News

Jackson State ready to begin classes in Madison

Jackson State University opens for classes in Madison Wednesday, offering 16 classes for undergraduate and graduate students this summer.

Distraught mom becomes face of Oklahoma storm

A massive tornado was carving its way through town. There was no time to hesitate. LaTisha Garcia had to get to her children.

• May. 23, 2013

Boy Scouts of America votes to allow gay members

The Boy Scouts of America voted Thursday to allow gay youth to participate in Scouting.

• May. 23, 2013

Lumumba challenges history regarding Christopher Columbus

Jackson's presumptive next mayor's comments about the accuracy of Christopher Columbus' discovery of America sparked a controversy that flared up on Thursday.

• May. 23, 2013

Judge won't dismiss underage drinking lawsuit

A federal judge won’t dismiss a lawsuit that argues the city of West Point and a local nightclub are liable for injuries to an underage driver, who authorities say was driving while intoxicated after drinking at the club.

Natchez school board considers how to cut $911K

The Natchez-Adams School Board has identified nearly $400,000 in expense cuts and asked the superintendent to find the remaining $500,000 needed to balance the district's budget.

Judge won't dismiss underage drinking suit against West Point, club

A federal judge won't dismiss a lawsuit that argues the city of West Point and a local nightclub are liable for injuries to an underage driver, who authorities say was driving while intoxicated after drinking at the club.

Biloxi department store workers accused of embezzlement

Biloxi police have arrested two employees of JC Penney on an embezzlement charge alleging they each stole money from the department store over a period of several weeks.

Chihuahua set afire in George County dies

Authorities say a 20-year-old Lucedale man arrested on a charge of animal cruelty is accused of dousing his 5-year-old Chihuahua mix in a flammable liquid and setting it on fire.

Safe rooms offer shelter from storm

Glynda Bishop has a room built out of cinderblocks right in the middle of her house, and it may have saved her family's life.

• May. 23, 2013

Incoming Jackson City Council markedly younger

A youth movement is under way on the Jackson City Council, though some might quibble with that description.

• May. 23, 2013

Convictions in drug ring leave ruined lives in path

Decades in prison await former college student Patrick Coates of Pearl, sentenced in Rankin County Circuit Court on drug trafficking charges that have branded him as one of the metro area's biggest drug dealers.

• May. 23, 2013

Vicksburg marks 150th anniversary of historic siege

Even 150 years later, Vicksburg is still overshadowed by Gettysburg — so much so, that the Mississippi city is having its Civil War commemoration a few weeks early rather than compete with Pennsylvania for tourist dollars around July 4.

• May. 23, 2013

Nearly every state sees teen birth rate drop significantly

The nation's record-low teen birth rate stems from robust declines in nearly every state, but most dramatically in several Mountain States and among Hispanics, according to a new government report.

• May. 23, 2013

Lab owner convicted of faking wastewater tests

The owner of an environmental laboratory in Mississippi has been convicted on federal charges of falsifying records on industrial wastewater samples that she was hired to test.

• May. 23, 2013

WLBT meteorologist Paul Williams takes job in Memphis

WLBT's Paul Williams will forecast the Jackson-area weather for the last time Friday. The meteorologist has taken a job at the ABC affiliate in Memphis as chief meteorologist.

• May. 23, 2013

Southaven population pushes above 50,000 mark

A fast-growing city in north Mississippi has reached a population milestone.

• May. 23, 2013

Death of woman investigated

Jefferson County and state law enforcement officials are investigating the death of a 24-year-old woman whose body was discovered in the graveyard of East Mount Olive Baptist Church.

• May. 23, 2013

Hattiesburg may cut 20 teacher positions

Hattiesburg schools Superintendent James Bacchus is proposing to eliminate the majority of a $1.8 million budget shortfall by cutting 20 teacher positions.

• May. 23, 2013

DeSoto Co. agrees to salary survey

DeSoto County will pay $12,400 for a study on salaries of local employees.

• May. 23, 2013

Woman says burns accidental, but family has doubts

A Claiborne County woman is being treated for burns on most of her body after an incident on Friday in which she told deputies she accidentally caught fire after spilling gasoline on herself.

• May. 23, 2013

Local-food movement in West Virginia a model for Appalachia

With eight in 10 farmers making less than $10,000 a year, West Virginia will never rival big Midwestern factory farms in producing food.

• May. 23, 2013

Natchez National Cemetery caretakers see work as honor

For the men and women who work at the Natchez National Cemetery, Memorial Day doesn't warrant a trip to pay their respects.

• May. 23, 2013

'Wade-in' protests of civil rights era recalled on Coast

Fifty years ago, civil rights protesters held sit-ins at lunch counters or in waiting rooms or bus stations across the South.

• May. 23, 2013

Forecast: Busy hurricane season

The federal government is predicting an above-average hurricane season in the Atlantic this year, with anywhere from seven to 11 hurricanes expected.

