Jackson Jambalaya

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The Clarion-Ledger reported this morning FDIC ordered Heritage Banking Group to raise more capital:

"In an agreement with the state Department of Banking and Consumer Finance and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., Heritage Banking Group was given 90 days to increase capital or submit a plan to state and federal regulators guaranteeing the bank has funds to meet standards..." Article

Hmmm....... where have we heard about Heritage Banking Group before? Maybe here or here. Bankrate gave Heritage its lowest rating after examining its first quarter earnings statements. A quick examination of the balance sheet reveals several interesting items:
1. Provision for loan and lease losses was only $2.1 million
2. Net losses on real estate owned was $152,000.
3. Net income was a net loss of $1.598 million. The previous quarter it was $1.8 million loss.
4. Assets of $238 million.
5. Total liabilities were $225 million.
6. Total loans and leases: $183 million.
7. Page 31: $1.4 million in construction and land loans were 30 days past due, none at 90 but $8.949 million in these loans and another $3.8 million in closed-end residential loans were in the non-accrual column. Not good. This is probably what drew the regulators attention.

Since the Clarion-Ledger did not include the order, here it is: Copy of order. Some quick notes while quickly reading through it:
1. Board must take more active role and assume more responsibility.
2. Bank must hire a consultant acceptable to the government.
3. The consultant must evaluate all management positions and submit a management restructuring plan. In other words, clean house.
4. Bank must raise $6 million in 90 days.
5. No dividends.
6. Tighten lending standards.
7. Bank's board must approve any loan to insiders greater than $50,000. Hmmm.... wonder if anyone was treating the bank as their personal checking account.
8. Pages 11-12. Changes in how nonperforming loans are treated. Government is making them call a spade and spade and start recognizing the bad loans on the books.
9. Bank's board must approve loans to an individual over $250,000. Another hmmm...
10. Bank can't pay overdrafts of any bank officer over $2,500 without approval of loan committee. Funny. Most banks I know take the money out of your paycheck or fire you if you write a bad check.
11. Bank must establish a loan committee. 4 members must be independent.
12. Consultant is to be engaged to review loans.

The feds are clearly making major changes in how the bank operates and the probability is strong the bank will not be able to survive in its current form. Reading the order gives the sense a group of insiders treated it as a personal piggy bank, bad loans were carried on the books and not recognized or charged off, and the bank was poorly managed. Its no secret Sethi is a major player in this bank, the same Sethi who sent a notice to Madison County a few months ago that his company Parkway South, might miss a payment on TIF bonds. The next sixty days should be very interesting.

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See table 9. Fannie Mae's 90 days or more delinquencies were down slightly in April from March. Mortgages not backed by mortgage insurance (less than 80% loan to value) were unchanged for the last three months while those requiring mortgage insurance dropped from 13.8% to 12.55%, a welcome change.

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Photo gallery

This "home" is near Jackson Academy in Northeast Jackson. It is owned by Gulf States Investments, which in turn is owned by Richard Clay Perry. He purchased the home on March 3, 2006. This home has been a sore spot among his neighbors for over two years after the home was completely gutted and not repaired (see the linked photo gallery.). The yard was neglected and only kept up by neighbors who were tired of the eyesore and merely wanted to protect their property values. The home was completely unsecure as the back door and gate were wide open, a lock on one door was busted off the frame, and all other doors were open as well. Mr. Perry's wife, Madison Realtor Lacy Perry, listed the home for sale last year but took it off the market.

Several neighbors complained to Mr. Perry about his property after several burglaries in their subdivision forced them to be more vigilant. A wide open home that looks like a crack house on the inside drew their attention. Mr. Perry informed them he was unable to work on the home due to his partner's bankruptcy. However, Mr. Perry's claim does not coincide with the facts. His partner, Robert Johnson (not the former chief), filed a petition for chapter 7 bankruptcy in August 2009. It was discharged in February 2010. An examination of the schedules reveals the home nor deed of trust issued by Madison County Bank on the property was included in the bankruptcy. Mr. Johnson's name does not appear on any corporate documents filed with the Secretary of State but does appear on a 2006 deed of trust as a partner and in the bankruptcy schedule as a 50% owner of Gulf States Investments. Deed, Deeds of Trust, Bankruptcy schedule, Petition

A crew of workers appeared soon after the neighbors called Mr. Perry and began demolishing the home three weeks ago. Several pictures will show the removal of several features: shingles, the front door and its surroundings, windows A large dumpster sits in the driveway. However, Mr. Perry never bothered to obtain a demolition permit from the city. Such permits are required, along with an asbestos report, before a property owner can demolish a home. They only costs $100 and are issued in less than a week after an application is submitted all required documents are included with the application. The city issued a stop-work order the same day the demolition started. JJ called the city this morning and was told Mr. Perry still has not applied for a demolition permit. One must wonder what would look better: a home that is gutted but looks fine on the outside or an overgrown lot with a concrete slab. Very classy.

I spoke to Mr. Perry today and the conversation was very short. He informed me he had obtained the necessary permits and was waiting on an asbestos permit from the city. When I informed him the city told me no permit applications were filed and that there was no asbestos permit but he had to file a report. He became more belligerent and said it had been tied up in litigation for a long time as his partner was in bankruptcy. When I then informed him his partner was only in bankruptcy for six months, he cut me off, said I didn't know the behind the scenes mess involving the home, and that he wasn't responsible for the crime in Jackson. He then hung up on me.

Oh the irony. Does anyone want to guess where Clay and Lisa Perry live? Reunion, of course. Does anyone wonder what would happen if they tried to pull this crap in Madison? The Queen may be many things to many people, but everyone would agree any landowner who treated a home as Mr. Perry has this one in Northeast Jackson would be in serious trouble and it wouldn't have dragged on for over two years.

