Former Capitol police officer Michael Rhinewalt might have to be tried again for manslaughter if Hinds County Circuit Judge Faye Peterson has her way.
Capitol Police officers Michael Rhinewalt and Steven Frederick pulled over 25 year-old Jaylen Lewis on Mayes Street near the Fondren September 25, 2022. However, the traffic stop went awry as Lewis was shot to death.
Lewis was the best friend of the son of Jackson Pastor Dwayne Pickett. Pastor Pickett went into community activist mode as he led protests, accusing the Capitol Police of killing Lewis in cold blood. The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation investigated the case and submitted its findings to the Attorney General. The A.G. obtained an indictment for manslaughter against the two men in March 2025.
The case went to trial last month. The jury found Frederick not guilty but could not agree on a verdict for Rhinewalt. Judge Peterson declared a mistrial. Attorney General Lynn Fitch announced prosecutors would not seek a retrial of Rhinewalt and filed a motion to dismiss but Judge Peterson had other ideas.
The esteemed and learned jurist decreed:
the State seeks an Order of Nolle Prosequi with Prejudice by asserting claims of multiple continuances, the mistrial verdict, and its belief that further efforts at trial would not be in the interests of justice. Id. These claims are inappropriate for the relief sought. As to the procedural history, this case was indicted in March of 2025 and transferred to the undersigned on April 16, 2026. Since that time one continuance was granted at the agreement of the parties to obtain a special setting. Moreover, the Court, having heard the testimony and evidence received during the trial herein, does not see and cannot find a genuine basis to grant such a relief for this particular case as all witnesses are available and there is no conflicting evidence such that the State cannot pursue prosecution. The Court does not operate in vacuum and is aware that on the date the case was announced as a mistrial, the Office of the Attorney General announced it would be abandoning its duty to pursue prosecution of this case due to a bias in preference oflaw enforcement rather than upholding the oath of the office to pursue prosecutions of cases without bias, sympathy or prejudice. This Court will not grant a nolle prosequi with prejudice based on the reasons asserted in the motion, as the State has not articulated a substantive basis to abandon said oath and duty; especially, in light of the evidence presented during trial and the availability of witnesses. The Court will entertain a motion to remand the file, in the event another prosecuting office should endeavor to pursue prosecution of the subject matter. The Court finds that the motion is not well taken and that the motion should be denied. IT IS ORDERED AND ADJUDGED that the State's Motion to Nolle Prosequi is DENIED.
It appears Judge Peterson wants Rhinewalt prosecuted. Stay tuned.
Kingfish note: The judge is correct on the law. If you read the Attorney General's statement about the decision to not retry Rhinewalt, you will find there is little mention of law.
Our job is to defend the rule of law, even when it is hard. Every case is thoroughly examined without fear or favor. We have concluded our review of 86 officer-involved shootings since the Legislature gave the AGO this responsibility, and we have found the use of force by the officer justified without any further action in all but four. In this case, we followed the process, leading to today's jury verdict of not guilty for one officer and a hung jury for another. In the case of a tie, the benefit of the doubt goes to our law enforcement officers and we will not seek to retry this case. The men and women who wear the uniform have earned that.
The motion to dismiss does not mention any contradicting evidence as well.
It appears the case will sit in no-man's land. The Court refuses to dismiss the case while the prosecutor refuses to prosecute.
30 comments:
Good! He should be retried
Doesn’t the judge know having a gun and a badge makes you above the law?
That is the judge taking issue with the AG trying to blame the court.
I believe that the DA determines if someone is to be retried, not an activist judge. Executive branch vs. judicial branch.
Good grief, Judge Peterson. Let it go.
Only in Hinds County. They had a DA that didn't do his job, and now a judge who wants to also be a DA.
Isn't this judge part of the Hines county catch, and release judiciary?
Mandamus her @$$
Another great example of why judges are seldom the smartest person in the room.
Isn't this the sameJudge that has turned numerous felons back onto the streets of Jackson just to go and commit more crimes, some of them very serious involving the killing of Jackson residents!
Whatever it takes! Oh how my heart breaks! I will be right here waiting for you! Nothing like a Richard Marx evening!
You don’t get shot at / shot by PD for no reason. Not in this day and age. I’ve been pulled over many times and gone through numerous roadblocks. Never once did I give an officer reason to feel the need to draw a weapon, even when I thought he was being a total jackass. In fact, I go out of my way to make sure that I’m respectful, I comply, I keep my hands where they can be seen, and I don’t make quick or sudden movements. If you get shot at / shot, either you or the person with you gave them a good reason to do so. Bottom line.
Just another liberal judge trying to be above the law.
I tend to support the blue. But I sat in on a murder trial in which Faye Peterson was the judge. I figured she would be a typical biased Hinds County judge. I figured wrong. Judge Peterson was highly competent and fair. I no nothing of the facts of this case. But don't think of Judge Peterson as a nutjob.
Democrats are all about PROTESTING and getting into “Community Activist Mode” when “tragedies like this” happen in their Pro-Crime, Pro-Criminal, Pro-Catch & Release cities.
