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Tuesday, February 22, City of Hattiesburg Mayor Toby Barker nominated Forrest County Justice Court Judge Gay Polk Payton to become the City of Hattiesburg Municipal Court Judge Pro Tem to the Hattiesburg City Council. Current City of Hattiesburg Municipal Court Judge Wes Curry spoke on Judge Payton's behalf and said calling her a good colleague and "friend" over the last 7 years. The council approved Judge Payton to a 5-0 vote. Immediately after the council approved Judge Payton nomination, Hattiesburg Mayor immediately swore her into office in the council chambers. Her son held the Holy Bible as she was swore in. Judge Payton said it was an honor to work for the 3rd time for the City of Hattiesburg. She said she's excited to give back to her community. She received a standing ovation. Judge Payton will replace Judge Carol Jones-Russell who was elected as The County and Youth Court Judge, the first African American to be elected to a county wide position and the first woman elected to County and Youth Court Judge.

VICKSBURG, Miss. (AP) — A Mississippi city says it is temporarily suspending gas and water bills for federal workers affected by the government shutdown. The Vicksburg Post reports Alderman Alex Monsour said Monday that the area has many federal workers who are furloughed or working without pay. He says those workers can provide proof of their situation to the water and gas department and then pay their bills after the shutdown ends. Additionally, Mayor George Flaggs Jr. says the city has spent more than $27,000 to keep the Vicksburg National Military Park open as the shutdown stretches into its second month. The newspaper says keeping the park open costs about $2,000 per day. The Friends of the Vicksburg National Military Park and Campaign say it’s committing funds to help keep the park open. Information from: The Vicksburg Post, http://www.vicksburgpost.com #governmentshutdown

ELLISVILLE, Miss. (AP) — Bobby Shows, a former member of the Mississippi House of Representatives, has died. Funeral services were held Wednesday in his hometown of Ellisville. Shows was 80 when he died Sunday at his home, according to Ellisville Funeral Home. Shows was a cattle farmer and business owner. He served in the Mississippi House from 1992 to 2016 in a district inside Jones County. He was originally elected as a Democrat and became a Republican in 2010. As chairman of the County Affairs Committee, Shows was known as an advocate for rural residents.

The Black History Celebrations Executive Committee announced the long awaited famous Black History Parade is Saturday, February 16, 2019 . The 21st Annual Black History parade kicks off at 10:00am on James Street. The parade will start at Duncan Lake and travel down James Street to Friendship (Eastside) Park, 1009 Rebecca Ave . There are several activities to take place at Friendship Park after the parade including a 3 on 3 Basketball Tournament, Kickball games, horse shoes games, horse rides, and even a hint of a possible Battle of the Bands. There will also be plenty of food, music, and other activities to enjoy at the park. The event is free and open to the community. Tens of thousands of people are expected to overcrowd James Street to watch the long anticipated parade. This year's theme is 'One Community Standing Together.' The parade is said to feature every aspect of the community and culture, both past and present, from historical figures to organizations, businesses and churches. Receiving this year's prestigious Peggy Answorth Grand Marshal Award is Forrest County Youth and County Court Judge, the honorable Carol Jones-Russell , the first African American elected to a county wide position in Forrest County and the first woman elected as County and Youth Court Judge. The honoree, Carol Jones-Russell is the niece of the first African American elected in Forrest County, the honorable Deborah Gambrell, Chancellor of Chancery Court. The parade is free to participate in. To get in the parade, sign up by going to www.accelevents.com/events/parade2019. If you have any questions, email hattiesburgmg@gmail.com or call 601.861.8500.

