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A new congressional bill aims to improve fisheries and environmental quality in the Mississippi River basin with a federally funded commission.

“This is a bill that’s way past its due,” said U.S. Rep. Troy Carter Sr. D-Louisiana, who is co-sponsoring the Mississippi River Basin Fishery Commission Act of 2025 with U.S. Rep. Mike Ezell R-Mississippi. It was introduced Feb. 24 in the House Committee on Natural Resources. 

The goal is to fund grants for habitat restoration, fisheries research and the mitigation of invasive species. 

It aims to support the growth of the fishing industry throughout the basin, as well as reinforce partnerships between local, state and federal agencies involved in the management of the river and its tributaries. The commission would be federally funded, and draw down on federal dollars to support restoration projects and fisheries management. 

“The Mississippi, a mighty, mighty estuary, is not only a major tool for moving commerce back and forth, but it’s also a place where people make a living, fishing on the river,” Carter said. “This bill endeavors to make sure that we are protecting that asset.”

While commercial fishing has declined in recent decades, and updated research is necessary to establish the exact value of recreational, commercial and subsistence fishing in the Mississippi River, one study valued it as a billion dollar industry.

“The Mississippi River Basin is not just a geographical feature — it’s the backbone of our economy, a provider of jobs, and a sanctuary for our nation’s anglers and wildlife,” Ezell said in a news release. “This commission will ensure we’re taking a proactive approach to conservation, management, and sustainability, securing this resource for generations to come. Healthy fisheries mean a stronger economy and better opportunities for those who depend on the river for their livelihoods. This is about securing our natural resources while supporting hardworking families.” 

The river has long faced challenges, such as industrial and agricultural pollution, habitat destruction and prolific spread of invasive species. Part of the difficulty in addressing these problems comes from the sheer size of the basin, with its geography covering over a third of the continental United States. 

“For decades, states have struggled to find dedicated resources to adequately manage large river species that cross many state, federal, and tribal jurisdictions,” Ben Batten, deputy director of Arkansas Game and Fish Commission and chair of the Mississippi Interstate Cooperative Resource Association, said in a press release. 

Large river species, such as invasive carp, are a problem the new commission would address, building on the work of the interstate cooperative, a multistate, multi-agency organization formed in 1991 that has focused on reducing invasives. The four varieties of carp originating from Asia – silver carp, black carp, grass carp and bighead carp – have spread at alarming rates and harm existing fisheries. 

Communication amongst the numerous jurisdictions in the basin —  states, cities, towns and tribal entities — can be difficult. Collaborative groups encourage more cohesive policy between basin states, such as the Mississippi River Cities and Towns Initiative and the Upper Mississippi River Basin Association, and there have been efforts to pass a river compact. 

The United States and Canada share a partnership through the Great Lakes Fishery Commission. The Mississippi River Basin Fishery Commission would be part of the Department of the Interior, and include other agencies, like the U.S. Geological Survey, Fish and Wildlife Service and Army Corps of Engineers. 

Due in large part to a lack of standardized testing, and often limited resources, health experts and government agencies often offer conflicting advice as to whether fish from the Mississippi River are safe to eat. Fish advisories warning against consumption of fish in one area may not exist in neighboring states, varying from one side of the river to the other. 

The bill authors request $1 million to launch the commission in 2026, then $30 million each year for the following three years

While many fish the Mississippi River for sport rather than to eat, some rely on the river as a source of food. 

General health advice for eating fish caught from the Mississippi does exist, such as throwing back the biggest and fattiest fish, washing them before fileting, and broiling or grilling the catch to avoid certain pollutants. 

Halle Parker and Mississippi Today contributed to this story. This story is a product of the Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk, an independent reporting network based at the University of Missouri in partnership with Report for America, with major funding from the Walton Family Foundation.

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This story was originally reported by Barbara Rodriguez of The 19th. Meet Barbara and read more of their reporting on gender, politics and policy.

A measles outbreak involving more than 150 infected people in Texas has put a spotlight on the role of vaccines in treating preventable diseases — especially as childhood vaccination rates have declined for several years. A school-aged child who was not vaccinated and had no known underlying conditions died from the outbreak, according to Texas health officials.

Parents and caregivers, in particular mothers, make important health decisions for their families.  Though it can impact people of different ages, measles is considered a childhood disease and unvaccinated children under 5 years old are among those who are most at risk for severe illness. Here’s what parents need to know about measles and vaccines.

What is measles? How serious is it?

Measles is a highly contagious airborne disease that spreads when an infected person breathes, coughs or sneezes. If you do not have immune protection from measles and you come into contact with a person who has been infected — or even if you enter a room where an infected person was in the previous two hours — it is highly likely you will get infected.