The neglect of this property is a perfect example of why Jackson has declined. Absentee landowners out of sight and out of mind are as much a threat to Jackson as are the criminals everyone fears. Jackson should crack down on landowners such as Mr. Perry and Mr. Johnson. If nothing else, Jackson should finish what Mr. Perry started: tear down the house and then send Mr. Perry the bill or place a lien on his fine Reunion home. Its a safe bet there are some attorneys in the neighborhood who would handle filing that lien for free. Some will question why I wrote this post but in my opinion, if NE Jackson residents want to keep it from going the way of other parts of Jackson, then we need to start speaking up about blight or other issues whenever we see them.

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Mayor Mary gave a quick speech to a gathering in Madison last week. I'm posting this video because Fox40 does one thing right I wish other stations would emulate: posting the entire video instead of thirty second clips picked by someone else. Despite all the times we see her on tv, it is usually in the context of responding to a controversy or questions from a reporter. Rarely do we hear her just talking as she does in this video. While she hits upon the expected topics, what drew my attention in the first five minutes was her passion for the City of Madison, a passion matched by few other mayors and something I wish would rub off on a couple of guys in the Jackson area, hint, hint.

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Lynn Fitch, Executive Director of the State Personnel Board, will be running for State Treasurer IF Tate runs for Lieutenant Governor. Take it for what it's worth.

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Meanest tackler I ever saw. Period. He would love these running quarterbacks like Vick playing today. Bad things would happen man, baaaaad things.

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The U.S. District Court set aside Mike Crook's entry of default in his lawsuit against the City of Ridgeland, its Mayor, and several police officers for his arrest two years ago. Mr. Crook and his wife filed suit earlier this year seeking $700,000 in damages. Phelps Dunbar, the firm representing the defendants, requested additional time to answer the complaint, which the judge granted. The answer was due June 21, 2010. No answer was filed for an additional two weeks. Mr. Crook filed an application for default and the clerk entered a default in the case. However, the court had not yet awarded a default judgment. Phelps Dunbar filed its answer several minutes after the default was entered by the clerk. Mr. Crook filed a motion with the arguing the court should grant him a judgment. It should be noted the Crooks are representing themselves.

The court gave serious consideration to the fact the attorney working the case was suddenly forced to leave the office as she had a child who required immediate surgery. The court stated "contrary to plaintiffs’ contention otherwise, defendants’ failure to timely answer was neither willful nor intentional but rather was merely inadvertent." The court also ruled the Crooks would suffer little harm in that "the only prejudice that the Crooks allege to have suffered is the time spent researching their motion for the clerk’s entry of default and the fact that, if the court sets asides the entry of default and allows defendants to answer, they will have to litigate their claims. This simply is not the type of prejudice contemplated by law." Order, Plaintiff's response to Defendant's objection

Numerous attorneys informed me after I first posted about the case the judge would take the action it did in this ruling. Judges like to hear the cases on their merits and are loathe to see them decided on technicalities such as deadlines. It is also no secret judges tend to be a little more harsh in their dealings with parties representing themselves. Mr. Crook also filed yesterday a Motion to Strike All Pleadings filed since June 21. Copy of motion. The Crooks argue the Court had no jurisdiction to entertain the responses and motions filed by the defendants after June 21 because they did not seek permission from the court first to file them after the June 21 deadline. It pretty clear Judge Lee wants the case to proceed to a trial or settlement and will thus probably deny this motion as well.

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Update: No answer has been filed but an order has been issued decreeing all judges in the first district will recuse themselves from this case.

Superintendent of Lee County Schools Mike Scott filed a lawsuit last week against Jamie Franks, Chairman of the Mississippi Democratic Party and former Democratic nominee for Lieutenant Governor, and Lee Hampton, Chairman of the Lee County Democratic Party Executive Committee. Here is the lawsuit:



There is no sense in sugarcoating it. It's dynamite. Mr. Scott admits to an affair and then accuses Franks and Hampton of conspiring to maliciously interfere with his employment and "extorting" Mr. Scott. It states Mr. Hampton used his position in the Democratic Party to further the conspiracy between he and Mr. Franks against Mr. Scott. What is also interesting is the suit claims the defendants were able to get the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal to publish articles that would aid their cause (Hmmm.... is he alleging Patsy Brumfield, former Governor Musgrove cronie and the reporter in question, is acting for Franks and Hampton?) . Mr. Scott asks the court for a declaratory judgment stating he is not liable for alienation of affection and and in the alternative, an undeclared amount of damages for extortion, malicious interference with his employment, defamation, and negligence. The complaint includes as exhibits the letter sent by the Lee County Democratic Party Executive Committee to Mike Scott demanding his resignation, a copy of the NE Mississippi Daily Journal articles, and the notice of claim filed by Jamie Franks. They are all worth reading.

Mr. Waide told this correspondent in no uncertain terms Mr. Scott was paying him out of his own pocket and no funds from taxpayers and the insurance company were used. He also made it clear Mr. Scott met with him either during lunch hour or after the close of the business day, never while he was supposed to be on the clock working for Lee County.

One can only imagine what Democratic Party elders are thinking right now as Mr. Franks took what was a private feud between he and Mr. Scott and managed to drag the Mississippi Democratic Party through the mud with them.

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Haley and Hood at it again. It seems Haley met privately with the Attorney General and asked him to look into what legal strategies could be used to fight the proposed casino in Jones County. Haley then accuses Mr. Hood of leaking the memo he requested to the media. The letter is posted below.

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Note: All right, there is new information released and a couple of commentors were gracious enough to post it here. I used the Australian as the source for this post, a legitimate news outlet. The original story was in the Times and thus behind a pay wall but both are owned by Newscorp. I rarely quote bloggers that don't provide documentation of what they allege in their posts unless its opinion only and then will usually make disclaimers about it. In this case, the White House released correspondence showing how strongly it was opposed to the release. I'm not going to zap what I wrote for several reasons. One is to show that even using acceptable sources, the story and corresponding opinion can still miss the mark. Two, to show how things can change as a story develops. Three, if I do make mistakes, I don't suddenly take them down without mention but instead, correct them and admit the mistake. I won't admit to a mistake here but will admit to providing opinion based on a story that later turned out to be erroneous in facts and its fundamental nature. I have no idea why the Australian published the story as it did. My apologies. See additional stories posted in the comments section. The White House released correspondence showing it opposed the release.



