Jackson's have not been updated since October 16, 2011.
City of Madison crime reports through October 25, 2011.
City of Byram crime reports hrough November 19, 2011.
Then there is this little tidbit from the Clarion-Ledger about Judge Tomie Green and grand jury meetings:
"District Attorney Robert Shuler Smith began convening grand juries every month when he took office in January 2008 to move cases more quickly through a system criticized for its slow pace and backlog.
"If it was up to me, I would have them meet twice a month," Assistant District Attorney Armstrong Walters said in court recently.
But when Judge Tomie Green became senior circuit judge in January, she set six criminal terms with the county grand jury convening during the last week of each term. Therefore, a grand jury meets once every two months.
Green pointed out the district attorney can convene a special grand jury at anytime. But Green said she believes it would be unreasonable to have a grand jury meet monthly in Hinds County because of the paperwork required of court administrators and others since they also have to deal with civil cases. Green said the frequency does not limit the number of cases that can be heard.
So far, how often Hinds County grand juries are convening has not reduced the number of new indictments this year compared with last year, according to county records. For the first 11 months of this year, Hinds County indictments are up slightly from a year earlier. There were 2,206 indictments through Nov. 11, compared to 2,175 for the same period in 2010, according to county records." Article
No, the reduced number of meetings will not necessarily reduce the number of indictments BUT its a slap in the face of crime victims everywhere as criminals get an extra few months to prowl the streets of Jackson and justice suffers further delays- all thanks to a Judge who is more worried about bureaucrats than the people she was elected to protect. Of course, we are talking about a judge who breaks the law to give breaks to daughter-rapers.
31 comments:
From personal experience, you are spot on target.
The creative class advances the ball in Detroit.
And as Rome burns in West Jackson, the Fondren Follies continue. Today's War & Peace painting of Brandon contained so many inaccuracies, it is no wonder their new knave is their best reporter.
4:04
Sorry in advance, but i don't understand "today's war and peace in brandon".
Would you share this please.....
4:04 seems taken with his cryptic offering.
"most serious and otherwise noteworthy" in Madison. (speeding)
One dead and two critical from last nite's shooting in the jackhood. Ben Allen is on it.
Two dead now Shadow. That is an evidence-based fact.
No, no - there's just a perception those two unfortunates are dead.
One thing is certain. The shootings were Jackson local.
Jackson Police Department spokeswoman Colendula Green said he [second death] was shot once in the head, twice in the neck, and three times in the shoulder area.
Vote : "shoot local" in the JFP's 10th annual BEST of JACKSON POLL .
Kangaroo; what personal experience are you citing?
Send me your email, I will tell.
RE: Grand Jury and Complaint filed 10/18/11
Current Status: UNKNOWN
Situation Assessment: Multiple calls to Hinds County Court System to find out who to call. After several calls directed to call certain Court Administrator. Calls to said number (I'd post it, but I'm really want these jokers brought to justice) ring with no answer daily since 11/18/11.
Calls to assistant to Court Administrator always to voicemail. In an effort to be polite and understanding of the backlog of criminals, only one message left.
Result: NONE.
Justice: Priceless?
BTW. I call every day now. Documenting my experience.
You're dropping the wrong names.
Not dropping names. Just going through the experience. It is good to know what you are up against.
KF, this post doesn't really go with the topic, just wanted to ask if there was any way you could be in Madison at the meeting to cover Queen Mary's attack on the lady and her Christmas decorations. WLBT had the story this morning. This absurd crud from Madison just SCREAMS for Kingfish and his camera. Maybe the Queen wouldn't have had a problem with the decorations if they were made out of red brick.
From the C-L:
MADISON — Wanda Cheeks' family spent two days putting up Christmas decorations at their home in the Traceland North subdivision of Madison.
Now they're being told some of them must go.
Cheeks told WLBT-TV that the City of Madison has taken offense at two peacocks on her roof. She says a code inspector told her Tuesday that a Santa Claus can stay but the peacocks have to go. Cheeks says the Santa is bigger than the peacocks.
Cheeks, who rents the home, says she's never heard about the city acting against Christmas decorations.
Mayor Mary Hawkins Butler says she's gotten several complaints about the peacocks.
Butler says the city council meets on Dec. 6 and the Cheeks could appear then – if they get on the agenda by noon Friday.
