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Mississippi  is a beautiful state, no doubt.  It offers a slower-paced life, complete with everything others associate with southern living: sweet tea, too-hot summers and mosquitoes that you swear are on steroids.  Still, for so many who were born and raised in the Magnolia State, to even consider somewhere else home would feel like a betrayal.

Unless, of course, you’re one of the scandalous legal minds who are now calling a federal prison home.  In a post a year ago, Dickie Scruggs had just been sentenced to five years in federal prison for bribery and other crimes.  Today revealed yet another player in this convoluted scheme who’s anticipating a portion of his own life being spent behind bars.  Hinds County Circuit Judge Bobby DeLaughter pleaded guilty to a federal charge of obstruction of justice.  It all stems from former Pascagoula attorney Dickie Scruggs receiving an unfair advantage in a case that went before DeLaughter where millions of dollars were at stake.  Scruggs, along with Joey Langston, another Mississippi attorney, teamed up with a former Hinds County, MS district attorney who was also once DeLaughter’s boss.  Ed Peters agreed to approach DeLaughter on Scruggs’ behalf and promise him an appointment to the federal courts if he would rule in favor of Scruggs.  Former Senator Trent Lott (R-MS) is Scruggs’s brother-in-law and his name was used in the negotiations.  It should be noted Senator Lott played no role in this and was not aware of his name being used to further another’s career.  Lott recommended another candidate for that position.

The case before DeLaughter was between Scruggs and his former partner, William Roberts Wilson, Jr.  Wilson claimed Scruggs stole money the two earned in the multi-million dollar asbestos lawsuits.  He further accused Scruggs of using the stolen money to finance the historical tobacco lawsuits that resulted in new laws being written across the country.  Although Wilson had a solid case, it did no good and DeLaughter ruled in Scruggs’s behalf. 

He was charged last year and has been on administrative leave with pay, which is more than $104,000.00 per year.  That all changed this week and he’s now facing up to twenty years in prison.

If the name Bobby DeLaughter sounds familiar, it’s likely because he was the prosecutor who was responsible for ensuring Byron De La Beckwith was finally held responsible for the 1963 murder of NAACP field secretary Medgar Evers.  In the film “Ghosts of Mississippi”, Alec Baldwin portrayed him.

Governor Haley Barbour is now in the process of appointing another to serve out the remainder of DeLaughter’s term.

Alabama is having a PR nightmare, and in at least one of its cities, they’re unfolding simultaneously.  Last week, the leader of Decatur’s organized crime unit disappeared.  What appeared to be a struggle and with his family’s fears of a kidnapping, police scrambled in their attempts to find him and feared the worse along with his family.  It didn’t take long, however, before his problems surfaced that included marital difficulties, gambling debts and the pressures of a high-stress job.  This week, police found him in Las Vegas with stolen money recovered in several drug busts.  If that wasn’t bad enough, a volunteer with the police department found herself in the middle of it too.  She helped him stage the scene by scattering papers in his office and turning over furniture.  Police suspect the two are having an affair and she was preparing herself to meet him in Vegas.  The FBI is still trying to determine how much he stole before getting arrested this week.  His gambling debts are due to his travel across the Mississippi/Alabama state line and into the riverboat gambling city of Tunica. The twenty year police veteran now faces major jail time and is being held by U.S. Marshalls in Las Vegas with no bond. 

It gets worse with another police scandal, this time it involves a county official.  The sheriff of the county, Greg Bartlett, was arrested Wednesday for providing inadequate food for prisoners while pocketing the money he saved by providing substandard food.  The money involved?  Over $200,000 over the past three years.  Here’s the kicker: pocketing the surplus money not spent on inmate food isn’t illegal. There’s actually a law that allows sheriff’s to pocket leftover funds.  He was arrested for being in contempt of court for refusing to provide adequate meals, not for keeping the money.  According to the Associated Press, 55 counties in Alabama (there are a total of 67) provide $1.75 per meal, per prisoner a day.  Any monies left over, more specifically, more taxpayer monies, are fair game for these sheriffs.  Ten prisoners testified to the conditions and meals that included half an egg, a teaspoon of oatmeal and one piece of toast for breakfast.  One inmate said he’s lost thirty five pounds over the past few months. 

Sheriff Bartlett admitted to a $95,000 surplus last year, $62,000 in 2007 and $55,000 in 2006.  The federal judge has ordered him to remain in jail until he agrees to and submits improved menus.  Three nutritionists testified on behalf of the county and said the prisoners weren’t malnourished and that these complaints were common in jails across the country.  Still, there had to have been some evidence that convinced the judge to order the sheriff to jail. 

It’s becoming increasingly difficult for the citizens in Decatur to maintain their faith in law and order.  With the two top law enforcement agents in hot water, one who is an inmate himself and another who’s looking at major jail time, it’s going to be hard to differentiate between the law breakers and the law enforcers.

I received a call earlier today from a former co-worker who also happens to be one of my closest friends. We don’t see one another often anymore because of the physical distance between us. Today’s call was a little different than the others I’ve ever gotten. For the phone to ring before 7 p.m. and it be her number on the i.d. sends up red flags. After all, an employee of Howard Industries, Inc. located in Laurel, MS very rarely sees eight or even ten hour work days. Twelve hour days are generally the rule of thumb. I know this because I was one of those employees. Getting back to the phone call, I answer it expecting to hear one of two things: she’s either thrown a computer at someone or she’s getting married. Either announcement would’ve been exciting, but what I got instead had me thinking, “Yep…it was just a matter of time” followed by, “No way! You’re kidding, right? You quit your job and this is your way of softening the blow, right?”