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, symptoms for measles include:

• fever
• cough
• runny nose
• red, watery eyes
• a skin rash

Measles can make people very sick: 1 in 20 people get pneumonia; 1 to 3 in 1,000 people get brain swelling (encephalitis); and 1 in 1,000 people die. Children who are infected with measles typically stay home from school. And since symptoms can emerge over several weeks, parents could be out of work for a prolonged period of time to care for their child and keep them in isolation.

The recent death of a child who was infected with measles in Texas is the first measles death in the United States in a decade and the first measles death involving a child since 2003.

How do you prevent measles?

Vaccination is the key to measles prevention. Routine childhood vaccination provides 97 percent protection from measles through the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine. Following the childhood vaccination schedule, which is reviewed by multiple medical organizations, helps prevent hospitalization, long-term injuries and death.

Because the disease is so contagious, community protection from measles requires at least 95 percent immunity to prevent outbreaks.

How often do measles outbreaks happen in the United States?

The widespread use of vaccines has meant that measles has not been common in the United States — so much so that it was declared eliminated from the country in 2000.

That has changed as parents increasingly decline to vaccinate their children, with emerging instances of measles outbreaks, which involve three or more cases. In 2019, there was an uptick in measles cases, with a major outbreak reported in New York. In 2023, there were four outbreaks. In 2024, there were 16 outbreaks. Three months into 2025, there have been three outbreaks reported.

Measles still regularly occurs in many parts of the world, said Dr. Lori Handy, associate director of the Vaccine Education Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. There has always been a risk that an unvaccinated child in the United States could be infected with measles from an international traveler who enters the United States. But the risk is greater now amid lower vaccination rates in kindergarten-age children.

“As a parent, it’s important to update that framework — that this is no longer the rare, ‘international traveler brings measles back home to a highly vaccinated country.’ This is now people within our own country have measles, and we have an under-vaccinated population, and so we are likely to see more spread in more regions,” she said.

I am vaccinating my child according to the childhood vaccination schedule. How worried should I be about outbreaks?

It depends on the age of your child and whether they are old enough to get the MMR vaccine. The first dose is administered between 12 and 15 months old and is 93 percent effective against measles. The second dose, which is administered between 4 and 6 years old, can add an additional 4 percent of immunity.

If you and your family are fully vaccinated, you can go about your routine activities, according to Handy. If you are vaccinated but you have a young child who is not old enough to receive an MMR shot, you should make sure that the people around the child are vaccinated. People transmit measles to other people only when they are showing symptoms of the viral infection.

“A fully vaccinated parent has a very, very low risk of getting infected with the measles

virus, and therefore should not be a risk to their infant,” Dr. John Swartzberg, clinical professor emeritus at the UC Berkeley School of Public Health, said in an email.

It is important to be aware of outbreaks in your region. Handy said if you live in an outbreak area, be very cautious about bringing a young child who is not yet vaccinated to crowds — or avoid it if at all possible. If you find out your child has been exposed, immediately call their pediatrician to learn about post-exposure care that can be taken to prevent infection.

At a community level, ensure your friends and family are aware of outbreaks and the importance of vaccination to protect themselves, their children and their community.

Can my child receive an MMR shot early?

Some children who are traveling abroad can get an MMR shot as early as six months old, but it could still require two doses later. Parents should consult their pediatrician.

Handy added that there can be unusual circumstances; she gave the example of a parent with an 11-month-old traveling into a state or region with an outbreak for a social event like a wedding. That child is on the cusp of being old enough to receive the first dose of the MMR vaccine and may be able to get the shot early even though they’re not traveling abroad.

“That’s kind of the one-on-one conversation families will have to have with their care provider,” she said.

Swartzberg said that the most important thing a parent can do is make sure everyone who lives in or visits their home is vaccinated against measles.

“If someone is ill with a respiratory infection in the household, they should wear an N95

mask and stay away from the infant,” he added.

Children who have received their first MMR shot can receive the second as early as 28 days after the first dose, which may be the best option for people who live in or travel to outbreak areas or are traveling internationally. Handy said a second MMR dose helps individuals who may not have responded to the first dose. About 7 out of 100 people do not become immune after one dose; the second dose brings this down to 3 out of 100.

Handy again recommends that parents talk to their pediatricians about the best course of action. 

“Related to the immunization schedule, I think the most practical information that people should have is that the way it’s designed right now is to give your child the best protection at the earliest time we can safely give vaccines. And with that in mind, deviation from that should be the exception,” she said.

I’m an adult but I’m not sure about my vaccination status. How can I check if I’ve had the measles vaccine?

If you were born before 1957, you have immunity due to the natural spread occurring then. If you were born after 1957 and have access to your records, check these. Most individuals vaccinated after that time will be protected except for a group of people who received a certain type of vaccine prior to 1968. If you do not have access to your records, you can ask your doctor to check your immunity through bloodwork to see if you need a dose of the vaccine.

The MMR vaccine gives long-lasting protection. No booster is needed, including for parents of young children, said Dr. William Schaffner of Vanderbilt University.

