Trouble seems to follow Justin Fowler and those around him. Rankin County Circuit Judge Dewey Arthur revoked his probation and sent him to prison for five years after his attorney, Judy Barnett, and her son after a police report alleged they smuggled contraband to him in the Rankin County jail.
Rankin County deputies arrested Fowler in October 2024 for threatening Rankin County Prosecutor Trey Spillman. The Rankin County grand jury indicted him in February 2025 for retaliation against a public servant. The indictment states:
on or about October 1, 2024, in the county aforesaid and within the jurisdiction of this Court, did willfully, unlawfully, feloniously, intentionally or knowingly threaten to harm County Prosecutor Trey Spillman by an unlawful act, to wit: Defendant sent threatening emails to Prosecutor Spillman in retaliation for actions taken lawfully by Prosecutor Spillman, a public servant acting within the scope of his duty with the Rankin County Justice Court...
Spillman prosecuted on two domestic violence cases prior to the arrest. Fowler sent threatening emails to the County Prosecutor. Fowler pleaded guilty in May 2025. Rankin County Circuit Judge Dewey Arthur sentenced Fowler to 10 years in prison but suspended 9 years and 358 days of the sentence and gave him credit for time served in jail. However, Fowler just could not stay out of trouble for even a year.
MDOC asked the Court to revoke Fowler's probation on May 7, 2026 after he tested positive for cocaine and marijuana. The Court revoked Fowler's probation for twenty days. However, the fun was just beginning.
Attorney Judy Barnett represented Fowler. The attorney and her son, Winston Sykes, visited Fowler in the room reserved for attorneys at the Rankin County Detention Center on May 20. Young Sykes just graduated from law school.
Rankin County deputies accused Barnett and Sykes of smuggling contraband to Fowler during the visit. MDOC's petition included a Rankin County Sheriff's Office police report that stated:
On or about May 20, 2026, I, Investigator Willard Holifield, met with Rankin County Jail.(RCJ) staff and administration concerning an attorney and guest meeting with Justin Fowler in the RCJ interview room. They then gave him a vape to use and other items under the table of the interview room. The other item that was give to him by the female visitor was placed in his mouth and in his sock. Fowler used the vape twice while in the room. The incident was captured on the RCJ camera. Fowler was given a urine screening, where he was positive on other substances that were not originally in his system at the time of his intake. The two visitors were identified at Mary Judith Barnett and Winston Sykes. This is an ongoing investigation.
Although deputies did not charge Barnett and her son, they charged Fowler with introducing contraband other than drugs into a correctional facility. Since Fowler was charged with a new felony, MDOC again asked the Court to revoke Fowler's probation.
Justice was swift indeed in Rankin County as Judge Arthur held the hearing a week later. No Hinds County timetables in this case.
Judge Arthur opened the hearing stating Barnett no longer represented Fowler due to a "conflict of interest" and appointed public defender Aafram Sellers to represent Fowler.
Rankin County Investigator William Holifield testified he watched a video of Fowler and his lawyer in the meeting room. Barnett looked around as if she were looking for cameras. The room has cameras but they are hidden although they do not record sound (to protect attorney-client privilege).
The detective said Barnett handed something to Fowler under the table while her son passed an "electrionic device (vape pen) under the table to Fowler as well. As he sat back down at the table, he placed one item he received from Barnett (allegedly) in his mouth while placing the other item she gave him in his sock. He returned the vape pen.
Fowler was observed in the booking area doing something to his sock. He later confessed he pushed the pill further down his sock. Sellers Fowler swallowed the pill when he feared discovery.
Hollifield twice interviewed Fowler. Fowler was very cooperative as he confessed to what took place in the meeting room. Fowler flunked a drug test, testing positive for Klonopin and marijuana. However, Fowler had already tested positive for marijuana when he was taken into custody earlier in the month.
Sellers tried to defend his client, arguing Barnett and her son, not Fowler, introduced the contraband into the detention center. Rankin County Assistant District Attorney Jacque Purnell pointed out it is also illegal for an inmate to possess contraband. She provided a copy of the video to Judge Arthur who in turn watched it on the bench.
Judge Arthur agreed with the prosecution, stating the defendant can be found guilty of possession even if he did not assist in "furnishing" the contraband. The Court found Fowler was guilty of possessing an unauthorized electronic device in a county jail. "It is apparent to the Court, Mr. Fowler, you knew you weren't supposed to do this," declared Judge Arthur.
The judge ruled it was more likely than not Fowler was guilty of possession but noted he cooperated "substantially." Judge Arthur made it clear what he thought about such crimes: "It's no secret you take drugs into the county jail, the sentence should be the maximum" as he revoked Fowler's probation and sent him to prison for five years.
Judge Arthur was not done. He ordered the court reporter to "prepare a transcript and send it to the Mississippi Bar. It is the Court's sincere hope law enforcement and the State will do the same."
