned home and set the house on fire. 

Simon and Carr received death sentences for killing the Parker parents and 12-year-old Gregory. Simon was separately convicted for the murder, kidnapping and sexual battery of 9-year-old Charlotte and received a life sentence. 

In October, the Mississippi Supreme Court appointed the attorneys from the Office of Post-Conviction Counsel to represent Simon, and his attorneys said he has a constitutional right to effective assistance of post-conviction counsel and to file a successive petition for relief because his previous post-conviction legal team was ineffective. 

Over the years Simon has had multiple attorneys, including one who was disbarred. Others moved out of state or no longer work on capital murder cases. 

His attorneys say previous legal teams didn’t retain an expert to evaluate Simon’s mental health and they failed to seek funding for a proper post-conviction expert to delve into Simon’s history of trauma, head injuries and exposure to toxins. 

Experts were also not hired to determine whether Simon is intellectually disabled under the U.S. Supreme Court case Atkins v. Virginia, which prevents the execution of intellectually disabled people, according to court records. 

He had previously been scheduled to be executed in May 2011, but a federal appeals court ordered a stay to determine whether Simon was mentally incompetent from a brain injury and memory loss from a fall, according to court records. The Mississippi Supreme Court later rejected Simon’s claim. 

Simon’s attorneys on Nov. 21 filed a successive petition for post-conviction relief and raised claims about his mental competency and whether he can be executed, ineffective post-conviction counsel and a lack of experts to evaluate his mental health and present potential mitigating evidence. 

“Simon has never had the opportunity to challenge the ineffectiveness of post-conviction counsel—until now,” the petition states. 

Based on the claims raised, Simon’s attorneys are asking for his death sentence to be reversed. 

Manning, now 55, was convicted of shooting Mississippi State University students Tiffany Miller and Jon Steckler in 1994. He has maintained his innocence. 

Two days after asking for an extension to respond to Manning’s September post-conviction relief petition, Fitch’s office asked the Supreme Court to set an execution date and dismiss his successive petition. 

Manning’s attorneys said in court records that state law provides a remedy for newly discovered evidence, and that the state was wrong to say that the statute prohibits successive post-conviction relief petitions. 

His petition documents discoveries of new evidence about recanted and testimony by witnesses and questionable firearms evidence used in his case. 

Manning has been allowed to test additional DNA and run additional analyses since 2013, when a stay was ordered for his execution, but in court documents the state argues that those results have been inconclusive and he is now exhausted his legal options. 

The post Do these death row inmates have legal options to avoid execution? State AG’s office and defense attorneys disagree appeared first on Mississippi Today.

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The Mississippi Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on Feb. 6, 2024, in a case challenging the constitutionality of providing public funds to private schools.

The Supreme Court will hear an appeal by the state of an October 2022 ruling by Hinds County Chancery Court Crystal Wise Martin who found it unconstitutional to provide public money to private schools.

The state, led by the office of Attorney General Lynn Fitch, is appealing Wise’s ruling.

The lawsuit was filed in 2022 by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Democracy Forward, and the Mississippi Center for Justice on behalf of Parents for Public Schools, a Jackson-based nonprofit. The lawsuit was filed after the Mississippi Legislature in the 2022 session provided $10 million in federal funds to private schools.

The lawsuit pointed out Section 208 of the Mississippi Constitution states that public funds could not be given to a school “not conducted as a free school.”

In its entirety, Section 208 reads, “No religious or other sect or sects shall ever control any part of the school or other educational funds of this state; nor shall any funds be appropriated toward the support of any sectarian school, or to any school that at the time of receiving such appropriation is not conducted as a free school.” 

The state has argued that the appropriation is constitutional because the Legislature appropriates the money to the Department of Finance and Administration that then would disperse it to the private schools.

“The state cannot avoid compliance with our Constitution simply by delegating the power to disburse appropriated funds to an executive agency,” Martin wrote.

READ MORE: Politicians want private school vouchers, but not a vote to amend constitution to allow them

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Stewpot Community Services was started over 40 years ago by people like you and me who saw a growing need in Jackson and decided to work together to respond. One of our greatest strengths is that we are, and always have been, locally owned. 

