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Jackson lawmaker’s bill to allow ouster of mayors tabled after debate

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2 years ago

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Jackson lawmaker’s bill to allow ouster of mayors tabled after debate

by Geoff Pender, Mississippi Today
January 11, 2023

A bill to allow removal of elected city officials that opponents said was aimed at Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba was tabled without a vote Wednesday after some heated debate on the House floor.

Rep. Shanda Yates, I-Jackson, moved to table her proposal at the request of the GOP House leadership after she fielded numerous questions on House Bill 370. The bill would have added municipal officials to a seldom-used 1950s law that allows for removal of elected county officials.

Yates faced repeated questions of whether the bill was aimed at Lumumba, who has clashed with the governor and faced criticism statewide over Jackson’s ongoing water system crisis. Yates repeatedly said her bill was not aimed at any one person, but simply to allow for removal of city officials for “willful failure or refusal to perform the duties of the office.”

“Everyone else from the governor on down is subject to some form of impeachment or removal except for municipal officials,” Yates said. “This is not rash or rushed. I’ve been working on it since this summer.”

Yates moved to table the measure, which could be brought up later for a vote. She said she hopes to bring it up again, and believes there are enough votes to pass it in the House.

Yates faced heated questions and debate on Wednesday. It was the first general bill taken up by the House in the 2023 session.

“This is about the mayor of Jackson, who has taken on the governor, and to allow the governor to appoint a three-judge panel to remove the mayor of Jackson, just so we’re clear on what’s being proposed,” said House Democratic Leader Robert Jackson III. “For 60 years, close to 70 years, it was fine not to have municipal officials in this, but after the water crisis and the federal government sending $600 million to the city of Jackson, now this is needed?”

Rep. Ed Blackmon, D-Canton, said, “We already have a process for accountability, it’s to stand for reelection every four years.”

Yates’ bill would add city officials to a law from the late 1950s that allows removal of county officials. It would first require 30% of voters to sign a petition calling for an official’s removal and send it to the governor. The governor would appoint a three-judge panel that would determine if the petition had merit, and if so, an election would be held for voters to decide whether the official should be removed.

If the official was removed, a special election would be held for a replacement, and the official who had been removed could not run for that seat again.

After the debate, Yates told reporters that she drafted the bill after constituents asked her whether there was a process by which city officials could be removed, and she researched and discovered there was not.

Yates said her research showed that the law has been used only twice to remove county officials, once in 1958 and once in 1998.

Rep. Tommy Reynolds, D-Charleston, during floor debate pointed out that the origin of the 1950s law was from Prohibition — to allow removal of sheriffs who were not enthusiastically enforcing laws against alcohol in some Mississippi counties.

Some lawmakers argued that since the law is old and has been scantly used, it should not be updated to include city elected officials.

“We also have the ability to impeach a governor, and we’ve only done that one time in our history,” Yates said. “Should we also remove the people’s ability to do that as well?”

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

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Mississippi Today

UMMC holds free cancer screenings

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16 hours ago

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April 30, 2025

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mississippitoday.org – @EricJShelton – 2025-04-30 12:00:00

by Eric J. Shelton, Mississippi Today
April 30, 2025

  • Resident physician Claire Babin, right, performs an oral cancer screening on Ella Holmes during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Physicians prepare for oral, head and neck cancer screenings during a free screening event at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Resident physician Brooks Lampkin, center, screens Diane Carter for oral cancer as medical students Mason Nodurft, left, and Eva Kiparizoska observe during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Educational giveaways advocating against smoking are available during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Sharon Terry, senior tobacco treatment specialist, waits for patients during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Skylar Robinson, medical office assistant, left, and Kiandria Bruce, registered nurse, review materials at the patient sign-in table during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Head and neck cancer literature is available during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Dr. Alex Brooks and registered nurse Angela Noble talk during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Nina Brown, clinical manager, helps Ned Bostic with paperwork during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Resident physician Brooks Lampkin performs an oral cancer screening on Ned Bostic at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Ned Bostic receives a neck cancer screening during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Resident physician Brooks Lampkin, center, and medical student Hanna Watson examine Ned Bostic during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.

The University of Mississippi Medical Center’s Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery hosted a free oral, head, and neck cancer screening Wednesday at the Jackson Medical Mall as part of Oral, Head and Neck Cancer Awareness Week.

The event featured quick, noninvasive screenings aimed at catching cancer early — when treatment is most effective. Onyx Care provided free HPV vaccinations, while the ACT Center for Tobacco Treatment, Education, and Research offered resources on smoking cessation and free services.

“These screenings take about 10 minutes and can save lives,” said Dr. Gina Jefferson, head and neck surgical oncologist at UMMC. “The earlier a cancer is diagnosed, the better chance we have of curing it.”

Tobacco and alcohol use remain major risk factors for these cancers. However, physicians say an increasing number of cases are linked to HPV, especially among younger adults with no history of smoking or drinking. Dentists are often the first to spot early signs, which can include persistent sores, lumps in the neck, or difficulty swallowing.

Oral, head and neck cancers are among the most common globally. When found early, survival rates can exceed 80 percent.

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

The post UMMC holds free cancer screenings appeared first on mississippitoday.org


Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Centrist

This article presents factual information about a free cancer screening event without showing a clear ideological stance. It primarily focuses on the health benefits of early cancer detection and the availability of free resources, such as HPV vaccinations and smoking cessation support. The language used is neutral and the content is centered around public health education rather than promoting a political viewpoint. The inclusion of factual statistics, such as survival rates and risk factors, adds to its informative and objective tone. There are no signs of bias or advocacy for a particular political agenda, making this a centrist piece.

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Crooked Letter Sports Podcast

Podcast: What next for Mississippi State baseball?

Published

18 hours ago

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April 30, 2025

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mississippitoday.org – @rick_cleveland – 2025-04-30 10:46:00

by Rick Cleveland and Tyler Cleveland, Mississippi Today
April 30, 2025

Mississippi State didn’t even wait until the end of the season to fire Chris Lemonis, who brought the national championship to Starkville not quite four years ago. Where do the Bulldogs go from here. Robbie Faulk who covers the Bulldogs more closely than anyone else joins the podcast to discuss the situation.

Stream all episodes here.

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

The post Podcast: What next for Mississippi State baseball? appeared first on mississippitoday.org

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Mississippi Today

Mobile sports betting users: We want to hear from you

Published

18 hours ago

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April 30, 2025

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mississippitoday.org – @MSTODAYnews – 2025-04-30 10:21:00

by Mississippi Today, Mississippi Today
April 30, 2025

Mississippi Today is looking to speak with current and former mobile sports betting users. We’d like to speak with people who spend considerable amounts of time and money betting on sports through online gambling sites.

We’re interested in hearing the experience of people who have suffered from gambling addiction or problems, or friends and family members of people who have. We also would like to talk with people who believe legalizing mobile sports betting would benefit Mississippi and its residents.

We want to hear from you. Please take the survey below or contact Political Reporter Michael Goldberg by email at mgoldberg@mississippitoday.org

TAKE THE SURVEY:

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This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

The post Mobile sports betting users: We want to hear from you appeared first on mississippitoday.org


Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Centrist

This article from Mississippi Today appears to present a neutral stance, focusing on gathering input from various groups of mobile sports betting users, including those who may have experienced addiction issues. The content does not advocate for or against the legalization of mobile sports betting but instead seeks to gather diverse perspectives, including those of individuals who may support or oppose it. The language used is objective and does not suggest a particular ideological perspective, allowing for a balanced exploration of the issue at hand.

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