“The vaccine is extraordinarily effective,” he said.

I’m pregnant. What should I know about measles? 

To date, most adults have received the MMR vaccine. A person who did not get the vaccine during childhood should make a plan to get it before they become pregnant by at least a month. If they do not, they should wait until after their pregnancy because the MMR vaccine is a live virus vaccine.

Amid the declining rates of childhood vaccination and the measles outbreak, how should I discuss this topic with my family, friends and community if I’m not sure about their vaccination status?

Handy said that while she hopes parents and others make decisions about vaccination based on the science and one-on-one conversations with their health care providers, she knows people can be convinced to get vaccines because of their social groups. She encourages parents to have honest conversations with fellow parents.

“Help people realize, ‘This is important to me. This is what I do,’” she said. “A lot of people have a lot of questions, and they kind of want to understand what’s socially normal here.”

Handy said parents can also direct fellow parents to medical professionals.

“Recommend they talk with their health care provider to figure out, ‘Where’d you get that information? And how is that helping or potentially harming your child?’” she said. “Because your health care provider is keeping up on all of the science behind vaccines and kind of can help with myths or questions.”

Schaffner also encouraged open conversations between parents, particularly those having play dates. His biggest concern is in outbreak regions for now.

“You’re entitled to ask those other moms or dads, for that matter: ‘If your Susie wants to play with my Johnny, is your Susie vaccinated?’” he said.

Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has a history of anti-vaccine activism that came up during his Senate confirmation hearings What has he said about the outbreak?

Kennedy’s political ascension as a one-time presidential candidate and now as the head of the federal health department comes from a platform of promising to “Make America Healthy Again” through policy that purports to address children’s health issues. The messaging has resonated with some parents, while others are skeptical given Kennedy’s lack of formal medical and science training and years of anti-vaccine activism.

During his first public remarks on the Texas outbreak, Kennedy said measles outbreaks are “not unusual” — a description that drew criticism from some health experts because the number of cases related to this outbreak is particularly high. Kennedy also did not mention vaccination.

A few days later, Kennedy posted an op-ed where he more clearly acknowledged the severity of the outbreak and the need for vaccination.

“Parents play a pivotal role in safeguarding their children’s health. All parents should consult with their healthcare providers to understand their options to get the MMR vaccine. The decision to vaccinate is a personal one. Vaccines not only protect individual children from measles, but also contribute to community immunity, protecting those who are unable to be vaccinated due to medical reasons.”

There is a lot of information being shared online about vaccines. Where can I get factual information?

Handy recommended that parents review information available on the Vaccine Education Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, which provides information on vaccine science, including its safety. She also noted the American Academy of Pediatrics has guides on vaccination, as does the American Academy of Family Physicians.
“Parents can look to those sites and see, where are those organizations potentially diverging from some other messaging in MAHA?” she said. “We really should be looking to those who have spent decades, if not centuries, protecting children and rely on that information.”

The post The 19th Explains: What parents need to know about the measles vaccine appeared first on Mississippi Today.

Weeks after the escape of two men from separate Mississippi prisons, the search continues for a 71-year-old man convicted of capital murder who escaped the Mississippi State Penitentiary earlier in the week. 

Nevin Whetstone, who is serving life for the 1983 murder of Loretta Darlene Steele in Lee County, was last seen Tuesday, prison officials said. 

This is not the first time he has escaped incarceration. Whetstone received a one-year sentence for escaping from the Sunflower County Jail. He also tried to escape Parchman in 1988 with another man by climbing a fence behind a reception unit, according to the Associated Press. 

A spokesperson for the Mississippi Department of Corrections declined to comment Wednesday about details of how Whetstone escaped, how prison staff discovered his absence and whether a lack of staffing was a contributing factor. 

Staffing has been a problem at Parchman and across the state’s prisons for years. The agency’s 2023 annual report, the most recent published online, lists 275 filled security positions at Parchman, but 430 positions are authorized. That resulted in an inmate to staff ratio of 8.6. 

Whetstone has been in prison since 1984 after pleading guilty. Because he was sentenced before July 1994, his life sentence is parole eligible. 

In 2023, he was denied parole and given five years before he can be considered again, in 2028, according to an advocate who has worked with him. To date, Whetstone has been denied parole at least eight times. An MDOC spokesperson did not confirm whether Whetstone is parole eligible. 

Whetstone has been housed in Unit 31, Parchman’s medical unit, according to prison records. The advocate added that he has used a walker, which an MDOC spokesperson declined to comment about. 

Whetstone’s escape comes months after at least two prison escapes in December.  

On Christmas Eve, Drew Johnson escaped the South Mississippi Correctional Facility and was found a day later in Greene County. The 33-year-old is serving a life sentence for murder, and after the escape he was moved to Walnut Grove Correctional Facility. 

