Opponents fought the move as racially disciminatory
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A federal judge has ruled that he will allow Mississippi officials to move forward with
Attorney General Lynn Fitch’s office will continue to defend the law and “perform our duties to help protect the people of Jackson from stifling, suffocating crime that plagues the city,” chief of staff Michelle Williams said Sunday.
The state law creating the new court also expands the patrol territory for Capitol Police. The state-run police department previously patrolled near state government buildings in downtown Jackson, but the new law added other parts of the city, including more affluent residential and shopping areas.
In September, the Mississippi Supreme Court struck down the part of the same law that would have required the state chief justice to appoint four circuit judges to serve alongside the four elected circuit judges in Hinds County. The county includes Jackson and is also majority-Black and governed by Democrats.
Justices wrote that longstanding Mississippi law allows the chief justice to appoint some judges for specific reasons, such as to deal with a backlog of cases. But they wrote that “we see nothing special or unique” about the four appointed Hinds County circuit judges in the 2023 law, “certainly nothing expressly tethering them to a specific judicial need or exigency.”
Never miss a beat: Get our daily stories straight to your inbox with theGrio’s newsletter.
The post Judge allows new court, created by white lawmakers, in Mississippi’s majority-Black capital appeared first on TheGrio.
New Comments