Mississippi Today
MDOC’s second in command out, replaced with new commissioner
The second in command of the Mississippi Department of Corrections may be without a job after his biography disappeared from the agency's website and was replaced with that of a new commissioner.
Karei McDonald Jr., who began working for the department in February 2020, was the executive deputy commissioner and deputy commissioner of administration and finance.
His biography was removed from MDOC's executive leadership page, and by Friday morning was replaced with that of Derrick Garner as deputy commissioner of administration and finance. Garner's biography states that he was appointed to the position Thursday.
A spokesperson from MDOC did not respond to a request for comment Friday morning, including whether McDonald is still employed with the department.
But a memo from Commissioner Burl Cain to employees noted McDonald was no longer employed with the department and announced Garner's appointment, Darkhorse Press reported.
“Please help us welcome (Garner) into his new position and give him your full support,” the memo reads.
Through the administration and finance division, McDonald oversaw department budgeting, a fiscal comptroller, procurement, property, human resources and agricultural enterprises, according to his biography that was on MDOC's website.
McDonald previously worked for the state auditor's office since 2004, and before that was chief fiscal officer for the Mississippi Department of Employment Security and a staff accountant for the Mississippi Department of Health, according to his biography.
Garner, the new deputy commissioner for administration and finance, has worked for MDOC since July 2020 and previously served as chief fiscal officer and focused on budget operations, according to his biography.
“This is a unique organization and I wanted to help to make a positive impact for the state,” Garner said about his decision to join the MDOC, which is included in his biography. “It was a great challenge and opportunity to be a part of this team.”
He also worked for the state auditor's office and before that for the Mississippi Gaming Commission, according to his biography.
This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
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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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