Gregory Trigg, sentenced to 61 years on nine counts including armed robbery, kidnapping and burglary committed in the Jackson metro area, escaped Parchman Dec. 9 and was found days later in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The 46-year-old was returned to prison and moved to Walnut Grove. 

This year, a bill has been proposed to require local law enforcement and the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation to be immediately notified about any prison or jail escape and once the person is apprehended. The legislation awaits a vote by the Senate. 

In the past decade, there have been at least 50 people in MDOC prisons and assigned to community work and restitution centers who have escaped, with a majority returned to custody afterward. About half of those escapes have been since 2020. 

Whetstone is among those who have escaped Mississippi prisons more than once. 

Trigg, who escaped last year, previously escaped from the Scott County Jail in 2017 while he was being held there on a court order, according to a MDOC news release from the time. 

Former Parchman inmate Ryan Young, who fled from court in Meridian in December 2023, was arrested five days later in Texas. 

He previously escaped the prison in 2017 with James Sanders. Young was found in Mound Bayou and Sanders was arrested in Arkansas. Not long after their return to prison, Sanders was moved to East Mississippi Correctional Facility, and Young went to Walnut Grove. 

Michael Wilson, who is serving a life sentence for nine charges including two murders, escaped SMCI in 2018 and was found a day later on the Coast. Years later in 2022, he escaped the Central Mississippi Correctional Facility and was found in Harrison County. His convictions are in Harrison and Jackson counties. 

“While understaffing has not been directly attributed to the July 5 escape, it could be a contributing factor that ultimately affects public safety,” MDOC said in a July 2018 statement following Wilson’s escape. 

“The department is committed to finding ways to address the understaffing problem, but until the wages, the necessary security positions are restored, and working conditions of the correctional officers improve, the state correctional system will continue to be at a disadvantage in carrying out its public safety mission.” 

The post Latest Mississippi inmate to flee prison is another repeat escapee appeared first on Mississippi Today.

Note: This column is part of Mississippi Today Ideas, a new platform for thoughtful Mississippians to share fact-based ideas about our state’s past, present and future. You can read more about the section here. 

Roger Wicker of Mississippi was so upset about Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine that he went where few modern politicians are willing to go: 1940s Germany.

“The free world deserves better than this modern-day Adolf Hitler,” the U.S. senator from Mississippi told the Organization on Security and Cooperation in Europe Parliamentary Assembly in February 2022. “If Vladimir Putin’s recent words and deeds have a haunting familiarity, it is because they are directly out of that Nazi madman’s notebook.”

Fast-forward three years to today: President Donald Trump is warming America’s relationship with the very dictator Wicker likened to Hitler. He is whitewashing the Ukrainian invasion that endangers millions of Europeans and long-standing U.S. allies. He’s reversing generations of U.S. foreign policy that Wicker and other Republicans worked hard to build.

You can see it on his face: Wicker is battling some intense personal struggles over Trump’s dangerous foreign policy positions.

It’s one thing to stay silent because of party loyalty, to fear political repercussions over menial political rhetoric. But what we’re witnessing the past few days is far from menial.

Trump is forging a disturbing shift of world power, and Americans of all political persuasions are fearful over what long-standing, bipartisan-supported policies he will upend next and wondering if our legislative branch elected officials will have the fortitude to check his unprecedented oversteps.

What will it take for Wicker, one of America’s most powerful leaders on the international stage, who took an oath to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic,” to stand up to the president on behalf of his country and the world?

If you’re scouring Washington for such a brave leader, Wicker is as well positioned as anyone.

The Pontotoc native serves as the new chairman of the all-powerful Senate Armed Services Committee. He has long been one of America’s closest friends of Ukraine and staunchest enemies of Russia. As Trump presents the most outward hostility toward Ukraine and friendliness to Russia of any prominent U.S. leader since Ukraine declared its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, Wicker has become a target of cameras.

In late February, as Trump began to show new signs of Russian allegiance, reporters caught Wicker in the Capitol hallway. Careful not to criticize Trump, Wicker said Putin “is a war criminal who should be in jail for the rest of his life, if not executed.” Mississippi’s senator showed no fear in calling out the Russian strongman, but he sure appeared too afraid to criticize his own president who is playing directly into Putin’s hand.

Trump has unleashed a bevy of attacks in recent days on Ukraine, an important ally to America and to NATO countries who share a continent with Russia. Trump publicly humiliated Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in a petty and contentious West Wing public meeting. He halted U.S. military aid to Ukraine as its own military struggles to defend its country against further Russian invasion and assault. He paused the flow of CIA intelligence to Ukraine as it faces unprecedented and sophisticated attacks. His defense secretary Pete Hegseth stopped U.S. offensive cyber operations against Russia. And he is planning to revoke temporary U.S. legal immigration status for about 240,000 Ukrainians who fled the conflict with Russia.