"I'm going to be very frank, Mr. Fowler. Just because someone else does something jacked up, doesn't mean you get to do something jacked up," said the judge as he concluded the hearing.
Kingfish note: As stated earlier, Ms. Barnett and her son have not been charged with a crime. They have not presented their side of the story. It will be reported when they do.
52 comments:
Oh man how stupid can you be sending threatening Emails? Really dumbass? Would’ve men smarter to carve the threats into a gory roadkill animal skull and launch the carcass into their yard with a makeshift trebuchet!
That’s wtf I would do!
Fowler is a mouthpiece for the Footlocker Twins, Fred and Leon. He is also known to beat up on women and has been arrested for doing so. He's going to write a check his mouth can't cash one day.
How stupid is Judy Barnett? She is going to lose her law license and probably get jail time over this piece of $h!+ loser?
Judith Barnett is psycho.
Judith Barnett has gotten away with so much for so long that at this point she must believe she is invibcible.
No time for Billy Joe. We got biscuits to pass and acres to plow.
Can someone explain who Josh Fowler is and how this is news?
He's a nobody. Judy Barnett has one of the biggest egos (for no apparent reason) in the Mississippi Bar.
Seriously. I remember when she bragged about being the only attorney allowed to bring her cellphone into Singletary's courtroom. Ugh. She charges big money to do such shit work.
The news is Judy B — the granddaughter of former Gov Ross Barnett and she’s bulletproof or so she thinks.
DA Bubba has an election upcoming and getting Judy B would be a helluva trophy ;))
Roll with Ross-
DA Bubba has an election upcoming and getting Judy B would be a helluva trophy ;))
That’s not how it works in MS. Judy B’s connections and money are worth more in an election than the votes of the few dozen attorneys in the metro who dislike her and want to see her taken down simply because she beat them.
That’s why she keeps getting away with it.
Which attorneys don't hate her? She's awful.
I will be shocked if the Klonipin is not related to a Judy prescription.
Sounds like big fish in little ponds. MS is full of them.
Nepo baby lawyerette strikes again!! Stop the madness
Judy cost her son his law license. He’s not getting through character and fitness now.
He should hire Allen Smith and he will be fine.....iykyk
"Judy cost her son his law license. He’s not getting through character and fitness now."
Unless he managed to graduate from law school at 17, he's an adult and there's nothing thus far about Judy putting a gun to his head. Without more details, I'm not going to offer a firm opinion on whether he should or should not have a bar card. And at that age, a fuck-up like this isn't the last word on his future fitness. But if his defense(s) involve(s), "I didn't know it was wrong...," "Mama said...," or the biggie, "DO YOU KNOW WHO I AM?!," he probably should not get a license. As to Mama, there are more than enough details to say that if she doesn't get at least a suspension out of this, well, it is the MS Bar and Rankin County.
@12:32
just to confirm you dont mean P. Allen Smith, right?
The P is for Periwinkle
12:32: Dude, don't plug your own services in the comments. It's trashy.
I actually kind of feel for Fowler on this one (and only on this one). His attorney is supposed to represent his best interests, not help him get into even more trouble.
If it wasn't for bad luck that boy would have no luck at all.
Dude, you are stupid--sorry, no other way to put it. Allen Smith, atty at law has been discussed on this site for years. Hate to bother to spell it out in crayon for you, but that particular lawyer got in trouble for plagiarism in law school and still survived the character and fitness review (after a time out). I was suggesting he could represent Judith's young son. Dumbass.
3:31, So your original comment was a sarcastic reference, without providing any context, to an attorney that has nothing to do with this case, based on his own run-in with Character & Fitness many years ago.
I don't know how I could have possibly missed that inside joke., and assumed that the guy was plugging his own services. But thank you pointing it out, in the most dick-ish way possible.
Everyone is so brave when anonymous
That's just the beginning of the Allen Smith saga. More recently he was providing money to Ole Miss football recruits.
Especially young ins defense firm associates ;)
I have watched the video of the transaction 5 times. This account is inaccurate. Barnett hands something to the inmate under the table. Then the inmate does in ingest? Something and put something in his sock. Then the inmate gets up and has an additional exchange of items, can’t tell what, with her son. You could say, there were three exchanges. Because the son appears to get something from the inmate as well. And then the inmate sit back down. As does the son. Why is she NOT in trouble here too!?!?! She and the son brought something into the jail. She made the first move under the table.
I was fortunate to get to see the footage several times yesterday. And at this point, I imagine ever attorney that practices in Rankin has. But, the retelling above is jumbled and inaccurate. Barnett leads the exchange under the table. Then the inmate gets up and has two exchanges with the son. Meaning, the inmate appears to get something from the son and then gives the son something. The son immediately sits down and looks at something cradled in his left palm.
JUDY!! WHAT IN THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU!!