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Nevada became the first state in the U.S. with an overall female majority in the Legislature on Tuesday when county officials in Las Vegas appointed two women to fill vacancies in the state Assembly. The appointments of Democrats Rochelle Thuy Nguyen and Beatrice “Bea” Angela Duran to two Las Vegas-area legislative seats give women 51 percent of the 63 seats in the Legislature. Women will hold nine of 21 seats in the state Senate, falling short of a majority in that chamber. But they will hold 23 of 42 seats in the Assembly, comprising 55 percent in that chamber and giving women enough numbers to make the two chambers an overall female majority. No state has previously had a female-majority or even a 50 percent-female Legislature, according to the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University, which tracks women’s political representation. Women picked up seats in the Nevada Assembly and Senate during the 2018 November election but fell short of an overall majority. Vacancies created by lawmakers who won election to other offices in November, along with one sitting female lawmaker then allowed women to gain additional seats. Before 2018, New Hampshire was the first state to have a female majority in any legislative chamber, when women held a majority in the New Hampshire state Senate in 2009 and 2010. With the 2018 election, women cracked the 50 percent threshold in the Nevada state Assembly and Colorado State House, but no overall majority was reached until the Nevada appointments. “It is unprecedented at this point to see a majority female legislature overall,” said Kelly Dittmar, an assistant professor of political science at Rutgers-Camden. With the two Nevada appointments, women will make up 28.6 percent of state legislators nationwide when new legislators are sworn into office in 2019, according to data from the Center for American Women and Politics. Women made up 24.3 percent of state legislators in the U.S. a decade ago, the center said. Studies of women who have served in Congress are probably comparable to female gains in state legislatures, she said, and the studies have found that “the more women you have in the body, the more that their perspectives and life experiences are integrated into policy debates and deliberations.” Dittmar said the milestone in Nevada could help change attitudes of what a state Legislature should like. “That might influence young people. It might influence other women to see that body as both friendlier to them as well as more responsive to their concerns,” she said. Nguyen, an attorney, and Duran, a grievance specialist with the state’s casino workers union, will hold their seats until the next general election in 2020. “It’s a great victory,” Duran told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. “Women are proving to have more knowledge and aren’t afraid to show that power that they have.” Duran has been a staff member since 1999 at the powerful Culinary Workers Union Local 226, a key political organization in the state. Nguyen, a criminal defense lawyer, said called the milestone “fantastic.” “When women do better, I think families are stronger,” Nguyen said. “It’s high time that they be at the table,” Speaker of the Assembly Jason Frierson told the AP. “This is a reflection of a trend of making sure that that voice is heard.” ___ This story has been updated to correct that women will hold 23 of 42 seats in the Assembly, giving them 55 percent in that chamber. They will hold 51 percent of seats in the Legislature overall.

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Mississippi’s capital city is receiving a $1 million federal grant to improve a bus line. The Federal Transit Administration announced grants Tuesday to several U.S. communities that are developing new mass transit systems, or expanding ones already in place. Jackson is receiving money to reshape development along a bus system running from the Fondren neighborhood through downtown and to Jackson State University.

VICKSBURG, Miss. (AP) — Several dogs in Vicksburg, Mississippi, are credited with finding a woman who had crashed into a ravine and been reported missing. The Vicksburg Post reported Monday that Blackie, Spottie and a third dog heard 76-year-old Corrine Palmer crying for help early Friday. Warren County sheriff’s office reports say Palmer didn’t attend an appointment that morning and was reported missing. She had failed to drive around a curve, and her car flipped into a 40-foot deep ravine. She was able to get out of the car, but couldn’t scale the sides of the ravine. Vicksburg Police Lt. Johnnie Edwards says he was searching for Palmer and noticed the dogs gathered at the ravine. He says went to see what was going on and found Palmer, who was treated for exposure. Story written by Vicksburg Post

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A Christmas tree in a Mississippi government building has been decorated to honor crime victims. Attorney General Jim Hood and Gov. Phil Bryant spoke to more than 100 people Tuesday at a tree-lighting ceremony in the Gartin building, near the state Capitol in Jackson. “My prayer is God will help heal you during this Christmas season and get you through it, and that you can help others in your family,” Hood said. Bryant recalled his aunt, Shirley Roberts, who was killed in 1981 while working in a convenience store. “It never seemed to really make any sense at all. Why her?” Bryant said. “We don’t understand exactly why evil at that level exists, but it does.” The tree holds more than 600 ornaments with photos of crime victims. Some of the people were shot to death. Others were killed in different ways. Lisa Donegan’s 21-year-old son, Tray Williams, was on his way home from work in July 2014 when he was killed by a hit-and-run driver in northern Mississippi’s Pontotoc County. Several ornaments on the tree are honoring Williams’ memory. “He loved to be the life of the party,” Donegan said of her son. She said the man eventually charged in her son’s death served three years in prison and is out. Donegan said she moved to Arlington, Texas, after her son died because she needed to leave the place that held painful memories. Her nearly 3-year-old granddaughter, Raylynn Ward, helped Hood push a button to turn on the Christmas tree lights. Raylynn — the daughter of Donegan’s daughter — never met her Uncle Tray but talks about him all the time, Donegan said. “She came along at a time to heal all of us,” Donegan said as Raylynn joyfully pointed at the Christmas tree. Story written by: Emily Wagster Pettus

BURNSVILLE, Miss. (AP) — A maker of steel and aluminum alloy ingredients is opening a plant in northeast Mississippi. Traxys Cometals Processing announced Thursday that it’s investing $10 million and will hire 25 workers. The plant will be completed this month at Yellow Creek Port on the Tennessee Tombigbee Waterway near Burnsville. Mississippi Development Authority spokeswoman Tammy Craft says Yellow Creek is borrowing state money for construction and will own the building. The state is giving $425,000 to help pay for equipment and $250,000 for road improvements. Tishomingo County is granting property tax abatements projected at nearly $2.3 million over 10 years. Craft says the jobs qualify for incentives rebating some worker income taxes to the company. That requires Luxembourg-based Traxys pay workers at least $35,380 annually. Traxys could get $350,000 over 10 years.