• May. 23, 2013

Watkins elementary principal suspended for affecting validity of tests

The license of Watkins Elementary School Principal Lisa Andrus-Johnson has been suspended for a year for 'affecting the validity' of standard tests.

Boy Scouts OK plan to accept openly gay boys

In one of their most dramatic choices in a century, local leaders of the Boy Scouts of America voted Thursday to ease a divisive ban and allow openly gay boys to be accepted into the nation's leading youth organization.

• May. 23, 2013

Listen to dramatic rescue of Oklahoma students trapped in school after tornado

In the audio of an accidental video, the rescue of children in a Moore, Okla., elementary school by a 19-year-old resident who had just lost his own house can be heard.

• May. 23, 2013

Lumumba nomination: Black support drives runoff victory in Jackson

Ward 2 Councilman Chokwe Lumumba won Jackson's Democratic nomination for mayor Tuesday night by dominating the vote in the city's black community, winning all but two of the city's seven wards by huge margins, according to a Clarion-Ledger analysis of pre

• May. 22, 2013

Patrick Coates receives 52-year sentence on drug trafficking charges in Rankin Co.

Former college student Patrick Coates of Pearl has been sentenced in Rankin County Circuit Court on drug trafficking charges.

• May. 23, 2013

NOAA predicts 3-6 major hurricanes in 2013

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Climate Prediction Center is forecasting an 'active or extremely active' Atlantic hurricane season this year.

• May. 23, 2013

Chokwe Lumumba's comments on Christopher Columbus fuel debate

Jackson’s presumptive next mayor is tired of Christopher Columbus getting all the credit for discovering America.

• May. 23, 2013

Child support errors: State nabs couple's tax refund 2 times

Dionne and Calvin McDonald Jr. of Albuquerque, N.M., have never lived in Mississippi.

• May. 22, 2013

Rankin County teachers wait longer for contracts

Teachers in the Rankin County school district early this week still didn't have contracts for the coming year in their hands, district officials said Wednesday.

• May. 23, 2013

Laurel, Hattiesburg men charged in separate child porn cases

Two Mississippi men are facing charges of child exploitation in separate cases.

• May. 23, 2013

Federal jury rules for Pike County suit over mill

A federal jury in Jackson has found for Pike County in a breach-of-contract lawsuit against a wood pellet company that never built a promised mill.

• May. 23, 2013

WLBT meteorologist Paul Williams takes job in Memphis

WLBT's Paul Williams will report the Jackson-area weather for the last time Friday. The meteorologist has taken a job at the ABC affiliate in Memphis as as chief meteorologist.

• May. 23, 2013

Southaven population surpasses 50,000

A fast-growing city in north Mississippi has reached a population milestone.

• May. 23, 2013

Mississippi lab owner convicted of faking wastewater tests

The owner of an environmental laboratory in Mississippi has been convicted on federal charges of falsifying records on industrial wastewater samples that she was hired to test.

• May. 23, 2013

University of Arkansas votes to opt out of campus gun law

The University of Arkansas' 11 campuses are opting out of a new state law allowing faculty and staff to carry concealed handguns on campus.

• May. 23, 2013

Elderly Clinton woman's accused killer's outbursts continue in court

Accused killer James Cobb Hutto, on trial this week in Hinds County Circuit Court on charges he brutally murdered an elderly Clinton woman, continues to make loud outbursts in the courtroom.

• May. 23, 2013

Drive today at Walmart in Flowood benefits Okla. tornado victims

The Jackson Corps of the Salvation Army is conducting a disaster relief drive today to benefit the victims of the Moore, Okla., tornado at the Flowood Walmart on Highway 25.

• May. 23, 2013

Portion of Old Canton Road in Jackson closed

The City of Jackson Department of Public Works has closed Old Canton Road at Crane Boulevard to through traffic because of an emergency repair to a major sewer line at that intersection. Work should continue for approximately two weeks.

• May. 23, 2013

Vote on gay Scouts comes at emotional moment

• May. 23, 2013

EEOC, Mexican Consulate to sign pact on workplace discrimination

It’s called a historic agreement between the Birmingham District of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the New Orleans Consulate of Mexico that will provide Mexican nationals with information, guidance, and access to resources on the prevention of discrimination in the workplace, regardless of documentation status.

• May. 23, 2013

Hattiesburg may cut 20 teaching positions to save $1.2M

Hattiesburg Public School District Superintendent James Bacchus is proposing to eliminate the majority of a $1.8 million budget shortfall by cutting 20 teacher positions.

• May. 23, 2013

D'Iberville looking for new city manager

The search is on for a new D'Iberville city manager.

• May. 23, 2013

McComb, Pike auctioning tax-forfeited land

State and local officials in McComb and Pike County have announced an auction of 41 parcels forfeited for back taxes.

• May. 23, 2013

Woman's body found in Jefferson County church graveyard

Jefferson County and state law enforcement officials are investigating the death of a 24-year-old woman whose body was discovered in the graveyard of East Mount Olive Baptist Church.

• May. 23, 2013