Go ahead Craig, Ladd, Stauffer, Eichelberger, and NMC, defend this one.

"Correspondence obtained by The Sunday Times reveals the Obama administration considered compassionate release more palatable than locking up Abdel Baset al-Megrahi in a Libyan prison.

The intervention, which has angered US relatives of those who died in the attack, was made by Richard LeBaron, deputy head of the US embassy in London, a week before Megrahi was freed in August last year on grounds that he had terminal cancer.

The document, acquired by a well-placed US source, threatens to undermine US President Barack Obama's claim last week that all Americans were "surprised, disappointed and angry" to learn of Megrahi's release...." Article from The Australian"

White House Scumbags.

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The Mississippi Bar does not publish sanctions against wayward lawyers on its website per se. However, if one were to dig through the online editions of its house organ, the Mississippi Lawyer, one could find the sanctions that are published in each edition. JJ published four posts in December reporting sanctions listed in the Mississippi Lawyer. It is the position of this website that the legal profession is in much need of greater transparency and sanctions should be published online by the Bar.

However, if one were to go looking on the Bar's website for recent issues, one would be searching for a very long time as the bar has not posted its most two recent editions of the Mississippi Lawyer on its website (It is published bi- or tri-monthly.). Ok, there are excuses. They were overwhelmed at work. Someone might have quit. Someone was on vacation. The server was down. Well, the most recent online edition is the January/ February issue. It has published no sanctions. Nada. Zip. Zero. The same issue from a year earlier published said sanctions. So is it a coincidence the Bar suddenly didn't include sanctions in the issue it published immediately after JJ started posting them from its online editions and then quit issuing an online edition altogether? It doesn't matter if its a coincidence or not, JJ is obtaining copies of the publication and will start posting more sanctions from the Mississippi Bar even if the Mississippi Bar does not want you to know which lawyers got in trouble.

Stay tuned.

Note: If you want to read sanctions published on this website, there is a section on the right side of the page...... at the bottom. See also this earlier post criticizing the Bar.

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Tate Reeves won the first round of voting in the poll asking who you support for the Lieutenant Governor Republican nomination. Now we are going to have a lil ole runoff. Tate and Del get to go at it again while everyone else watches. Interesting the Queen beat both Phil, who IS an incumbent, Billy, and Stacy.

Phil Bryant	56 (10%)
Delbert Hoseman	106 (20%)
Billy Hewes	64 (12%)
Tate Reeves	176 (33%)
Stacy Pickering	34 (6%)
Mary Hawkins-Butler	76 (14%)
Alan Nunalee	10 (1%)

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Geaux to the Mississippi Bar's website, msbar.org, and see if you notice anything.

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Jackson crime stats for week ending July 18, 2010.

Jackson major crimes overview for week ending July 11, 2010.

City of Madison crime reports through July 22, 2010.

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Here is a good presentation on the basics of deep water drilling presented at the Aspen Ideas festival recently. It was conducted by two Shell engineers.

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The Federal Register published this announcement last week:

"A recently issued independent actuarial study shows that the Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund (MMIF) capital ratio has fallen below its statutorily mandated threshold."

FHA is required to maintain sufficient reserves as it insures all mortgages in the FHA program used by lenders. The above language is bureaucratic gobbledygook for saying "we're broke". When a bank issues an FHA mortgage to a borrower, the federal government picks up the tab if the loan goes bust. This announcement by the government comes as no surprise to me as I wrote about this a year ago in a post about the sharp increase in first-payment defaults:

"This should come as no surprise and is scary for several reasons. FHA requires a 3.5% down payment (unless you are getting funds from down payment assistance programs such as the bond money program operated by Mississippi Home Corporation.). The FHA rates for the last few years have been low, usually below 7%. The income and assets are verified, these are not "liar" loans. Despite these guidelines that should make FHA mortgages much safer than subprime, Alt-A, and Fannie Mae no-down payment loans that have exploded the housing industry, the defaults are STILL rising to very dangerous levels.

This problem does not exist because of the economy going south as there is no reason a borrower on such a mortgage should default on the first payment. Within a day or so of the mortgage's funding, the lender contacts the employer on the phone usually to verify employment just for this reason (its a standard industry practice.). The lender reviews pay stubs, tax returns, W-2's, and bank statements. There are only a handful of reasons FHA is imploding. Fraud is being committed by the lender or borrower. Sloppy underwriting practices. FHA's cashout refinances (Until recently, a borrower could get a cash-out refinance through FHA for 95% loan to value, a recipe for disaster as the default rates on such mortgages are very high.). FHA has no minimum credit score requirement (Most of the lenders have imposed their own, however.). FHA accepts "alternative" credit if a borrower has no credit history in the form of utility payments, rent payments, etc. The appraisal guidelines are not as strict as they are for Fannie and Freddie. The mortgage insurance rates are lower.

However, the pressure to use FHA programs has been great the last few years as many mortgage companies who only originated subprime mortgagees and were facing extinction obtained FHA licenses so they could pursue subprime borrowers as FHA had easier underwriting requirements compared to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Some subprime lenders entered the FHA market just to stay afloat even though they lacked any FHA expertise...