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A Mississippi police department says it has demoted a police officer who surrendered his retired police K-9 to an animal shelter. Jackson police Sgt. Roderick Holmes tells The Clarion Ledger that Officer Carl Ellis was believed to be caring for Ringo, but had actually surrendered him to a shelter. The department said Tuesday that Ellis was “reassigned to patrol duty” once the department learned of Ringo’s abandonment. Ringo had assisted the police department in finding drugs, search and rescue missions, and tracking. He retired in October along with a fellow police K-9 named Alpha. The department says police Chief James Davis now has implemented a policy requiring quarterly welfare checks for both active and retired police dogs. It says additional policy is being drafted about K-9 welfare requirements. Written by: Clarion Ledger

TUPELO, Miss. (AP) — A paralyzed teenager in Mississippi has been sentenced to five years in prison in the shooting death of another teen he described as his best friend. Keithan Griffin, 17, was sentenced Wednesday, a week after pleading guilty to culpable negligence manslaughter in the May 2017 death of Daiquarrias T. Pounds, the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal reported. Griffin was 16 when 19-year-old Pounds was killed. Griffin originally was charged with murder, but that charge was lowered as part of a plea agreement. Griffin was prosecuted as an adult. Prosecutors recommended a 10-year sentence, but Circuit Court Judge Paul Funderburk said he cut that in half because Pounds’ family still loves Griffin. Defense attorney Ed Blackmon said the shooting of Pounds was accidental and “grossly negligent” but said Griffin never intended to harm Pounds. Blackmon said the two teenagers were pretending to dodge bullets when a gun fired. Blackmon described Griffin and Pounds as best friends. He said the friendship grew stronger after Griffin was paralyzed in a December 2016 shooting at a local park. “They saw each other on a daily basis,” Blackmon said. ”(Pounds) helped him in and out of the wheelchair; in and out of the bed and helped him get dressed. The day of this incident, his best friend picked him (Griffin) up and carried him to the barber shop and back. “I can’t explain the mind of a 16-year-old. They were holding the gun pretending to dodge bullets when it went off. What he did was reckless. It has taken part of his life and he is willing to take responsibility.” After the shooting, Griffin remained on the scene, and witnesses described him as remorseful. “From all we know, this was an accident — an accident caused by your gross negligence,” Funderburk said. “I had great difficulty understanding in your condition, after you were shot and paralyzed, how you could possess or even want to possess a deadly weapon. “If you were as close to Mr. Pounds as I am led to believe, then you will suffer punishment in your own heart and mind for the rest of your life.” Griffin was silent for most of the sentencing hearing, quietly responding “Yes, sir” and “No, sir” when the judge asked direct questions. In a brief statement, he admitted responsibility for killing Pounds. “That was my best friend,” Griffin said. “He was like a brother to me. I never got close to anybody. Not close like me and him were." Written by: Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal

As Christmas in the Park is planning to help 100's of families next Thursday evening at Town Square Park, you can now add Chick-Fil-A among the several businesses who have stepped in to help the college student led project. Chick-Fil-A will host a classroom party for whatever classroom in the Pine Belt raises the most between Friday, December 14, 2018 through Tuesday, December 18, 2018. Students are simply asked to bring $1 to school. The winner will be announced on Wednesday Morning, December 19, 2018. According to Hattiesburg Management Group, who is helping coordinate the student led initiative, 100's of families have already registered to receive help. Tuesday, December 18 is the last day to apply online to receive help. Hattiesburg Management Group have coordinated several major projects and events such as the Hattiesburg Summer Job Fair hosted by Hattiesburg City Council members.  Several businesses in the Pine Belt have pitched in to help such as Raising Cane's who gave $1,000. Once fundraising is complete, college students from local colleges will come together to get shoes, clothes, and toys for helpless families in the Pine Belt.   Anyone can help by simply giving at least $1 via Cash App to: $HattiesburgChristmas or can visit online www.cash.me/$HattiesburgChristmas. If anyone needs assistance, they can apply online: www.accelevents.com/events/ChristmasinthePark2018 . If you have any  questions, you may email: ChristmasinthePark2018@yahoo.com or call 601.861.5800.