Last month we received a great honor: we were one of only 38 organizations in the United States to receive a leadership award from the Jeff Bezos Day 1 Families Fund. The Day 1 Families Fund focuses its giving toward the needs of homeless families with children. They take their vision from the inspiring words of Mary’s Place in Seattle: ensuring “no child sleeps outside.”

Stewpot has a long history of serving families experiencing homelessness, which is one reason why we were invited to apply.  We opened our first shelter for women and children, Sims House, in 1984, and, over time, operated as many as five shelters at once. In that long history, we have helped thousands of homeless families with children find and maintain stability. And it has always been work that we have done together, as a community, neighbor reaching out to neighbor. 

We are excited about the Day 1 award because it helps us do some new and impactful things. For instance, the city of Jackson currently has no transitional shelter for families with children. We were reminded during COVID how critical transitional shelter can be for a family to achieve stability since for some, a longer runway is the key to success. So, we will use Day 1 funds to help fill that critical gap in our area. 

Additionally, the Day 1 gift stretches over five years, which means we can play the long game. We can establish creative partnerships that will leverage the funds for bigger impact. We can evolve with emerging needs. The field of possibilities opens up with Day 1’s multi-year commitment. 

However, the Day 1 funds do not undergird the other essential ministries of Stewpot. Through four decades of growth and change, we now provide an array of important services to people in need: a Community Kitchen, a Food Pantry, Meals on Wheels, a Clothing Closet, a day shelter, a men’s shelter, after school and summer camp programming for  kids and teens, a Legal Clinic, Chapel, and with our partners, HeARTworks art and St. Dominic Community Health Clinic. Between 400-500 people visit our campuses every day to find help and hope. 

In the midst of our many struggles as a city, we should all feel proud of the recognition our homegrown effort has received by a national, high-profile foundation.  You and I should be proud of the “compassionate, needle-moving work”  we’ve done to help families experiencing homelessness as well as grateful for the opportunity to expand on that work. 

But you and I are still being called upon to help feed the hungry, clothe the naked, welcome the stranger, and care for the at-risk child right here in our own city.  The vast majority of Stewpot’s work still needs our support to continue. 

So let us not grow weary in doing good. Some of our neighbors still struggle mightily, and we want them to know that we will not leave them to struggle alone. To find out more about what your gifts support, or to volunteer, visit our website at www.stewpot.org. We’re still in this work together…as people of faith, meeting needs, in our community.

The post Stewpot Community Services accepts leadership award appeared first on Mississippi Today.

”During a brief phone interview Sunday, Bailey repeatedly declined to comment. Told that several high-ranking deputies were involved in arrests that had sparked accusations of brutal treatment, he said, ‘I have 240 employees, there’s no way I can be with them each and every day.’” Read the article here.

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Dec. 3, 1841

Frederick Douglass founded and edited his first antislavery newspaper, “The North Star,” in Rochester, New York. The publication title referred to Polaris, the bright star that helped guide Black Americans escaping slavery: “To millions, now in our boasted land of liberty, it is the STAR OF HOPE.” 

He explained in this first issue that he desired to see “in this slave-holding, slave-trading, and negro-hating land, a printing-press and paper, permanently established, under the complete control and direction of the immediate victims of slavery and oppression … that the man who has suffered the wrong is the man to demand redress,—that the man STRUCK is the man to CRY OUT—and that he who has endured the cruel pangs of Slavery is the man to advocate Liberty.” 

The publication also sought to “promote the moral and intellectual improvement” of people of color. He championed not only for the freedom of those enslaved, but for women’s rights as well with the motto, “Right is of no sex. Truth is of no color. God is the father of us all, and all we are brethren.” 

In 1851, the paper merged with the Liberty Party Paper from Syracuse and became known as Frederick Douglass’ Paper. The paper closed during the Civil War, and in 1870, he moved from Rochester to Washington, D.C., and became part owner of the New National Era, which attacked the rise of the Ku Klux Klan and the mistreatment of and violence against Black Americans throughout the nation. His sons ran the newspaper until it folded in 1874. Because of a fire, no known collection exists of all of Douglass’ newspapers.

The post On this day in 1841 appeared first on Mississippi Today.

Despite election problems in Democratic-voter rich Hinds County, Brandon Presley did not delay his concession speech to incumbent Republican Gov. Tate Reeves on the night of Nov. 7.

