Mississippi Today
Judge mulls whether to put hold on separate court district in Jackson
A federal judge will continue to block House Bill 1020 from becoming law in a lawsuit challenging the legislation's creation of a separate court district within Jackson.
U.S. District Court Judge Henry Wingate held a six-hour hearing Monday to consider two motions: whether to remove Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice Michael Randolph from the lawsuit and a request by the state to extend a temporary restraining order that prevents Randolph from appointing four special temporary judges under HB 1020.
Wingate said he will issue an order Tuesday about the temporary restraining order he granted last week, but he did not set a date for the order to end. HB 1020 is set to become law July 1, but it directs the chief justice to appoint judges 15 days after signing, which was April 21.
“We're glad the court is ensuring the rights of Hinds County residents to continue to be protected,” said Joe Schottenfeld, assistant general counsel for the NAACP, which is representing the plaintiffs.
The lawsuit filed on behalf of Jackson residents argues HB 1020 violates the U.S. Constitution for race discrimination. On Monday, arguments focused on the chief justice's ability to appoint temporary judges.
Carroll Rhodes, the plaintiffs' attorney, argued that the appointment of judges to the Hinds County Circuit Court violates the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution because residents would not get to elect judges from their own community like residents in other parts of the state served by other circuit courts.
“Why did the Legislature, through House Bill 1020, single out Hinds County?” Rhodes said. “Why single out Hinds County from being different from the rest of the state?”
Rex Shannon, who is representing the attorney general's office, said a 14th Amendment equal protection argument doesn't apply because Hinds County is unique because it contains the Capitol, it has a bigger population and it is experiencing a higher crime rate.
The state has an interest in addressing those issues, and he reiterated that the purpose of HB 1020 was to address crime and provide resources to the Hinds County Circuit Court to work through its backlog.
Mark Nelson, a private attorney representing Randolph, said the appointments are a judicial act covered by judicial immunity, while Rhodes said it is an administrative act not covered by judicial immunity.
Nelson cautioned the court that a ruling against judicial immunity for the chief justice could open the door for civil action against judges and a challenge against judges making any appointments, such as experts, defense for indigent defendants and court interpreters.
This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
Mississippi Today
On this day in 1896
MAY 18, 1896
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 7-1 in Plessy v. Ferguson that racial segregation on railroads or similar public places was constitutional, forging the “separate but equal” doctrine that remained in place until 1954.
In his dissent that would foreshadow the ruling six decades later in Brown v. Board of Education, Justice John Marshall Harlan wrote that “separate but equal” rail cars were aimed at discriminating against Black Americans.
“In the view of the Constitution, in the eye of the law, there is in this country no superior, dominant, ruling class of citizens,” he wrote. “Our Constitution in color-blind and neither knows nor tolerates classes among citizens. In respect of civil rights, all citizens are equal before the law. The humblest is the peer of the most powerful. The law … takes no account of his surroundings or of his color when his civil rights as guaranteed by the supreme law of the land are involved.”
This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
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Mississippi Today
Renada Stovall, chemist and entrepreneur
Renada Stovall sat on the back deck of her rural Arkansas home one evening, contemplating life when she had a life-altering epiphany…
“I gotta get out of these woods.”
She heard it as clear as lips to her ear and as deep as the trees surrounding her property. Stovall's job as a chemist had taken her all over the country. In addition to Arkansas, there were stints in Atlanta, Dallas and Reno. But she was missing home, her parents and friends. She also knew, she needed something else to do.
“I thought, what kind of business can I start for myself,” said Stovall, as she watered herbs growing in a garden behind her south Jackson home. Some of those herbs are used in her all-natural products. “I know when I lived in Reno, Nevada, where it's very hot and very dry, there really weren't products available that worked for me, my hair, and my skin suffered. I've got a chemistry degree from Spelman College. I took the plunge and decided to create products for myself.”
In 2018, Stovall's venture led to the creation of shea butter moisturizers and natural soaps. But she didn't stop there, and in December 2022, she moved home to Mississippi and got to work, expanding her product line to include body balms and butters, and shampoos infused with avocado and palm, mango butter, coconut and olive oils.
Nadabutter, which incorporates Renada's name, came to fruition.
Stovall sells her balms and moisturizers at what she calls, “pop-up markets,” across the state during the summer. She's available via social media and also creates products depending on what of her ingredients a customer chooses. “My turmeric and honey is really popular,” Stovall added.
“The all-natural ingredients I use are great for conditioning the skin and hair. All of my products make you feel soft and luscious. The shea butter I use comes from West Africa. It's my way of networking and supporting other women. And it's my wish that other women can be inspired to be self-sufficient in starting their own businesses.”
This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
Mississippi Today
On this day in 1954
MAY 17, 1954
In Brown v. Board of Education and Bolling v. Sharpe, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the “separate but equal” doctrine in Plessy v. Ferguson was unconstitutional under the 14th Amendment, which guaranteed equal treatment under the law.
The historic decision brought an end to federal tolerance of racial segregation, ruling in the case of student Linda Brown, who was denied admission to her local elementary school in Topeka, Kansas, because of the color of her skin.
In Mississippi, segregationist leaders called the day “Black Monday” and took up the charge of the just-created white Citizens' Council to preserve racial segregation at all costs.
This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
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