Comments here:
http://www.clarionledger.com/article/20111130/NEWS/111130011/Madison-tells-family-take-down-Christmas-decorations?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|Home
I would rather worry over two peacocks on the roof than two thugs trying to beat in my door. Ahhh....love being back in Madison County!
If I put those on my roof, someone is liable to shoot them. In Rankin, I swear someone would mistake them for pheasant!
Maybe the Cheeks family can hire Cricket as a PR consultant and spokesperson.
mistake them for pheasant--haha
I hope the family wins this. An update to the story ended with "Wednesday evening Cheeks said she learned there were objections because she was told peacocks weren't holiday decorations."
So. No code violation (as Mayor has stated), no laws broken, no violation of any kind. Somebody doesn't think an item that SOMEONE ELSE put out on their property wasn't in the defined list of approved holiday decorations that apparently the complainer has in his/her possession.
They are on the agenda for the next meeting. Sure do hope you and your camera are there, KF. When neighborhoods have covenents, no problem. When states and cities have laws, no problem.
But when person A just has a stick up their rear AND can, apparently, have city officials act on their behalf when there are no legal issues at hand, there's a problem.
Its a problem when Person A can call a city official, when no laws have been broken, and simply say-I don't like this--and the city official jumps to and comes down on person B. Not right, whether its a holiday decoration or anything else. No code violations, no law violations, city official should have relayed that info to the complainder and it should have ended there.
Since when do city officials "step in" to 'correct' something that has broken no laws. We now have the 'my taste is better than yours' police? Are you friggin kidding me?
Beggin you, KF, please be there at the meeting to cover this.
Agree, would be great if you could provide some coverage of the meeting. Would be nice to shine a light on the selective code enforcement in Madison.
“ ‘If this is an issue that is litigated, Madison will approach it through the Architectural Control Ordinance,’ said Madison Mayor Mary Hawkins Butler.”
From old article: “Since 1981, Mary Hawkins-Butler has presided over city business. During her tenure, tough ordinances, such as the architectural control ordinance that provides landscape and building guidelines, like limiting the size of business signs to six feet, have been passed.”
Just a suggestion, KF or WLBT:
1) Obtain a copy of the Architectural Control Ordinance.
2) Once a correct copy of the Architectural Control Ordinance is located, please cite the proper legal violation. We know it is not a size violation because, thanks to WLBT footage, it is obvious other items on display are larger. We also know that other displays throughout the county are larger than this one item.
3) If no legal violation, is the city prepared to apologize to one of its citizens?
4) From the original WLBT story, “The mayor said that city ordinance prohibits any structure that would decrease property values.” From a legal standpoint, please cite which ordinance, specifically how this item fits in the legal definition of ‘structure’ and how it decreased property value, from a legal standpoint, not a personal like/dislike standpoint.
Any city official is welcome to have a personal opinion, just like anyone else. However, the city official should not act in his/her official capacity when it is based solely on his/her personal opinion when no laws have been broken. That’s the problem.
The whole thing really is ridiculous and Mary has caused an uproar in Madison- over freaking peacocks.
I am all for protecting property values and making sure yards are clean and trim, but COME ON!
I used to live next door (back in high school) to some hardcore MSU fans who would put a freaking bulldog in the manger scene. People from all over would drive by to see the heinous Christmas lights display, complete with horribly loud music and tacky trains with...wait for it...stuffed bulldogs with santa hats. Was it horrible? Yes. Was I embarrased to live next door to it? Yes. But it was Christmas and pretty much a tradition to see what the kook would do year after year.
Mary is just being a bitch. No other term to describe it. And she is going to cause lots of people "flocking" to google to search for peacock decor for their yards...She has ruffled many feathers on this one
forgive me for not being all lawyerish and all, but....
"will approach it through the Architectural Control Ordinance"
"city ordinance prohibits any structure that would decrease property values."
would 2000sqft house (structures) on a street with 4000sqft houses not decrease property values?
if it's under some Architectural Control Ordinance, does that ordinance venture outside the purview of architecture into temporary decorations?
if a blue, lighted peacock on a roof for the course of about 4 weeks lowers property values, then there are much bigger concerns
Dare we hope that the citizens of Stepford awake from their stupor?