Reeves has not been as quick in the past to accept election results. In 2020, Reeves cast doubt on the loss by Republican incumbent President Donald Trump despite more than 60 court cases, many decided by judges appointed by Trump, validating the election and despite the election results being confirmed by numerous Republican state officials throughout the country.

Still, Reeves and other Mississippi election officials argued that the election was not secure and fair in states Trump lost, even though those states operated under the same rules as states that Trump won.

On social media in 2020, Reeves said: “a safe and fair election here in Mississippi — not upended by last minute schemes to radically alter voting methods. Election integrity is vital.”

Just as the math — and remember, Reeves says he is “a numbers guy” — confirmed Trump’s defeat in 2020, the math also confirmed Presley’s loss on Nov. 7.

Presley could have cited Hinds County election problems as a reason not to concede. But he did not. And that has proven to be the right decision.

Even if the Democrat Presley had garnered the level of support in Hinds County as Barack Obama did in 2012, he still would not have had enough votes to defeat Reeves.

In 2012, Obama received 76,112 votes in Hinds County — the most ever for a candidate there — in his successful presidential reelection campaign. On Nov. 7, Presley won 54,006 votes in Hinds County — 22,106 votes less than Obama garnered in 2012. Reeves defeated Presley by 26,619 votes, meaning an Obama level of support in Hinds would not have put Presley over the top statewide.

The vote in Hinds County is important for a couple of reasons.

First of all, it is the state’s largest county and by far the biggest base of support for Democrats.

Second of all, there were numerous election problems in Hinds County on Nov. 7. Multiple precincts — at least eight, reportedly — ran out of ballots. There were reports of people leaving after waiting in lines for hours and, in some cases, not being able to vote at all.

It is difficult to believe that Presley, despite his and his team’s effort to get supporters to the polls, could have outdistanced the turnout Obama received in 2012. It was a watershed year in terms of turnout for Mississippi Democrats.

Granted, if Presley got all the votes that Obama received in Hinds County in 2012 and Reeves did not garner all the votes that Republican Mitt Romney won that year in Hinds County, there would have been a runoff election. Remember, Obama got 22,106 votes more than Presley in Hinds County. Presley came up only 15,466 votes short of what was needed to force a runoff. But it is unlikely to believe that Presley could match Obama numbers in Hinds County for a number of reasons, including the fact the county has lost significant population since 2012. The U.S. Census Bureau reported Hinds had a 4.4 % population loss during just a two-year period from 2020 to 2022. Numerous studies highlight much larger losses since 2010.

We will never know for sure how many people did not vote in Hinds County because of the election problems, but it is safe to say the numbers were not enough to cost Presley the election or even the chance of a runoff.

It also should be pointed out that the people running the elections in Hinds County are locally elected Democrats. The problems that occurred were unfortunate. But it is reasonable to assume they were not intentionally sabotaging Presley.

Going back a few years, it can be and has been mathematically proven that local Democratic officials did cost Democratic nominee Al Gore the White House in 2000.

The infamous butterfly ballot was designed by Democrats and used in Democratic-controlled Palm Beach County Florida. In that county, many people — 15,000 or more — thought they were voting for Gore, but accidentally voted for Reform Party candidate Pat Buchanan because of the confusing design of the ballot or voted for both Gore and Buchanan causing the ballot to be disqualified.

In an interview just after the election, Buchanan admitted, “When I took one look at that ballot on election night …  it’s very easy for me to see how someone could have voted for me in the belief they voted for Al Gore.”

Gore lost Florida and thus the White House by 537 votes.

Despite that math, Gore conceded.

Presley did the same on Nov. 7.

Reeves and other Mississippi elected officials did not in 2020.

The post Unlike Reeves in 2020, Presley accepted election math on Nov. 7 appeared first on Mississippi Today.

OXFORD — Who knows where this basketball season heads for Ole Miss? Answer: Nobody. It’s early, like really early. No college basketball trophies that matter are awarded in December.

That said, Chris Beard’s first Ole Miss basketball team took a huge step – perhaps even a bounding leap – toward playing basketball that really matters here Saturday, knocking off a hugely talented Memphis 80-77.