Subprime crashed. Mortgage lending not supported by the government is non-existent. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have turned into financial money pits with no end in sight. Now we are looking at another time bomb about to go off at HUD while we are wasting our money bailing out Citi, AIG, and every one else with a hand out for some dough. The whole mess is blowing up in the faces of the politicians who don't have a clue what they are facing nor what to do. Even now, some congressmen seek to pass a law making the now-banned FHA down payment assistance programs legal once more (see note below) even though the default rates are triple those for borrowers required to make a down payment. Strap yourselves in boys and girls, the roller coaster is about to give you some more thrills and excitement as the madness continues." Earlier post

FHA has known for some time this day would come and has been allowing lenders to tighten their underwriting guidelines for FHA. However, FHA is now stating it is going to do the same thing. The same announcement states FHA is going to make the following changes:

1. reduce the amount of seller-paid closing costs from six percent to three percent of the purchase price.
2. Institute a minimum credit-score for loans. FHA did not use credit scoring at all in insuring mortgages although private lenders did.
3. Require higher down payments from borrowers with lower credit scores. FHA currently allows minimum down payments of 3.5%. Borrowers don't even have to have a down payment if using down payment assistance programs such as Mississippi Home Corp's bond money program. Unfortunately, those loans tend to have high default rates and FHA can't afford to subsidize such lending anymore.

The shortfall was first mentioned back in November 2009 in FHA's annual audit. However, FHA is now announcing it publicly and using it as a justification for tightening underwriting standards. FHA lending accounts now for nearly half of the mortgage market so any tremor at FHA is an earthquake in the housing industry. As housing continues to stumble, expect more bailouts of Fannie, Freddie, and FHA. Nearly all of the mortgage market is supported by the federal government as private mortgage lending has evaporated. This problem will be with us for years to come.

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The Clarion-Ledger reported the suspect in the Ridgeland Wachovia bank robbery is still on the loose. The newspaper also published a description:

"Ridgeland police are searching for the man who robbed the Wachovia Bank on
Jackson Street about 11 a.m. today.

Ridgeland Police Lt. John Neal said the suspect is a man about 25-30 years old, about 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighing 180 pounds. He was wearing an orange reflective vest as well as a blonde wig and a dark-colored baseball cap."

JJ has been hot on the trail of this thug and I think we have figured out who it is as the suspect may not be wearing a wig but it might be a woman with blonde hair if one reads the newspaper description carefully. Inside sources have informed Kingfish the man (or woman) hunt is very much alive. Here is a picture of the suspect. Please be careful. 

This person is dangerous. If you see this suspect, please use caution and do not attempt to apprehend. Please call Ridgeland PD at 911 or 601-856-2121.

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Found this article on Downtown Jackson Partner's website discussing how Jackson compares to other cities in terms of funding development:

"Not a day goes by, that someone doesn't ask me "Why don't we have such-and -such" or "How does city 'X' have an arena, riverwalk, an aquarium, or whatever, and WE DON'T?"
FOLKS, IT IS CALLED "VISION and MONEY".Another area we are right at dead last, in the cities we surveyed, is tourism tax.

TOURISM TAX.

Each 1% in sales taxes collected on behalf of the city, if dedicated, equals around $30,000,000 in revenue for our city, which will float a $500,000,000 bond, which could possibly build (depending on the scope), an arena, a stadium for JSU, a "Riverwalk" and leave $100,000,000 for water and sewer improvements. Oklahoma City did just this (the projects listed above), plus 4 other additional projects.

Below is what our cities throughout the south charge in taxes regarding tourism. Want to know why we "don't have such-and such"?" Read the rest here.

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Gayle Lang, the mother of Karen Irby, sued Stuart M. Irby, Sr. in Hinds County Chancery Court Wedsnday for visitation rights to the child of Stuart and Karen (The petition is only two pages and I will upload it later when I am in front of a scanner.). The petition states

"Karen C. Irby, the natural mother of Graham Read Irby and the daughter of petitioner, Gayle Lang, joins in this petition and requests that the Court grant visitation rights to her mother, Gayle Lang, with the minor child of Karen C. Irby, Graham Read Irby.

Petitioner Gayle Lang, the maternal grandmother of Graham Read Irby has established a viable relationship with her grandson, Graham Read Irby, and Respondent, Stuart M. Irby, Sr., the natural father of Graham, has unreasonably denied Petitioner visitation rights with Graham.

Wherefore, premises considered, Petitioner requests that this Court grant her grandparent visitation rights with her maternal grandson, Graham Read Irby."

Attorney Bill Featherston filed the suit and Karen Irby signed it. The applicable statute is Section 96-13-1 et seq. of the Mississippi Code. Section (3)(2) states

"(2) Any grandparent who is not authorized to petition for visitation rights pursuant to subsection (1) of this section may petition the chancery court and seek visitation rights with his or her grandchild, and the court may grant visitation rights to the grandparent, provided the court finds:

(a) That the grandparent of the child had established a viable relationship with the child and the parent or custodian of the child unreasonably denied the grandparent visitation rights with the child; and

(b) That visitation rights of the grandparent with the child would be in the best interests of the child.

(3) For purposes of subsection (3) of this section, the term "viable relationship" means a relationship in which the grandparents or either of them have voluntarily and in good faith supported the child financially in whole or in part for a period of not less than six (6) months before filing any petition for visitation rights with the child, the grandparents have had frequent visitation including occasional overnight visitation with said child for a period of not less than one (1) year, or the child has been cared for by the grandparents or either of them over a significant period of time during the time the parent has been in jail or on military duty that necessitates the absence of the parent from the home." Mississippi Code

Stay tuned. Copy of petition

See sidebar on right side of page for collection of all posts on the Irby case.

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Rankin-Madison District Attorney Michael Guest proudly displays his "Most Wanted" page on his website. First thing one sees on his website (and it is his website as he stuck his name in the domain address) is the "Most Wanted" section next to his picture, along with a "captured label" on at least one of the photos. 34 out of 42 photos on the page itself show the same moniker, leading one to think these guys are locked up and we are all safe from these criminals.

However, these labels are somewhat misleading. One person listed as "captured", Kalvin Morrow, is a child rapist currently loose on the streets. Mr. Morrow raped a twelve-year old girl nearly five years ago. He was twenty-six years old at the time. He was indicted on May 17, 2007, for statutory rape. Mr. Morrow sat in jail for a long time before he finally posted bail on June 2, 2009.

