Confederate statue protest turns tense after militia arrives
GULFPORT, Miss. (AP) — A protest around a Confederate monument in Harrison County turned tense Thursday night after a militia group wearing bulletproof vests and carrying firearms arrived on site.
The protest was attended by both advocates for keeping and removing the statue, which has stood outside the courthouse in downtown Gulfport since 1911, the Sun Herald reported. Some protesters, both for and against the monument, also carried guns. Members of the militia group the Southern Defense Force arrived slightly after the protest started, when activists were giving speeches, the Herald reported.
The Southern Defense Force is a “constitutional conservative” group with membership spanning throughout Mississippi and the South, according to the Herald.
Members of the group spread out on either side of the monument, keeping some distance from protesters. At
JACKSON — Mississippi authorities are investigating a deadly train accident in the state’s capital city.
The incident happened just after 8 p.m. Wednesday, WLBT-TV reported.
The Jackson Police Departmet said that a man was hit and killed by a train after he became stuck on the train tracks. Authorities are unsure why the man was there.
The victim’s identity has not been released.
Mississippi woman sentenced for sexually abusing infant
HATTIESBURG — A Mississippi woman arrested in 2018 for sexual battery of a child has pleaded guilty to the crime and was sentenced to serve two decades behind bars.
Forrest County Circuit Court Judge Robert Helfrich on Thursday sentenced Tiffany Meghan Mcclellan, 29, to 20 years in prison followed by 20 years of probation, news outlets reported. Upon her release, Mcclellan will have to register as a sex offender.
According to a news release, Petal Police arrested Mcclellan on Aug. 10, 2018, after an investigation revealed video evidence of an infant boy being sexually abused.
“Nothing is more sacred than the safety and well being of our children. My office will continue to prioritize the prosecution of violent criminals, including those that abuse children,” District Attorney Lin Carter, who serves Forrest and Perry counties. said in a statement. one point, as demonstrators calling for the monument’s removal were yelling criticisms of the militia, a member rushed towards the group around the monument and yelled that they were a “great disgrace” to the country. The militia’s leader pulled the member back, the Herald said.
Jeremy Bridges, a board member of Black Lives Matter Mississippi, came to the demonstration to show support for the push to remove the monument. According to the Herald, he saw people standing at the top level of the parking lot above the monument, positioned like snipers.
“I’m trying to figure out what the guns were for,” he said.
Activists have sought to remove the monument since June, but the Harrison County supervisors have not yet held a vote on the matter. Protesters and counterprotesters have gathered for at least one other protest since the start of the summer.
Jeffrey Hulum III, one of the organizers of Thursday’s
Mississippi receives grants to help with rent, utility bills
JACKSON — The state of Mississippi has received $24 million in federal grants to help people struggling to pay rent and utility bills during the coronavirus pandemic, the Mississippi Department of Human Services announced Friday.
A $9.2 million grant was awarded for the Low-income Home Energy Assistance Program for helping residents pay home energy costs such as electric and gas bills. Households may also apply for regular Low-income Home Energy Assistance Program funds to purchase or repair air conditioners, heaters and fans, officials said. More than $15 million was awarded to assist households with rent, mortgage, employment and educational expenses.
“The goal of MDHS is to serve as many non-traditional clients as possible, who are mainly the households that have been directly or directly impacted due to COVID-19,” said Tina Ruffin, Director of the MDHS Division of Community Services. “These funds will allow us to make sure our most vulnerable clients receive help when they need it.”
Individuals may contact their local community action agency or human resource agency to apply for both types of assistance. A list of these agencies is posted on the MDHS website at https:// www.mdhs.ms.gov/community-services/. Applications will be taken on a first come, first served basis.
Individuals who have never received services may submit a pre-application at protest, told the Sun Herald he was tired of waiting on the board to act.
“To us, it seems like the can is being kicked down the road, because they refuse to even take up a vote on it,” Hulum told the Herald. “If they move it, and they don’t have no place to put it, they can put it in a warehouse. At least give the community and the citizens a vote, and respect the vote. If they vote not to move it, we’ll respect it.”
John Whitfield, pastor of Morningstar Baptist Church, told the Herald the statue, erected following a period of increased economic and political power for Black Americans in the South, was intended “to send a message to African Americans ... that you are not considered part of the citizenry.”
Supporters of the monument say it pays tribute to their history.
“I don’t think this statue should be offensive to anyone,” Bruce Roberts told the Herald. “He was, like my ancestor, a common, simple man.” https://virtualroma.mdhs. ms.gov. This site is available nationwide, but services and funds are for residents of Mississippi only.
