EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS | The Greenwood Commonwealth

Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice Mike Randolph confers with his attorneys on May 10, 2023, in Hinds County Chancery Court in Jackson, Miss., where a judge heard arguments about a Mississippi law that would create a court system with judges who would be appointed rather than elected. The chancery judge removed Randolph as a defendant and dismissed the lawsuit. Randolph has recused himself from hearing an appeal on Thursday, July 6, 2023, as the plaintiffs ask the state Supreme Court to revive the case. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)

AP
registered content - login required to view
Click to register / login

Mississippi high court will hear case about appointing judges in majority-Black capital city
By EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS - Associated Press
Wed,07/05/23-12:34PM , 704 Reads
JACKSON, Miss.
READ MORE

A person previously convicted of a felony felon holds a sign about voter suppression during a Poor People's Campaign assembly in Jackson, Miss., on Monday, April 19, 2021. The demonstrator was among speakers who called for Mississippi to simplify the way it restores voting rights to people convicted of some felonies. On Friday, June 30, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court said it would not consider a case challenging Mississippi's practice of removing voting rights from people convicted of some crimes. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)

AP
premium content - for subscribers only
Click to subscribe

Supreme Court won't hear challenge to Mississippi's Jim Crow-era ban on voting after some felonies
By EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS - Associated Press
Fri,06/30/23-1:27PM , 340 Reads
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — The U.S.
READ MORE

Doug Evans

premium content - for subscribers only
Click to subscribe

Evans resigns after more than 30 years as DA
By EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS - Associated Press
Fri,06/30/23-2:00AM , 1329 Reads
JACKSON — A white Mississippi district attorney has resigned after more than 30 years on the job, during which he prosecuted a Black man six times in the shooting deaths of four people and excluded Black people from juries in a practice that led the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn the man’s conviction and death sentence.
READ MORE

Jackson residents and supporters hold signs as they march to the Governor's Mansion in Jackson, Miss., to protest the ongoing water issues, poverty and other social ills, in the city, Oct. 10, 2022. A federal judge on Thursday, June 29, 2023, temporarily blocked a new Mississippi law that requires people to get permission from state police before having protests or other gatherings near state government buildings in Jackson. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)

AP
premium content - for subscribers only
Click to subscribe

US judge temporarily blocks Mississippi law on state police permits for some protests
By EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS - Associated Press
Thu,06/29/23-5:55PM , 624 Reads
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A federal judge Thursday temporarily blocked a new Mississippi law that requires permission from state police for protests or other gatherings near state government buildings in the capital city of Jackson.
READ MORE

Subscribe to EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS

The E-Edition

Weekend, February 28-01, 2026

Join Those Who Support Local News

Local news matters to Greenwood. It keeps the people informed and connected. It asks the questions they want answered. It elevates what’s good, and it exposes what’s not.

To do that work well takes skilled reporters and editors, as many as a community can support through advertising, subscriptions and philanthropy.

The Greenwood Commonwealth expanded its newsroom in 2025 by adding Gerard Edic as a reporter covering public safety and other stories of interest to the community.

His position is partially funded by a two-year grant from Report for America, a national nonprofit. Generous supporters in the community donated the matching funds in the first year. We are now raising funds for Year 2.

Will you join this effort with a tax-deductible contribution?

Donate