Mr. Morrow entered a guilty plea on January 8, 2010, for Statutory Rape in an arrangement with the court and prosecution. He admitted to "having sexual intercourse with a child who is under the age of fourteen." Mr. Morrow received a twenty year sentence with twenty years suspended and supervised probation for five years. He is also enrolled in the sex offender registry. Registry

JJ is not questioning the prosecution of Mr. Morrow. He is obviously a sick and depraved man who should be in jail for a long time. However, a good prosecutor somehow obtains convictions even when dealt a bad hand. Mr. Morrow was indicted by the previous district attorney's office. The mother of the victim made it clear she was not going to let her child go through the ordeal of a trial and would not let her testify. The victim had made significant progress in her recovery and the mother did not want to impair it in any way possible, which is understandable. The prosecutor thus was faced with the dilemma of wanting to put this scumbag behind bars but unfortunately had a very weak case without a victim. The female prosecutor somehow obtained a guilty plea from the defendant and could at least label him as a sex offender for the rest of his life. Several prosecutors I spoke to said she had no choice and that was the only option available to her. If anything, she is to be commended for saving a case that probably would have failed if it had gone to trial. Copy of file

It is one thing to prosecute a sex offender, it is another to advertise Kalvin Morrow as "captured" when he is actually free. Mr. Guest has a responsibility, no, an obligation, to the public to tell the truth on his website. Such advertisements are misleading and an insult to the public. It is true Mr. Morrow was captured at one time. However, the average person who reads that page thinks this child rapist is locked up in jail when he is actually free and living among us. Mr. Guest will be better served if he posts something useful such as a convicted sex offenders page on his website instead of juvenile promotions such as his "most wanted". What we want from our leaders is the truth about crime, not false advertising. Mr. Guest should remove Mr. Morrow from his "Most Wanted" list.

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Note: This post is about Malachi Group of Georgia, not Malachi Financial in Ridgeland.

Malachi Group is acting as the city of Jackson's "Independent Financial Adviser" in the $25 million refinance of its bonds. Jackson Jambalaya reported on the proposed deal last month. Malachi sold this deal to the city as a way to free up over $5 million next year to apply towards a projected $10 million deficit. Documents provided to the city council show Jackson will save $5 million a year for several years in interests costs. However, Jackson will then pay $1 million a year for four years, nearly $2 million for one year, then approximately $4.5 million a year for four years, and finally $6 million in the last year, costing the city $8 million more in interest costs over the life of the bonds than if they were not refinanced.

Malachi recommends this deal to the city but the question must be asked: who is Malachi Group? Malachi Group is located in Atlanta but is represented in Jackson by local aspiring player Porter Bingham. The same Porter Bingham of Malachi Group who sold Hinds County on some interest-rate swaps back in 2006 (yes, the same type of swaps that blew up Jefferson County). What exactly is the track record of these guys? A check of FINRA's database reveals it suspended Mr. Bingham for twelve months and fined him $10,000 in 2007 for not telling the truth on Malachi's financial statements provided to the regulatory agency FINRA Report (Page 6).

Mr. Bingham has never re-registered with the FINRA or SEC. He is not registered with the state of Mississippi as a broker/dealer or an investment adviser. However, Mr. Bingham is not the only party in this deal who has faced regulatory problems as Malachi has its own checkered history. Regulatory agencies have disciplined Malachi seven times since 1997. The National Association of Securities Dealers expelled the firm for not paying fines in 2006. Malachi is not registered with the SEC nor FINRA. FINRA report Neither Mr. Bingham nor Malachi are registered with the SEC or Mississippi as investment advisers either.

However, all of the fines, suspensions, and trouble that seem to follow these cats around didn't stop Jackson from engaging them as its "Independent Financial Adviser". Page four of the documents linked above even state their duties to the city. Read it and weep. How much are we paying these rogues of finance? $80,000 (Page 6). I would provide a copy of the contract with Malachi Group for you to read except for one problem. There is no contract nor is there going to be one according to the public records request I filed a few weeks ago. The city answered last week: "No contract will be executed." No contract for Malachi. I'm not making this up. Jackson is giving $80,000 to a group that is not registered, has a representive who was suspended and has no license, yet does not make them sign a contract protecting Jackson's interests. I spoke to Communications Director Chris Mims and was referred to Rick Hill, Deputy Administrator (I am waiting for him to call me.). Mr. Mims and I spoke for a few minutes but in all fairness to him, this is not his area of expertise nor should it be. However, one can hope the city will execute something binding on Malachi.



Note: FINRA is "The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) is the largest independent regulator for all securities firms doing business in the United States. All told, FINRA oversees nearly 4,700 brokerage firms, about 167,000 branch offices and approximately 635,000 registered securities representatives." (FINRA website) NASD and the NYSE Committee merged in 2007 to form FINRA.

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Who do you support for Lieutenant Governor? I included Phil because he IS the incumbent and has one term left. The usual suspects were included as well. Yes, I listed the Queen for one simple reason: probably the best known local Republican politician in the metro area. Moreso than the other mayors or legislators from Hinds, Rankin, and Madison. Vote early, vote often.

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Apparently Queen Mary's peeps set up a speed trap on Highland Colony. Going to Chang's and thinking about driving to Madison on Highland Colony Parkway? Slow down when you get to Madison. Madison dropped the speed limit to 35 mph when it repaved the Madison portion of the road. Naturally the poh-lice are hanging out right after the speed change waiting to get ya as happened to a friend of mine last week who thought it was still 40 mph.

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CNBC recently ranked the states in terms of business environment. Mississippi ranked 45 although its cost of business ranked 11. States were ranked in ten categories. CNBC report.

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A bunch of towing services are raising hell with the City of Jackson, claiming they aren't paid enough at $65 a tow. Jackson offered $75 a tow, (I didn't know Jackson had the money to offer raises of any type), but that wasn't good enough for these guys. No, they want $125 a tow. The City of Jackson should tell these guys to go to hell. If they go on strike, I am quite sure there are other towing services more than happy to get some extra business. The price they are demanding is gouging, pure and simple. Don't believe me? Go call a few services and get some quotes on how much they charge. Very few of them will be for $125.