But NO protesting when an innocent helpless 2-year old child is murdered.
NO protesting when 2 innocent helpless children are killed by stray bullets within a 10 day period.
NO protesting when innocent helpless 6-year old Kingston Frazier was shot in the face/murdered.
NO protesting former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms’ 49% chance of becoming Georgia’s next governor even though she, via her pro-lawlessness, was responsible for the hazardous environment that led directly to the innocent, helpless 9-year old Secoriea Turner’s death.
No protesting Democrat Judges catch & releases.
If the cop is guilty, I hope he’s convicted. But nothing will change the fact that Democrats are the Party of Crime. Democrats are the Modern Day Mafia. And senseless killings of innocents will always continue to be a result of the Democrat modus operandi.
P.S. It’s why many if not most white liberals protect themselves and their babies by living in the Republican suburbs.
"P.S. It’s why many if not most white liberals protect themselves and their babies by living in the Republican suburbs."
P.S. my ass. Do you propose that they should live in the middle of the Jackson War Zone? And do you not know that all these liberals living in suburbs make those areas democrat?
7:19 AM, as an example, the Hypocrite Trial Lawyers that vote Democrat living inside of the City of Madison…..have not made the City of Madison Democrat (you might want to do a little research before posting responses).
And yes, I propose that anyone supporting the undeniable Pro-Violent Crime, Pro-Violent Criminal, Pro-Catch & Release Democrat Party (that is totally responsible for the deaths of innocents, including helpless children) should have to reap what they sow; put themselves and their babies at risk by living in the cities their beloved Criminal Party controls (and not live behind any gates).
But these Democrat hypocrites residing in their fine Madison homes located in Mississippi’s safest city, are no different that Alyssa Milano with her hashtag #DefundthePolice. Its Defund the Police in the poor minority communities where the children’s lives that are lost won’t matter to them. But call in the helicopters when it comes to protecting me and my babies.
I personally do not know how you all sleep at night.
@7:19
Not speaking for 6:30, but why white liberals are not the dominate demographic in the McDowell Road corridor, the Medgar Evers throughway and Queens along with other Jackson areas does pose a uniqe question. It would seem one's political viewpoints would find comfort in existing around others with the same views.
Well, actually I can tell you why. No one embraces hypricosy better than a white leftist. They love making themselves feel good by supporting causes that never work. I think it's kind of like back in the 60's when "sticking it to the man became a lyric repeated in many of the songs" They view "the man" as white successful, educated and stable and want more than anything to be like him. This explains is why they want to live in the suburbs, but in that voting booth the evil leftist comes out and in their mind they just :"stuck it to the man". Of course when the white liberal woman chooses a school for little Johnny and Suzie, she wants them at the school where the mini vans and expensive SUV's show up bearing the 30A stickers. Not where the Nissan Altimas with the bent fender, busted window and a repo man giving chase go to school. No she wants her kids to get invited to the sleepovers in Madison, not the Road of Rememberance.
In closing most liberals are not hard to spot. They pride themselves on standing out, but make no mistake they have and are cyanide to this country. They create (and love) the war zones. They have an excuse for all of the chaos that has infected every major city in the United States. Yes, they should put their mailbox where their mouth is and then I'll at least respect them for living their beliefs.
KF
You must not be approving similar comments because i can’t believe no one has commented about how many times Judge Peterson has failed to grant the DA motion to dismiss cases against black defendants.
I’ll bet its close to zero.
Faye Peterson was the Hinds County DA for 6 years. Not that I would expect most of you to know that. Liberal she is not.
Good for Judge Peterson! That guy is a bad actor. He couldn’t tell the truth for anything.
Too many steroids for that old guy. His brain is definitely not right. 2 shootings in less than a month. That’s not a coincidence.
He really should just drive the car with his windows up the air-conditioning on and not notice. Criminals is the safest way to make it to retirement. If you challenge them, to intimidate they will challenge back somebody’s gonna win. Somebody’s gonna lose when they pick the fight. They find out all cops aren’t the same Michael Rhinewalt if you can say nothing else about him is not an affirmative action hire.
Is Peterson unaware of double jeopardy? If he was adjudicated not guilty how would double jeopardy not apply?
Yes. They should live up to their own standards.
The judge may refuse to grant relief on the motion, but I don’t think she has the authority to order the State to proceed. Prosecutorial decisions are not subject to judicial review, those being decisions by a part of the executive branch of government.
Got any more jokes?
Based on the above and what little else I know, it appears that Fitch tried to pander to one demographic with a prosecution of a weak-ish case, and now failing there seeks to salvage something by pandering to another demographic, the poorly drafted Motion for Nolle Prosequi as part of that pandering. Fitch's motion inspired a denial-order-slash-bench-soliloquy from Peterson. If I remember correctly, she's unopposed in November and if so she must have her reasons for her role in the theatrics. It is unlikely a reasonably competent prosecutor presenting a competently-drafted motion to a reasonably competent judge would have this result. Not impossible, just unlikely.
Is Peterson up for re-election again? Got to get that pandering vote….
October 22, 2026 at 8:29 AM - I love you!
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