Turns out Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers, a total of about 700 agents, have raided Howard Industries. As of 5 p.m. CT, HI has yet to release a statement, but insists one is forthcoming. That’s OK, though, because FOX News and CNN both have satellite trucks parked and are preparing live feeds. This raid is due to recent contract negotiations and a new contract that while passed, was done so reluctantly.

This morning, while folks were beginning their typical Mondays and heading off to work, they were met with roadblocks and agents, complete with rifles blocking the entrances into the transformer plant. The raid had begun prior to 8 a.m., which is the time office personnel typically report to work but after the plant personnel have started their workdays. A list was quickly provided to the agencies so that certain management personnel could enter the building to contact other employees, vendors and suppliers. The men and women were separated and more than a few immigrants were found hiding in the enormous power transformer shells in the plant. One ICE agent was overheard saying, “Here’s the smoking gun.” No areas were off-limits, including my friend’s office and my one-time office.Laurel, MS has a couple chicken processing plants that seem to have been stricken with a sudden, widespread sickness among their plant employees and as such, have allowed their employees to leave so that they may tend to their sore throats or upset stomachs….whatever the case may be. Interstate 59 is quite active, from what I’ve been told.

Meanwhile, back at HI, the parking lots still hold the employee vehicles pending searches. It’s not quite understood what they’re searching for at this point, since any illegal immigrants that would’ve found safety inside a vehicle has surely abandoned that idea with the 90 degree temperatures that are common in south MS this time of year. The conference rooms in the admin buildings were typically used as a common holding room for some employees, specifically the ones on the list provided earlier this morning.

A memorandum that is addressed to all HI employees reiterates the company policy of verifying all work statuses for each employee. Look as though the ball was dropped years ago and was never picked back up.

Looking into the crystal ball for an idea of what the immediate future holds, an announcement was made by the Howard family stating that all employees were to report for their scheduled shifts tomorrow. I’m assuming that includes only the employees who have verified work statuses.

For anyone who isn’t familiar with Howard Industries, this is a typical American success story. Billy Howard founded the company in the 1960s with startup funds from his closest friends, who happen to remain stockholders to this day. The Laurel plant builds power transformers and is the largest manufacturer in America. Its closest competitor is General Electric. HI manufactures transformers for such companies as Southern Cal Edison, Southern Company and most other MUNIs and EPAs in the U.S.

It should be noted that Howard Industries is the second largest employer in the state of MS, with Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding being the largest (see my post on Dickie Scruggs).

After successfully building the transformer division, the Howards’ then went on to build a ballast plant located just south of Jackson, MS. That was soon followed by Howard Trucking division, located about six miles from the transformer plant, in Ellisville, MS and most recently, in Sandersville, MS, the computer plant was erected and is becoming as successful as Mr. and Mrs. Howards’ other divisions. The Howards’ adult children have returned to the family business after earning their college degrees and each are respected in their divisions.

If there wasn’t a huge controversy brewing already on a national level regarding illegal immigrants earning their livings in America, this is sure to highlight it in such a way that no good can come.

For local coverage, visit the Hattiesburg American.

Former Olive Branch officers Adam McHann, Asst. Chief Gentry and Major Fulwood Source: WPTY

It’s often difficult to decipher the thin ribbon of truth when cases such as the subject of this post surfaces.
A lawsuit was filed in 2003 accusing two officers with the Olive Branch, MS Police Department of excessive force and deprivation of rights.
Adam McHann, a K-9 officer, is facing charges of commanding his partner, “Marko” to attack a 17 year old boy. By all accounts, the teenager didn’t actually resist arrest, he just abandoned the vehicle he was driving and tried to escape on foot, so I suppose it could be said that he was avoiding arrest. I know - it’s subjective.
During a council meeting earlier this week, it was decided that Officer McHann would be permitted to have his position reinstated, with pay, but would remain on administrative leave. He had already pleaded guilty and then chose to rescind his plea. This rescission has led to the probability of his reinstatement. Despite his original guilty plea, (read this for more information on his February guilty plea) he maintains his innocence. As if this weren’t enough, this is not the first time McHann has been suspended. He was arrested in May, 2007 on a domestic violence charge, but was reinstated after attending anger management classes.
Here are my questions: Was Marko on administrative leave? If he was, was he reinstated too? OK…I hear the collective sighs. Consider this, then: what has McHann’s employment status been since being charged? Was a replacement found to fill the vacancy he left when he was formally charged? With city and county budgets across the country already stretched, if he was replaced, does this mean an officer who’s not been charged with a crime lose out to one who has been charged? And just what has Officer McHann been doing the past several years to earn his living and support his family?
It should be noted that two other officers, Assistant Chief Gentry and Major Fulwood, have pled guilty to charges related to this case, including attempting to cover up the incident. If McHann’s credibility was not destroyed with his plea withdrawal , it now has about as much value as an empty ice tray during an August heat wave in the south. After all, these other two officers have admitted they helped cover up a crime that McHann says never

Marko the K-9 Officer Courtesy of commercialappeal.com

happened. I’m thinking there are two former police officers who are awaiting sentencing and being forced to sit back and realize that the one who commanded his K-9 to attack this kid is not only free at this point, but collecting a salary that he’s not even having to work for. Officer McHann’s trial is set for December 1st. In the meantime, if you see Marko, the K-9 member, let me know. I’d sure like to know if he’s on paid administrative leave too.