What is despicable is these guys are getting a guaranteed stream of business. In the real world, not the fantasyland these guys inhabit, the customer typically gets a better price for a certain amount of business. These malcontents don't just want guaranteed business from the city but the right to charge high prices as well. They claim Rankin County and others pay them more. It seems to me Rankin County should open up some contracts for some competitive bidding the first chance it gets and Jackson should tell these guys to get lost.

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The Madison County Board of Supervisors sued MDOT, MDOT Executive Director Larry Brown, and MDOT Commissioner Dick Hall for $20 million in damages on June 4, 2010.  Madison County accuses the defendants of breaching a Memorandum of Understanding that bound MDOT to provide $6 million to Madison County for the construction of the Reunion Parkway interchange with I-55.  Madison County alleged MDOT issued a different set of conditions in January for receipt of the funds. The complaint states the purpose of the new guidelines was to provide "MDOT with more control of the project." The lawsuit was filed by County Attorney Eric Hamer.

The defendants filed the typical answer: deny, deny, deny, admit, admit, deny most defendants file in such cases. MDOT filed a Motion to Dismiss for Failure to State a Claim on July 2, 2010. MDOT claims according to state law, only MDOT can be served with a lawsuit and if served, such process must be served upon the Secretary. Madison County served Attorney General Jim Hood with the complaint. None of the defendants were served through MDOT (page 2 of the attached file). MDOT also asked for the Court to make Madison County pay court costs and attorney's fees for defending against this complaint.

If Hamer screwed up serving the lawsuit, it would be interesting to see how much of his bill is paid by the County. Copy of complaint and motion to dismiss.

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Gallo's email about the show tomorrow sent out today:
"8:05 Jim Leggette, Adjunct Professor of Economics @ Belhaven and John Allison, Commissioner of MS Dept. of Banking & Consumer Finance.
Topic-The new Financial Reform legislation and hidden provision in ObamaCare. In case you missed another hidden gem, here it is....

(CNNMoney.com)-An all-but-overlooked provision of the health reform law is threatening to swamp U.S. businesses with a flood of new tax paperwork. Section 9006 of the health care bill -- just a few lines buried in the 2,409-page document -- mandates that beginning in 2012 all companies will have to issue 1099 tax forms not just to contract workers but to any individual or corporation from which they buy more than $600 in goods or services in a tax year. The stealth change radically alters the nature of 1099s and means businesses will have to issue millions of new tax documents each year."

Sounds familiar.  Earlier post 
Yes, I'm having some fun with Mr. G. ;-)

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Keith Plunkett of Congressman Harper's office is raising money to fight Alzheimer's Disease with his Lucy's Revenge project. Check out the brochure above and help if you can.

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"Former Senate majority leader Trent Lott (R-Miss.), now a D.C. lobbyist, warned that a robust bloc of rabble-rousers spells further Senate dysfunction. "We don't need a lot of Jim DeMint disciples," Lott said in an interview. "As soon as they get here, we need to co-opt them."

But Lott said he's not expecting a tea-party sweep. "I still have faith in the visceral judgment of the American people," he said." From the Washington Post.

Yes Tent, we don't need a bunch of new congressmen who would say no to Bush-Paulson-Obama bailouts, no to Obamacare, no to Bush-Obama stimulus crap that doesn't work, and dysfunctional governments that can't do their basic jobs when it comes to hurricanes and oil spills. There is a reason liberals never frothed at the mouth when you were in the Senate like they did other conservatives and that is because they knew you were more interested in making deals than actually standing up for something.   As far as I am concerned,  working as a lobbyist suits you well because it means you can now get paid to be the trollop you always were.

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For more information, go to the Facebook page.

NOTE: Kingfish will be a judge. That's right. The Kingfish will be judgin' some bbq.  This should be fun. Monica Hernandez of WLBT will be a judge as well.

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JJ reported last month:
"Karen Irby and her attorney, William Bell, filed an appeal to the Mississippi Supreme Court yesterday. Mrs. Irby requested the Court overturn Judge Green's ruling and order her to recuse herself from the sentencing of Karn Irby." Earlier post, Copy of appeal to Mississippi Supreme Court

Wonder what Joe will do now? Keep it alive? Withdraw? Just got a little interesting.

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 Copy of documents

Judge Winston Kidd ruled against Narcanon in Linda Francomb's lawsuit filed against the corporation specializing in substance abuse rehabilitation.  Mrs. Francomb sued Narcanon, Robbie Bell, and George Bell, III after George Bell, III murdered her daughter. Narcanon filed a motion to dismiss.  Judge Kidd ruled against the company on June 29, simply stating the defendants "amended motions are denied".  Narcanon operates a drug rehab facility where Mr. Bell spent three months.  He entered the treatment center shortly after he savagely beat Ms. Spencer and was released two days before he killed her.  Ms. Bell settled with Mrs. Francomb last year.

In a separate lawsuit filed by Elizabeth Hall against Robbie Bell, Judge Yerger will hold a hearing on August 9, 2010 about the issue of Ms. Bell's phone records. Ms. Hall's attorney, Johnny Givens, subpoenaed her phone records  from AT&T.  Ms. Bell's lawyer, Todd Burwell, filed a motion to quash the subpoena and in the alternative, asked the judge to seal the records.  See earlier post.

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Tye Densford, the owner of the now-closed Tye's Restaurant, obtained a judgment against the Managing Editor of the Mississippi Link for a bad check written to his business by Mr. Cain several months ago. Mr. Cain hosted a Sunday brunch at Tye's restaurant earlier this year for his movers and shakers crowd. Mr. Cain paid Mr. Densford with a check for $1,069. Mr. Cain did not even appear to defend against the complaint filed. A default judgment was entered against Mr. Cain for $1,369. Mr. Cain still has not paid the judgment.