"JUDY!! WHAT IN THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU!! "
Rhetorically, she asked.
When this happened in Hinds two years ago, the attorney was arrested and his goofy mug shot was included in the JJ story. Rankin is lost.
This will all be swept under the rug just like everything else she’s done. She’s a slippery one. She knows who has skeletons in their closet and she knows where the bodies are buried.
Is the video available online somewhere? Pray tell where and how you are able to view it?
Are you stupid or just lazy?
or if you were a regular reader of this website, you would know who Smith is and gotten the joke.
"I was fortunate to get to see the footage several times yesterday. And at this point, I imagine ever attorney that practices in Rankin has."
Are you suggesting the local Bar casually passes around evidence in criminal cases, for their own amusement?
To me, that would be a shocking lack of professionalism. It wouldn't surprise me if the sheriff would do that, knowing what I now know about him. But I highly doubt "every attorney that practices in Rankin" would.
@10:25
Attorneys have their own private version of 4chan. I won’t say the name here. But we discuss all of our clients and their dirty secrets anonymously.
10:48: I don't believe you.
-25-year attorney
I could care less what you think, because I saw the video. And it was three local attorneys that I sat and watched it with. Only a matter of time, as usual, before it is published. Now, or later when it’s evidence. Get over yourself “25-year attorney” and others.
That alleged 4chan for attorneys to discuss their clients' private business among themselves must either be made-up or be used by younger (>40) lawyers and/or the large firms because no one I asked has ever heard of it nor has made use of this purported platform. But we aren't the young lawyers or the big firms-just average men and women trying to best serve our clients for the last 25+ years.
10:48 (and possibly 2:30) wrote:
"Attorneys have their own private version of 4chan. I won’t say the name here. But we discuss all of our clients and their dirty secrets anonymously."
I still don't believe you.
Jeffrey Knight got 3 bites at the Apple, why not Judy? She should qualify for pretrial intervention. Non-adjudicated probation? Non-adjudicated probation pursuant to Drug Court or private rehab?
As to the person claiming they viewed the video with 3 other lawyers…why are you telling us this? If you’re an attorney/LEO, state or defense, why are you talking about potential evidence on a public forum? What do you have to gain? What weight should we give your account of the video evidence?
"That alleged 4chan for attorneys to discuss their clients' private business among themselves must either be made-up or be used by younger (>40) lawyers and/or the large firms because no one I asked has ever heard of it nor has made use of this purported platform. But we aren't the young lawyers or the big firms-just average men and women trying to best serve our clients for the last 25+ years."
You are warm-ish. A lot of young attorneys are in various online listservs, private forums, even sub-Reddits. I'm older but reasonably tech-savvy, and from what I've seen, a lot of younger lawyers are making life-altering mistakes using tech the ways they are, and a lot of older lawyers are making damaging mistakes using it the (different) ways they (generally) are. As to the online discussions, the younger lawyers engaging in certain things don't realize the consequences of what they are doing. You just ain't that anon. People that can rock your world or that can just put some English on your life know more than you think. But they are having the same discussions they had 100-200-300+ years ago - IRL - about who lives and dies, who makes partner and who doesn't, who wins or loses. It's all fun and games until the wrong client, judge, or even opposing counsel gets pissed. Then, your young or young-ish ass will get schooled or kicked to the curb. And that is true whether you're a SP or working 2200+ to make it at a white-shoe. And if you are the latter, you ain't in the 'sip and you might want to ask around.
Social media has posted an arrest intake sheet for Judy with the sheriffs office
I know. I have it. Didn't post it for a reason. She was not arrested nor charged. Confirmed that with the Sheriff and his attorney. For some reason, they entered her name in that line when the police report was made. They didn't find out about the alleged smuggling until after the two left the jail.
Would not surprise me at all.
Wait a minute! Something sticks about this! I hate to break the news but, Rankin County has a sordid history of covering things up for "certain folk of influence!" This is gonna be interesting to see how this fizzes out, too!
The judge made it clear the he was referring the matter for disciplinary action, and strongly encouraged law enforcement and the prosecution to do the same.
I think the time for sweeping this under the rug has passed.
I wonder what happened since the judge wasn’t about the video he saw based on the video of the hearing of JF. She is slippery because there will be no charges. They gonna let her slip by again. Embarrassing.
If we don’t see or hear something about this being handled by legitimate law enforcement before the end of June, this is going to the FBI. I saw the video. Many of you have as well! Or, perhaps it’s time someone publishes it via all major outlets for the world to see. This was and remains a possibility. It got leaked for a reason! Enough is enough with certain counties as well as with certain attorneys. Do what’s RIGHT! I know you’re reading this blog. You have until the end of the month.
What exactly was leaked? The video has not been leaked. The reason we know about the police report is because it was filed by mdoc and its motion to revoke. In other words, it was in the public court file. By the way, the grand jury meets in July, just saying.
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