As European allies scramble to clean up Trump’s mess and publicly back Ukraine, Wicker is thus far refusing to use his foreign policy expertise and platform to point out that Trump is ignoring fundamental realities: that Russia is one of America’s most dangerous adversaries, and handing Putin any semblance of victory in Ukraine could threaten human rights and basic freedoms around the world.

Ten years ago, Wicker co-founded the Senate Ukraine Caucus with the stated mission to “strengthen the political, military, economic, and cultural relationship between the United States and Ukraine.” For years, he has been among the most publicly supportive lawmakers regarding sending U.S. aid to Ukraine to defend itself against Russia. In 2022, he co-authored a letter to Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley asking them to expedite shipments of military equipment to Ukraine. His office has issued at least a dozen press releases since 2022 touting his support of America’s boosts for Ukraine.

“Our goal now should be to maximize U.S. interests through Ukrainian victory and deter further Russian aggression, including against our NATO and our non-NATO allies,” Wicker said on the Senate floor in March 2023. “I will continue to focus on providing the Ukrainians with everything they need to achieve battlefield gains faster and hasten Ukraine’s victory.”

Contrast these pro-Ukraine positions from Wicker — countless, on-the-floor, on-the-record, uber-public comments — with recent comments from Trump and his administration, and it’s no wonder Wicker’s face the past few days appears struck with fear and consternation.

Trump in February raised alarms across the world when he called Zelensky a “dictator without elections,” claimed he was doing a “terrible job” and suggested he was responsible for the start of the war. Trump has also argued in recent days that Zelensky shouldn’t be part of peace negotiations because he “doesn’t have the cards.”

Then, all hell broke loose when Zelensky visited Washington on Feb. 28 to formally finalize a mineral deal between Ukraine and the U.S. that would help aid the country’s fight against Russia. 

That morning, Wicker warmly greeted Zelensky, offering up his hand and a supportive message that he posted on social media: “Today, several U.S. senators had the opportunity to meet with President Zelensky to discuss Ukraine’s future and the mineral deal brokered by President Trump. This is a huge step forward in securing mutual prosperity and peace for Americans and Ukrainians.”

Zelensky then went to the White House, where things devolved in historic fashion. Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance sharply questioned Zelensky in front of rolling cameras, and the leaders screamed at each other. Trump accused Zelensky of not being grateful for the U.S. aid, and said he was “gambling with World War III.”

Shortly after the outburst, Wicker deleted his earlier social media post warmly welcoming Zelensky to Washington. That post removal has drawn criticism across the political spectrum.

Say what you want about Roger Wicker, but the man knows foreign policy. 

He knows that the United States’ steadfast support for Ukraine boosts our own national security and supports our NATO allies in Europe — allies that are within much closer range of Russian aggression than we are.

He knows that Russian regaining control of Ukraine could provide our enemies with geographic leverage that could more easily open the door to new foreign powers attacking traditional U.S. allies in Europe and beyond.

He knows that a powerful Russia, alongside their extremely rational allies China, Iran and North Korea, could reset the modern world order that works to uphold peace and fair elections around the world.

We can be sure Wicker knows all this because he’s publicly said it — countless, countless times. But another thing Wicker also must know: Trump’s recent actions have drawn high praise from the Kremlin.

This weekend, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov praised Trump’s “common sense” aim to end the war in Ukraine. Kremlin officials also over the weekend commended the U.S., with spokesperson Dmitry Peskov saying the United States’ “rapidly changing” foreign policy configurations “largely coincides with our vision.” 

“There is a long way to go, because there is huge damage to the whole complex of bilateral relations,” Peskov said. “But if the political will of the two leaders, President Putin and President Trump, is maintained, this path can be quite quick and successful.”

Someone should check Ronald Reagan’s grave to ensure he hasn’t spun his casket all the way to the surface.

For what it’s worth, several of Wicker’s Senate Republican colleagues have found the backbone to challenge Trump’s unsettling Ukraine-related actions this week.

But Wicker — the eternal friend of Ukraine, the steadfast defender of America’s interests in Europe and beyond, the foreign policy wonk who knows the biggest threats to our nation and to the rest of the world run through Moscow — has gone underground since the Oval Office explosion on Feb. 28.

In his only public statement so far this week, Wicker didn’t acknowledge Trump’s unacceptable actions. Instead, he worked to diffuse tensions and, in doing so, tried to put words in the president’s mouth — possibly the greatest political risk imaginable given the president’s constant flip-flopping.

“I would then remind those within the sound of my voice and those reading the record that our president, President Trump, has said, ‘The government of the United States of America supports Ukraine’s efforts to obtain security guarantees needed to establish lasting peace,’” Wicker said, quoting a draft of the mineral deal that hasn’t yet been signed. “… I’ve had fights with my roommates over time. We got over it. I’m even told sometimes there are family fights. It’s regrettable when they spill out into the front yard. But friends get over it. Friends decide to move on. And I think we’re seeing that process today. I hope to heaven that that is the case.”