Othor Complaint Tye

Othor Cain Abstract of Judgment-1

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That's right, we got it right here on Jackson Jambalaya: Bill Marcy's ambush of Bennie Thompson at his own town hall meeting.  Grab some popcorn and a beverage of choice and enjoy the fireworks.

Note: If you want more information on Bennie, read this earlier post on Bennie's record on national security.

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The Rankin Ledger reported on June 26:

"Charles Louie Kuebler, 5/2/1984, 24 Highland Meadows Drive, Jackson, DUI: first offense (penalty); vehicle: improper/expired inspection certificate (sticker); vehicle-careless driving"

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I warned you nearly two years ago the Democrats would be looking at your private retirement accounts. Sure enough, the Department of Labor stated in a proposed rule in the Federal Register it is

"currently reviewing the rules under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) and the plan qualification rules under the Internal Revenue Code (Code) to determine whether, and, if so, how, the Agencies could or should enhance, by regulation or otherwise, the retirement security of participants in employer-sponsored retirement plans and in individual retirement arrangements (IRAs) by facilitating access to, and use of, lifetime income or other arrangements designed to provide a lifetime stream of income after retirement. The purpose of this request for information is to solicit views, suggestions and comments from plan participants, employers and other plan sponsors, plan service providers, and members of the financial community, as well as the general public, on this important issue."


What exactly does "enhance, by regulation or otherwise" mean? Could it be some simple regulations on fees, disclosures, and investment advice or a mandate to employers telling them what kind of plans they can offer?  The proposed rule provides some "background" as a justification for this meddling and an indication of where the Department of Labor is going:

"Department of Labor data, however, show a trend away from sponsorship of defined benefit plans, toward sponsorship of defined contribution plans. The number of active participants in defined benefit plans fell from about 27 million in 1975 to approximately 20 million in 2006, whereas the number of active participants in defined contribution plans increased from about 11 million in 1975 to 66 million in 2006."

Ruh-roh. The good ole pensions v. 401k debate. The government provides its justification in the next paragraph:

"While defined contribution plans have some strengths relative to defined benefit plans, participants in defined contribution plans bear the investment risk because there is no promise by the employer as to the adequacy of the account balance that will be available or the income stream that can be provided after retirement...


Accordingly, with the continuing trend away from traditional defined benefit plans to 401(k) defined contribution plans and hybrid plans, including the associated trend away from annuities toward lump sum distributions, employees are not only increasingly responsible for the adequacy of their savings at the time of retirement, but also for ensuring that their savings last throughout their retirement years and, in many cases, the remaining lifetimes of their spouses and dependents."

Seems the government has a problem with you being responsible for your own money. Can't have the rubes making their own decisions on their own retirement planning, can we? Its pretty clear from the Department's language it favors pensions over 401k's and other IRA's. Copy of notice in Federal Register. It should be pointed out this is simply a "Request for Information" and NOT a proposed rule. The Department is asking for comments on the pros and cons of all types of retirement plans. However, this is the first step the government would take if it were to follow Dr. Ghilarducci's advice (see earlier post) and Congressman George Miller's goal of removing the tax breaks for IRA's and push everyone into a Government-Retirement Account. They think your money is really their money.

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JJ asked in a poll last week where its readers live. Its needless to say but the majority of readers live in NE Jackson, Madison, Ridgeland, and Belhaven. We've picked up a good bit of readers from around Mississippi as that group came in third. Thanks for reading and supporting this website.

Clinton	12 (2%)
Belhaven	33 (6%)
Brandon	35 (7%)
Madison	73 (15%)
NEJackson	81 (16%)
Fondren	15 (3%)
Canton	10 (2%)
NW Jackson	9 (1%)
South Jackson	7 (1%)
Ridgeland	32 (6%)
West Jackson/JSU	3 (0%)
Pearl	9 (1%)
Florence	6 (1%)
Richland	5 (1%)
Mississippi but not in Jxn area	52 (10%)
Flowood	17 (3%)
out of state	32 (6%)
Reservoir	46 (9%)

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WLBT reported last week a local Jackson resident, Theresa Moody, was the victim of a bash and dash robbery when she went inside the Fondren Post Office and left her purse in the front seat of her car. She sent me a couple of emails last week that I will post in this forum:

"Tuesday morning at 10:25 a.m., Front Door Fondern Post Office, during the 20 seconds I was inside checking my box, along with 15 / 20 other people, my driver car window was crashed and my purse snatched and gone. Of course, I know better than to leave the damn purse in the car, but, hey, I was just in the P. O. for 20 seconds (I know cause I have timed it since). In that 20 seconds, the thief crashed my Honda Pilot window and took my Prada Purse with all of my life inside.

I have since learned there have been 4 or 5 such crash and dashes since last Friday, the last being at 5:10 p.m. last night. I contacted WLBT, who did a story which ran at 4, 5, 6 and 10 yesterday, July 7. It was, in fact, running when the last incident occurred. WHAT???

Today, when I went back to the P.O. to raise a little hell with the Supervisor, I noted there were no police, guards, camera, signs or give a shit meters anywhere on site. I asked the Post Master if he had notified his authorities, he said he had and they said it was the JPD responsibility. I asked if he had called them, and if, he had not, WHY. And, furthermore, WHY, since there had been 4 breakins in 4 days, was he not outside guarding the place. No answer." (First email)

"To update you:
I called JPD, Precinct #4 - when they answered and I explained why I was calling and asking why there was no police presence at the P. O. or on the street, or in a parking lot, etc. - they replied, "well, what do you want us to do?" I give up.

I called the Fondren Association of Business (David Waugh with Professional Staffing). He seems nice, but not very aggressive. I guess that's my job.

I went to the Exxon Station at 255 W. Woodrow Wilson, where the perps charged $300 on my Exxon credit card after it had been reported stolen. They only keep their camera feed for three days. I'm late.

I guess it's just me against the pursue snatching SOB gang from hell. When I spoke with Precinct #4, she asked me if I was the lady who left my purse on the seat in the car. I said "No, I'm the one whose car window was smashed and my purse stolen." Trying to blame me for my stupidity in leaving the purse in the car - seems their focus is on the wrong party. There I go getting pissed again."