It's time this bird was removed from her nest in City Hall. She needs no other grubs and worms, having made out like a bandit on a bogus land deal involving a little old lady a few years ago!
Isn't there someone in that town with the cajones to run against her next year?
I'd run, but it would be a big pay cut, and I don't have the real estate connections to make up the difference.
NOW the reports say....
"…the city asked Cheeks to remove the two decorations on her roof…."
Hmmm. I don't remember that original news report saying ASKED. I believe the officer TOLD her to remove specific items (“He said the Santa Claus can stay and it's way bigger than the little peacocks. But the peacocks had to come down"). If the city had ASKED her to remove them, then why would Mayor come back and be quoted about going to court, ordinance, property values, etc.
"Alderman Pat Peeler said residents contacted her last week about the metal adornments atop the house before Cheeks had her decorations up. Callers were concerned about the metal objects on the roof as a safety issue, she said."
Original report from WLBT says they took 2 days to put their decorations up. So, apparently the item in question went up and sometime in the last 10 minutes of that day 2 of decorating, all of the other decorations went up real quick, kind of like, surprise, its really Christmas decorations, and the complainer just didn't realize it was part of something else. So glad that Alderman is right on top of the breaking crime wave. Now what law was broken? Oh, wait, don't focus on that, now it’s the ‘safety issue’. So, we’re not just being jackasses and writing the law as we go, we’re concerned for your ‘safety’. And as a ‘concerned citizen for your safety’, it never dawned on me to walk across the street and say, hey, you ok? We thought your ‘safety’ could be better guarded by sending a code officer to your house to demand that you remove the items we don’t like, of course, for your safety.
"“She was asked to move them because of citizens complaints,” Mayor Mary Hawkins Butler said. "This is not about Christmas or Christmas decorations.”
First---good grief, how many people can hurry up and be quoted using the word ‘asked’ (code officer told her to remove certain items…..code officer ‘asked’ her to remove… If we get quoted saying she was 'asked', then all of this attention will go away…)
Second
1) Mayor, you made a threat of litigation ("If this is an issue that is litigated, Madison will approach it through the Architectural Control Ordinance") and mentioned two things specifically (ordinance and property values). Is this a normal response, a standard operating procedure, when a citizen complains about something, even if it is not breaking any law?
2) You’re correct, Mayor. This is not about Christmas or Christmas decorations. It’s about what’s right and what’s wrong.
a) the alderman should have listened to her complaining citizen then explained that there was no law being broken. Instead, the alderman called either the Mayor or the Code officer
b) the Mayor or the Code officer should have listened to the alderman relay her concerns then explained that there was no law being broken. End of issue. But instead
c) the Code officer makes a trip to someone’s home telling the person that certain items must be removed from the property and the Mayor backs him up in the press with the litigation remark as well as several other remarks.
So either the Code officer is making up the rules as he goes and we have a Barney Fife on our hands OR someone has told him that he has authority that supersedes the law and he can apply it only when he gets calls from certain people.
So, Mayor/Alderman/Code officer, which one is it? And don’t forget to bring a copy of that ordinance with you. That ordinance that will back you and your Code officer up on all the legal issues and that little litigation matter you brought up.
What do you know. Within 48 hours after I post this and mention Jackson hasn't updated crime stats in over a month shazam, they release the latest stats and the JFP runs a story on it. Yeah. ;-)
The JFP is a lap dog.
WLBT: "Madison resident Wanda Cheeks says that Mayor Mary Hawkins Butler has apologized and told her she can leave her Christmas decorations the way they are."
CL: "Butler said she changed her opinion of the peacocks after being informed by a friend that peacocks can be a symbol of Christmas because they represent the resurrection of Christ."
Mayor, your opinion is not the same as the law. You point blank directed a city employee to uphold your opinion as if it was law.
When you got caught, you turned to empty threats.....‘If this is an issue that is litigated, Madison will approach it through the Architectural Control Ordinance.’ After changing your direction several times, you NOW say everything is ok, no problems here, you now personally 'approve', and everyone please stop asking about my Code Officers.
Too late, Mayor. Please explain how your personal 'approval' or 'disapproval' directed a city employee to enforce your 'opinion' instead of the law.
Hope the family asks for a copy of the standard operating procedure for the code officers.
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