In reality, Wicker could hold a lot more than mere hope that Trump will stop cozying up to Putin and Russia — he holds more power than just about anyone else in the world to call out Trump and other Putin sympathizers who are trying to dismantle the world order.

All Wicker’s constituents have, however, is hope alone — hope that our senior senator and one of America’s most powerful leaders does something more than hope before it’s too late.

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What happened in Oxford on a wild Wednesday night was not a case of fourth-ranked Tennessee playing poorly. It wasn’t a case of Tennessee shooting erratically from the field, missing free throws or losing key players to injuries or foul trouble.

No, this was a case of – for at least one memorable night – Ole Miss just being better. This was a case of an Ole Miss senior, Jaemyn Brakefield, on Senior Night, playing his best half of basketball of his college career and lifting the unranked Rebels to a scintillating, 78-76 victory over the talented Vols, easily one of the nation’s best teams.

Tennessee shot the ball well. Indeed, it would be difficult to count the number of times a Vol would swish a long three-pointer just when it seemed as if Ole Miss had grabbed the momentum. Foul trouble? No Tennessee player was charged with more than three fouls. This Ole Miss team makes its living by stealing the basketball and forcing turnovers. But Tennessee committed only eight turnovers. Ole Miss even out-rebounded the Vols, an upset if there ever was one.

Bottom line:  Ole Miss just beat Tennessee, just outplayed the Vols, handing them their sixth defeat against 24 victories. “Give coach (Chris) Beard and his staff credit,” Tennessee  coach Rick Barnes said.”I thought he had his guys much more ready to play than I did.”

That surely looked to be the case. 

So now, under second-year coach Chris Beard, the Rebels own two victories over Top 5 teams. On Jan. 15, the Rebels somehow won 74-64 at then No. 4 Alabama. The Rebels now stand at 21-9 overall and 10-7 in the Southeastern Conference heading into their last regular season game Saturday at No. 5 Florida, which will be coming off a 99-94 victory at Alabama.

Make no mistake, a 10-7 record in this year’s SEC just means more than usual. This is the best and deepest the league has ever been. This year, it’s the best league in the country. There are no free passes, no sure victories. You play well, you have a chance to win. You play poorly, you get embarrassed, which easily could have happened Wednesday night.

Tennessee looked ready to step on the accelerator nearly midway through the second half. Felix Okpara slammed in a dunk to give the Vols a 56-49 lead with 10 minutes, 39 seconds remaining. But that’s when the Jaemyn Brakefield Show began. The Jackson native scored all 19 of his points over the last 10:24, starting with a layup to cut the Tennessee lead to five.

In all, Brakefield scored 19 of the Rebels final 29 points. Over the course of his career, the Duke transfer has often settled for deep perimeter shots, instead of penetrating and getting to the basket for higher percentage shots. Not this night. All but one of his field goals came from inside the paint, including the game-winner, which came with just seven ticks remaining.

All season long, the Rebels’ bugaboo has been rebounding. In the SEC, the Rebels have been out-rebounded seven per game, which makes that 10-7 league record all the more implausible. So how did they slay Tennessee? With an offensive rebound when they needed it most, of course.

Ole Miss had the ball working for a last shot. Sean Pedulla launched a 3-pointer with about nine seconds to go, which hit the front of the rim and then the back of the rim and then hung in the air seemingly forever. Rebel senior Davon Barnes, who did not score in the game, kept the ball alive, batting it off the backboard. Brakefield then snared it and made the put-back. The Pavilion was bedlam. Tennessee managed one last shot, but Igor Milicik missed.

Brakefield was clearly the hero, but he had so much help. Dre Davis, still another senior, provided a double-double, 13 points, 10 rebounds and also three assists before fouling out. Malik Dia also provided 13 points while taking just seven shots. Fifth-year senior Matthew Murrell scored 12. Pedulla and Jaylen Murray both handled the ball well against Tennessee’s ball-hawking defense.

Said Ole Miss coach Chris Beard of Tennessee, “I think they might be the best team in college basketball. They were No. 1 for a long time. They have several all-conference players, a couple NBA players and a Hall of Fame coach…”

After it was all over and Ole Miss fans had converged, dancing and celebrating on the court, Beard stood on team’s bench, surveying the scene. Later, he said, “…Tonight something came over me and I said to myself let’s just enjoy this for a quick second. I wanted to smell the roses for a quick second. I couldn’t see the players, so I stood up where I could see them.”

He saw Brakefield in the middle of all the bedlam and sought him out for a most meaningful victory hug. 

Who knows what happens from here? Ole Miss plays at No. 5 Florida Saturday. Next week, it’s the SEC Tournament at Nashville, then the NCAA Tournament. Really, who knows? But Ole Miss is 2-0 in March and the Rebels have already had a taste – no, a great big bite – of March Madness.

The post Vols did not play poorly; Rebels, Brakefield were just better appeared first on Mississippi Today.