Here’s what we do know for certain:

• The Rebels are a battle-tested and perfect 7-0, having won numerous down-to-the-wire games including Saturday’s nail-biter.
• They are still getting to know one another, learning Beard’s system. They seem to play better each time out and are nowhere near as good today as they have a chance to be in March.
• They have two seven-footers who doggedly defend the paint, mostly from high above the rim and will take away the inside games of many lesser teams.
• Ole Miss fans are responding. They packed SJB Pavilion (9,416 strong), painted it red, and threatened to blow the top off in the second half when the Rebels erased an 11-point deficit.

My big question about Beard’s first Ole Miss team was whether or not the Rebels would have the quality of point guard play a team must have to compete at college basketball’s highest level. Well, they for sure had it Saturday. Jaylen Murray, a junior transfer from Saint Peters, won the game for Ole Miss. That’s all he did. He won the game.

You won’t find many stat lines any better than Murray’s. He played all 40 minutes. He led all scorers with 22 points, which is nice but what follows is nicer still. He passed out nine assists while turning the ball over just once. He made four of the six three-point shots he took. He scored seven of those points in the last two minutes. He took over a game that Ole Miss was about to lose and won it.

A wise basketball coach, one who has made millions and millions coaching this crazy sport, once told me that he would always, if at all possible, recruit his point guards from the playgrounds of the big cities, places like New York, Philadelphia, Chicago. He wanted his playmakers to come from the playgrounds where, if you lose the game, you lose the court and have to wait sometimes hours to play again. Those guys, the old coach said, know what it means to win and will do whatever it takes.

Murray, it should be noted, is from the Bronx. He may only stand 5 feet, 11 inches tall, but he knows what it takes to win. Saturday, he did it. This was by far his best game as a Rebel. He came into the game having passed out 23 assists, compared to 13 turnovers. That’s not awful, but it’s not nearly as good as nine and one.

Beard was asked after his press conference whether it was overstating matters to say Murray had taken over the game. Said Beard, “He did what it took to win. I couldn’t be more proud.”

This Ole Miss team has a lot of weapons. Allen Flanigan, a senior transfer from Auburn, is a 6-foot-6 slasher, the son of former Auburn Tiger Wes Flanigan, now one of Beard’s assistants. The younger Flanagan can twist, contort and muscle his way to the hoop. He leads Ole Miss in scoring on the season with 19 a game. Just as his father was, Allen Flanigan is one tough dude.

Returner Matthew Murrell is the team’s sharpshooter and averages 15 per game. The Rebels will need to get more from 6-8 forward Jaemyn Brakefield, who transferred to Ole Miss from Duke two seasons ago, and has the potential and stroke to score more than the 7.8 points per game he currently scores and shoot more accurately than the 33.3% he currently shoots.

The trademark of Beard’s past teams, especially at Texas Tech where his team lost in overtime to Virginia in the 2019 national championship game, has been aggressive, tenacious defense. That apparently will be the case with this first Ole Miss team, as well. The Rebels give up just 66 points a game despite a fast-paced style. Opponents shoot less than 40% from the floor.

That percentage might get even lower, now that Oklahoma State transfer Moussa Cisse has become eligible. Cisse is 7 feet tall and athletic, yet he’s five inches shorter than the guy he currently plays behind. That would be Jamarion Sharp, a skyscraper who came to Oxford from Western Kentucky and has roughly the wingspan of a small airplane. He leads the SEC in blocked shots with 2.7 per game. Now comes Cisse, who blocked two shots per game in two seasons at Oklahoma State after beginning his career at Memphis. It will be highly difficult to score against Ole Miss in the paint. That’s a good start to winning basketball games right there.

No doubt, you have noticed a word that keeps being repeated with nearly every Rebel player. That word: “transfer.” And so it is with college sports these days, when coaches are learning to play musical scholarships. Where the Rebels are concerned, they have two post players who have played college basketball at six different schools combined. You have a point guard who last year played at Saint Peters. You have a wing man who started his career at Duke. You have a leading scorer who played four seasons at Auburn. And you have a coach who has won 11 of 16 total NCAA Tournament games at three previous schools.

So, no, we don’t where this baby of a season is headed at Ole Miss. But clearly there is potential for greatness. Nobody will have an easy time at The SJB Pavilion, where as Beard put it, “It got to the point today where we couldn’t hear each other.”

In college basketball that’s a good thing, almost as good as having two rim-protecting 7-footers and a point guard from the Bronx.

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