4 dead, 9 others have virus after outbreak at veterans home
COLLINS — Four residents at a Mississippi veterans home have died and nine others have tested positive for COVID-19 since the start of an outbreak at the long-term care facility in late July, officials announced Friday.
The outbreak occurred at the Mississippi Veterans Home at Collins. Two of the nine residents who tested positive are hospitalized, according to Mississippi Department of Veterans Affairs spokesman Ray Coleman.
The deaths happened in early to mid-august, Coleman said. The last death was on Aug. 14. Officials did not release additional details about the deceased.
The department recently completed testing all residents and staff at the Collins facility, Mississippi State Veterans Affairs Executive Director Stacey Pickering said. Testing is being done on a weekly basis at all four state veterans homes.
Residents who are known to have come in contact with someone positive for coronavirus are isolated, monitored for symptoms and tested for coronavirus, Pickering said. Residents who either test positive or show symptoms of the virus are transferred to the home’s COVID unit, where they remain for a minimum of 14 days, until symptomfree for 72 hours or they receive a negative test result.
Officials said staff members who are exposed to the virus are immediately placed on administrative leave, tested for COVID and quarantined for 14 days. The Mississippi Department of Health is notified of all residents and staff who test positive for COVID-19 as required. Families of residents are also notified of positive cases, officials said.
Mississippi high court OKS felony plea hearings by video
JACKSON — Plea hearings in felony cases can now be conducted by videoconference in Mississippi to help cut the spread of the coronavirus in jails.
Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice Mike Randolph on Friday signed an order giving trial judges the “discretion to use interactive audiovisual equipment to conduct plea hearings.”
The Supreme Court said that video conferencing for a plea hearing can be done only if a defendant agrees to that kind of method, and only if the defense attorney is physically present with the defendant.
The Supreme Court on March 26 declined to allow plea hearings by videoconference but agreed to temporarily suspend a rule that allows sentencing hearings and probation violation hearings to be conducted by videoconference. The next day, President Donald Trump signed the CARES Act that authorized federal courts to use videoconferencing, under certain circumstances, for various criminal proceedings during the COVID-19 emergency, including felony pleas.
Then, in early August, the Supreme Court said it would reconsider using videoconferences to conduct plea hearings.
The Mississippi Attorney General asked the court in a document filed Aug. 20 to protect vulnerable populations of jails by “vesting complete discretion in Mississippi’s trial court judges to decide on a case-by-case bases whether in-person hearings can be conducted safely or should be handled remotely.”
The Attorney General also noted that all U.S. District Courts in Mississippi as well as in neighboring states use videoconferences for accepting felony pleas. Those states also authorized the use of videoconferencing when the “defendant consents and the court specifically finds that the plea cannot be delayed without serious harm to the interests of justice.”
The request was filed by the Mississippi Attorney General and the State Public Defender on March 25. They asked the Supreme Court to adopt a temporary rule suspension to allow felony plea hearings, sentencing hearings, and probation violation hearings to be done by way of interactive audiovisual equipment.
Electric scooters set to roll in Mississippi city
VICKSBURG — Electric scooters are just days away from being available in a Mississippi city.
Blue Duck, a San Antonio, Texas-based company, announced Friday it will begin rolling out an electric scooter service in downtown Vicksburg on Sept. 17, The Vicksburg Post reported. It will be the first fleet of electric scooters launched in the state.
“Vicksburg will be the first in the state of Mississippi to have electric scooters available to our residents and visitors,” Mayor George Flaggs Jr. said. “We selected Blue Duck Scooters because of their commitment to safety and operating responsibly. They have been working very closely with the city to do this right. These scooters will be good for tourism and for attracting millennials downtown.”
The partnership began last fall and became a reality once the Legislature changed state laws allowing the operation of electric scooters on city streets.
“We know other cities across Mississippi will follow in Vicksburg’s footsteps and we are eager to collaborate with them to guide those initiatives.” said Megan Mcnamara, Blue Duck’s senior director of partnerships.
Blue Duck announced it would hire a local operations team and operate its scooters out of a local warehouse.
“The Blue Duck team will monitor scooter use continuously, and will be out in the field, inspecting scooters, removing any devices that need maintenance or charging,” the company said in a news release.
Scooters will also be sanitized “at least twice a day” to help combat the coronavirus.
Blue Duck’s scooters will be available to rent from 7 a.m. until 10 p.m., seven days a week. Riders must download the Blue Duck app from Apple’s App Store or Google Play and use their mobile phones to locate and unlock a scooter. Each Blue Duck scooter is equipped with GPS technology.