The Mississippi Legislature on Thursday honored longtime, award-winning journalist Emily Wagster Pettus for her decades of legislative news coverage.

The Senate and House passed Senate Concurrent Resolution 505 honoring Pettus. The resolution notes, “Emily steadfastly continued to cover Mississippi news, telling citizens across the state and nation about events far and wide and helping to strengthen our democracy.” It also praised her fair, balanced coverage and said, “Emily always took time to mentor and share her knowledge of Mississippi politics with new reporters sent to the Capitol to cover the daily activity of the Legislature and state leaders.”

Pettus recently left the Associated Press where she served as Mississippi Capitol correspondent. She formerly worked for the Clarion Ledger and the Vicksburg Evening Post.

“It was an honor and a privilege to cover the Legislature for 31 regular sessions and no telling how many special sessions — and let me tell you they are not all that special,” Pettus told lawmakers during a ceremony in the state Senate, where she received a standing ovation.

Pettus noted she has covered the administrations of five governors, six lieutenant governors and four speakers of the House.

“Thank you for your service, and we will sorely miss you,” Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann told Pettus on the Senate floor.

Sen. Hob Bryan of Amory on Thursday said, “Her reporting has always been fair and accurate. I don’t think anyone reading her reporting had any idea of her political views, just the way it used to be.”

Sen. Hillman Frazier of Jackson, in his 45th year in the Legislature, said he’s seen many reporters at the Capitol, “But none stood out to me more than Emily … Thank you for a job well done.”

Pettus, addressing the Senate on Thursday, urged lawmakers to support open government and transparency for the public and said, “The decisions made here are important to people who never set foot in this building … It was a privilege to be the eyes and ears of the public here.”

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Mississippi Today health reporter Gwen Dilworth was selected as a 2025 fellow for the Health Coverage Fellowship at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Dilworth is one of 13 health and science journalists from around the world who will make up this year’s class.

“I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to be a part of this year’s fellowship class and learn from both incredibly presenters and fellow cohort members,” Dilworth said. “I’m looking forward to bringing what I learn back home to strengthen our coverage of health issues in Mississippi.”

Fellow Mississippi Today health team member and reporter Sophia Paffenroth was selected as a fellow last year.

“Gwen has done amazing work during her time at Mississippi Today, and I’m incredibly excited for her to be able to deepen her knowledge and skills through this fellowship,” said Kate Royals, Mississippi Today’s health editor. “I can’t wait to see what new ideas and information she comes back with.”

The fellowship is designed to help media improve its coverage of critical health care issues. Fellows will hear from more than 75 health officials, practitioners, researchers and patients. It also brings journalists out to watch firsthand how the system works, from walking the streets at night with mental health case workers to visiting labs that make stem cells and vaccines.

The nine-day program will focus on a series of pressing issues, including preventing future pandemics, treating mental illness, rooting out racial and ethnic inequities, redressing homelessness and rethinking later-life care.

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A bill to license and regulate professional midwifery died on the calendar without a vote after Public Health Chair Hob Bryan, D-Amory, did not bring it up in committee before the deadline Tuesday night. 

Bryan said he didn’t take the legislation up this year because he’s not in favor of encouraging midwives to handle births independently from OB-GYNs – even though they already do, and keeping them unlicensed makes it easier for untrained midwives to practice. The proposed legislation would create stricter standards around who can call themselves a midwife – but Bryan doesn’t want to pass legislation recognizing the group at all.

“I don’t wish to encourage that activity,” he told Mississippi Today.

Midwifery is one of the oldest professions in the world. 

Proponents of the legislation say it would legitimize the profession, create a clear pathway toward midwifery in Mississippi, and increase the number of midwives in a state riddled with maternity health care deserts. 

Opponents of the proposal exist on either end of the spectrum. Some think it does too much and limits the freedom of those currently practicing as midwives in the state, while others say it doesn’t do enough to regulate the profession or protect the public.

The bill, authored by Rep. Dana McLean, R-Columbus, made it further than it has in years past, passing the full House mid-February. 

As it stands, Mississippi is one of 13 states that has no regulations around professional midwifery – a freedom that hasn’t benefited midwives or mothers, advocates say.

Tanya Smith-Johnson is a midwife on the board of Better Birth Mississippi, a group advocating for licensure. 

“Consumers should be able to birth wherever they want and with whom they want – but they should know who is a midwife and who isn’t,” Smith-Johnson said. “… It’s hard for a midwife to be sustainable here … What is the standard of how much midwifery can cost if anyone and everyone can say they’re a midwife?”

There are some midwives — though it isn’t clear there are many — who do not favor licensure.

One such midwife posted in a private Facebook group lamenting the legislation, which would make it illegal for her to continue to practice under the title “midwife” without undergoing the required training and certification decided by the board.