I can testify to similar behavior from other victims who have gone to JPD recently. One friend of mine was stalked and seriously threatened by an ex-boyfriend, went to file report/charges and was told by the female officer at the precinct she needed to change her number and that all they would do is mail him something. I sent a detailed email to Chief Coleman, never heard a peep in response. Less for today is: do not leave your purse in your car. Period.

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The April 2010 Monthly Housing Report published jointly by Re/Max and the Associated Press is now available. Lets see what the statistics are for the Jackson area and compare them to a year ago:

Number of Transactions
Current Month: 453
One month change: 5.84%
One year change: 16.45%

Active Inventory
Current Month: 3,524
One month change: -6.82%
One year change: -16.31%

Month's Supply of Inventory
Current Month: 7.78

Days on Market
Current Month: 99
One month change: -3.75%
One year change: 7.82%

Median Price – Sold
Current Month: $140,000
One month change: 7.73%
One year change: 3.7%

Here is the report from April 2009:

Number of Transactions
Current Month: 479
One month change: -7.71%
One year change: -6.63%

Active Inventory
Current Month: 3.995
One month change: -5.24%
One year change: -5.47%

Month's Supply of Inventory
Current Month: 8.3

Days on Market
Current Month: 117
One month change: 13.15%
One year change: 19.64%

Median Price – Sold
Current Month: $148,000
One month change: 0.00%
One year change: 2.14%

The number of transactions were down by twenty-six units, time on market was down by roughly a couple of weeks, inventory was down slightly, and days on market has dropped by eighteen days. However, the median price has dropped by $8,000 to $140,000, just outside the normal fluctuation of a few thousand dollars I would normally expect. The market really hasn't changed that much although the drop in price does have my attention.

Note to Ted Dearman over at the Clarion-Ledger: This is how you compare real estate sales. Earlier post

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This is the new uniform at Cups, especially on your last day.

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The Irby saga grew yet another set of pink ears and kept banging on the drum as William Bell filed a Motion to Withdraw as Counsel with the Mississippi Supreme Court on July 8. Can't scan it right now but I'll type out what it says:

"Comes now William C. Bell, attorney of record for Karen Irby in the above-styled case, and pursuant to Rule 1.16 of the Rules of Professional Conduct, moves the court to enter an order allowing William C. Bell to withdraw as the attorney for Karen Irby and in support of the motion would show to the court the following:
1. Professional considerations require termination of my representation of Karen Irby in the above-style case.
2. Karen Irby has discharged me as her attorney, and I am therefore not in a position to take any action in this case other than to withdraw.

Wherefore, premises considered, William C. Bell respectfully requests that the court enter an order allowing William C. Bell to withdraw as the attorney of record for Karen Irby in the above-styled case."

Earlier post

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Crime stats for Jackson, week ending July 4, 2010.

Major crimes overview for Jackson, week ending July 4, 2010.

City of Madison crime reports through July 7, 2010.

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Want to get more involved in elections, politics, or campaigns at the grassroots level? There are now a couple of online tools available. The Tea Party Patriots have produced an online training website for Tea Party members (small donation required) at this website. American Majority has some at their website as well. However, there is this really good tool I've been examining Procinct, a website designed for precinct-level activists. It even has an app for smartphones. An advertisement for Procinct states:

"-Manages all your precinct/district voter data securely online and shares it privately with your trusted volunteers
-Key: Unlike Voter Vault and PDI, PROCINCT allows you to save your notes and knowledge about each voter - from election to election.
-Compare Precinct Maps: PDI's Map vs. the PROCINCT map (if data available for your area)
-Compare Price: PDI - $1,500/month vs. PROCINCT - FREE
-Unlike Voter Vault or PDI, your party superiors cannot take PROCINCT away from you.
-Keeps work diaries of your volunteers' activities
-Helps manage voter email lists
-Online Call Center coming soon
-Includes PROCINCTmobile Call Center/Walk Center (Virtual Phone Bank) app for field use
-Delegation system helps you and your deputies assign tasks and follow-up on time
-Helps identify, track, and manage neighborhood volunteers who are not online
-Includes a pledge system that tracks and keeps donations on schedule with personalized pledge reminder (and thank you!) emails to you and the donor.
-Gives you a permanently hosted, customized donations page (works thru Paypal).
(not the county, state or national committee, your local sub-county committee)
-Keep notes on every voter you or your volunteers contact
-Suggests 'Best Practices' for precinct and campaign management
-Helps with GOTV on Election Day
-Helps you understand & deploy successful social networking
-If you are wanting to upload voter data for a new district, you will have the chance to do so on the first page after you join below. Scroll down to join.
-PROCINCT is free for all users (donations are welcome)"

These and similar programs boost my hypothesis that the traditional political parties and their leadership may find themselves less relevant in the future in terms of electing candidates. A few websites with good conservative (or liberal) writers can attract a heavy following, promote favored candidates, raise money for them online, quickly get their message out (important for primaries), draft volunteers nationwide for tasks such as manning phone banks, and perform other duties that used to be the exclusive domain of the Republican Party. This stuff is light-years ahead of anything the Mississippi Democratic or Republican parties make available on their websites. The Republican Gubernatorial Primary in South Carolina is an excellent example of this new reality.

Redstate and other conservative websites backed Nikki Haley. Through the use of "money bombs", they raised large amounts of money for her. Videos of her speeches were shown to millions of readers. Every time the Palmatto Sleaze Machine manufactured a new false accusation against her or would put on the white hoods, the websites would quicklyl return fire, negating any advantage given to her opponents. She became a national candidate of sorts while the others were relying on their good ole boy machine that just could not compete even in a state as closely-knit as South Carolina (There is a lesson there for Mississippi Republicans who think Haley will always be there to bail them out). My prediction is this trend will continue as activists continue to develop more ways to use the internet to their advantage.

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