On the other end of the spectrum, among those who think the bill doesn’t go far enough in regulating midwives, is Getty Israel, founder of community health clinic Sisters in Birth – though she said she would rather have seen the bill amended than killed. Israel wanted the bill to be amended in several ways, including to mandate midwives pay for professional liability insurance, which it did not.

“As a public health expert, I support licensing and regulating all health care providers, including direct entry midwives, who are providing care for the most vulnerable population, pregnant women,” she said. “To that end, direct entry midwives should be required to carry professional liability insurance, as are certified nurse midwives, to protect ill-informed consumers.”

The longer Mississippi midwives go without licensure, the closer they get to being regulated by doctors who don’t have midwives’ best interests in mind. 

That’s part of why the group Better Birth felt an urgency in getting legislation passed this year. 

“I think there’s just been more iffy situations happening in the state, and it’s caused the midwives to realize that if we don’t do something now, it’s going to get done for us,” said Erin Raftery, president of the group.

Raftery says she was inspired to see the bill make headway this year after not making it out of committee several years in a row. 

“We are hopeful that next year this bill will pass and open doors that improve outcomes in our state,” she said. “Mississippi families deserve safe, competent community midwifery care.”

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Voters from 15 Mississippi legislative districts will decide special elections this November, if a federal court approves two redistricting maps that lawmakers approved on Wednesday. 

The Legislature passed House and Senate redistricting maps, over the objections of some Democrats and DeSoto County lawmakers. The map creates a majority-Black House district in Chickasaw County and creates two new majority-Black Senate districts in DeSoto and Lamar counties. 

“What I did was fair and something we all thought the courts would approve,” Senate President Pro Tempore Dean Kirby told Mississippi Today on the Senate plan. 

Even though legislative elections were held in 2023, lawmakers have to tweak some districts because a three-judge federal panel determined last year that the Legislature violated federal law by not creating enough Black-majority districts when it redrew districts in 2022.

The Senate plan creates one new majority-Black district each in DeSoto County and the Hattiesburg area, with no incumbent senator in either district. To account for this, the plan also pits two incumbents against each other in northwest Mississippi. 

READ MORE: See the proposed new Mississippi legislative districts here.

The proposal puts Sen. Michael McLendon, a Republican from Hernando, who is white, and Sen. Reginald Jackson, a Democrat from Marks, who is Black, in the same district. The redrawn district contains a Black voting-age population of 52.4% and includes portions of DeSoto, Tunica, Quitman and Coahoma counties. 

McLendon has vehemently opposed the plan, said the process for drawing a new map wasn’t transparent and said Senate leaders selectively drew certain districts to protect senators who are key allies. 

McLendon proposed an alternative map for the DeSoto County area and is frustrated that Senate leaders did not run analytical tests on it like they did on the plan the Senate leadership proposed. 

“I would love to have my map vetted along with the other map to compare apples to apples,” McLendon said. “I would love for someone to say, ‘No, it’s not good’ or ‘Yes, it passes muster.’”

Kirby said McLendon’s assertions are not factual and he only tried to “protect all the senators” he could. 

The Senate plan has also drawn criticism from some House members and from DeSoto County leaders. 

Rep. Dan Eubanks, a Republican from Walls, said he was concerned with the large geographical size of the revised northwest district and believes a Senator would be unable to represent the area adequately.

“Let’s say somebody down further into that district gets elected, DeSoto County is worried it won’t get the representation it wants,” Eubanks said. “And if somebody gets elected in DeSoto County, the Delta is worried that it won’t get the representation it wants and needs.”

The DeSoto County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday published a statement on social media saying it had hired outside counsel to pursue legal options related to the Senate redistricting plan. 

Robert Foster, a former House member and current DeSoto County supervisor, declined comment on what the board intended to do. Still, he said several citizens and business leaders in DeSoto County were unhappy with the Senate plan. 

House Elections Chairman Noah Sanford, a Republican from Collins, presented the Senate plan on the House floor and said he opposed it because Senate leaders did not listen to his concerns over how it redrew Senate districts in Covington County, his home district. 

“They had no interest in talking to me, they had no interest in hearing my concerns about my county whatsoever, and I’m the one expected to present it,” Sanford said. “Now that is a lack of professional courtesy, and it’s a lack of personal respect to me.” 

Kirby said House leaders were responsible for redrawing the House plan and Senate leaders were responsible for redrawing the Senate districts, which has historically been the custom. 

“I had to do what was best for the Senate and what I thought was pass the court,” Kirby said. 

The court ordered the Legislature to tweak only one House district, so it had fewer objections among lawmakers. Legislators voted to redraw five districts in north Mississippi and made the House district in Chickasaw County a majority-Black district. 

Under the legislation, the qualifying period for new elections would run from May 19 to May 30. The primaries would be held on August 5, with a potential primary runoff on Sept. 2 and the general election on Nov, 4.

It’s unclear when the federal panel will review the maps, but it ordered attorneys representing the state to notify them once the lawmakers had proposed a new map. 

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