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April 29, 2026
**Longtime Vicksburg Police officer Penny Jones was honored by the department and city officials upon her retirement yesterday. Jones served for over 26 years, including four as Vicksburg’s first female Chief of Police.
**The grand opening of Vicksburg’s Myrlie Evers Civil Rights Park, originally scheduled for today, has been postponed because of the weather. A new date hasn’t been set.
April 28, 2026
**Two Sharkey County Sheriff’s Deputies were injured when their patrol car wrecked during a pursuit. Their car was demolished. The condition of the deputies has not been released and neither have their names. The sheriff’s department has a suspect in custody but they haven’t released the suspect’s name yet.
**Keona Henry was sworn in as Vicksburg’s new Human Resources director yesterday. She now holds the titles of Human Resources Director, Associate City Attorney, and Assistant City Prosecutor.
**The Vicksburg Police Department will host a Recruitment Fair Thursday at 9:00 a.m. It’ll be held at the WIN Job Center, 1625 Monroe Street.
**Mississippi’s Auditor Shad White says two inmates and a relative on the outside committed unemployment fraud during the covid epidemic and have now been arrested.. The three were identified as Chadwick Stubbs, Blair Stubbs, and Shinka Stubbs. They’re accused of using the names of 13 other inmates to get unemployment money from the state. They face up to 45 years in prison if convicted.
April 27, 2026
**World-famous Associated Press photographer Jack Thornell, born and raised in Vicksburg, has died in a New Orleans hospital at the age of 86. In 1966, Jack Thornell took a Pulitzer Prize-winning picture of James Meredith shot down on a Mississippi highway with his attacker visible from the ditch. Jack Thornell was famous for his photos of the struggle for racial justice throughout the 1960s and beyond.
**Two people were killed when a pickup truck and SUV collided on Highway 18 in Raymond before dawn Friday. The SUV driver 51-year-old Ursula Hunley of Utica was pronounced dead at the scene and her twin sister. Amaris Hunley was seriously injured. The pickup driver, 29-year-old Jeremiah Howard died at a hospital.
**Four women have been arrested in Claiborne County after being involved in a fight on Tillman Road that went viral, revealing their identity to the sheriff’s department. Arrested were 37-year-old Cassandra McCalpin, 18-year-old Ti’Caryunia McCalpin, 27-year-old Shanutavia Mac and 33-year-old Ericka Brown. Bail for each suspect was set at $500.
April 24, 2026
**For the 4 th year in a row, Vicksburg’s only locally-owned stations V105.5, FM 107 and Newstalk 1490 covered the NFL Draft live, this time from Pittsburgh. We’re the only Mississippi radio stations to have been selected by the NFL to do in-person coverage of the NFL’s biggest event since the Super Bowl. This live coverage is the brainchild of Mandy Harris. A rabid sports fan, knowledgeable analyst and well-known Mississippi sports photographer, Mandy wanted to cover the draft four years ago. She was told the NFL wouldn’t be likely to accept a small town station for such a big event, but she said “Hold my beer” and before we knew it, we were Mississippi’s only station at the draft. Mandy is assisted this year by Marty May and David Wilson in her coverage of the first round that started last night. Mandy’s trips to the draft are made possible by: Huntington National Bank, Patriot Motorsports, Rey Azteca Mexican Restaurant, Delta Outfitters Farm and Garden, Details By Daffron, Cannon Toyota, Cannon Honda, Wells and LaHatte, and Waterview Casino.
April 22, 2026
**A man with a criminal history in 11 states stole a pickup truck on Lee Street in Vicksburg yesterday. 45-year-old John William Gray was spotted soon afterward by Vicksburg police and led them on a wild chase in and around the city. The chase ended at the Big Black Bridge where Gray drove off Highway 27 and into the woods where the truck got stuck. From there Gray fled on foot. He made it almost to Canada Cross Road in Hinds County where he was caught by deputies from Warren and Hinds Counties. Gray will face a variety of charges including auto theft, felony eluding, and theft of a firearm.
**Four people got shot in Jefferson County Saturday and nobody called the cops. The victims were all taken to hospitals outside of Jefferson County, three to Franklin County and one to Natchez. Adams County deputies figured out where the shooting happened and notified Jefferson County authorities. Two of the victims, a father and son, were critically wounded and can’t talk to authorities. The shootings apparently happened at a Jefferson County fight which may explain why the victims were sent to out-of-county hospitals and nobody notified authorities.
**Magee police saw a young girl with a backpack walking along Highway 49 yesterday and after some questioning discovered she was a 14-year-old runaway from Quitman, Texas, on her way to Florida to meet someone she met on the internet. She had stolen a diesel truck and broke down in Magee after filling it up with gasoline instead of diesel.
April 20, 2026
**A head-on collision in a curve in the 1300 block of China Grove yesterday resulted in five people being injured, two of them seriously. Warren County firefighters had to cut two people out of the sedan that collided with a service truck. Two other people in the car were reportedly hospitalized; the truck driver received minor injuries.
**In December 2024, in full view of video cameras in the Fastbreak Gas Station in Vicksburg, 21-year-old Rashad Williams walked in and shot a man 12 times. The victim survived. Rashad Williams was arrested, got out on bail and was subsequently charged with felony domestic violence. Williams pled guilty to attempted murder and on Friday Judge James Chaney sentenced him to 40 years, with 18 years to serve.
**The national average for a gallon of regular gasoline is $4.048 cents. Mississippi is one of the least expensive states for fuel currently averaging $3.705 per gallon. Some high volume stations here in Vicksburg still have regular at slightly less than $3.00 per gallon.
April 16, 2026
April 15, 2026
**14-year-old Destiney O’Neal is being held in the Warren County jail without bail in connection with the shooting of her 8-year-old sister. The 8-year-old is hospitalized in Jackson recovering from a gunshot wound in the back. Destiney, who was arrested shortly after the shooting on Abraham Drive Monday, will be tried as an adult for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
**Four people have been arrested for the mass shooting in Belzoni late Saturday night that left one person dead and four injured. The fatality was identified as 20-year-old Makayla Adams, a student at Delta State University. Identities of those arrested have not been released.
**Two Vicksburg teenagers are behind bars in Claiborne County charged with a drive-by shooting that happened on Monday night. 19-year-old Javeion Perkins and 18-year-old Arkeem Banks were arrested by Claiborne County deputies shortly after the shooting and are now being held on $50,000 bond each. There were no injuries in the shooting.
April 14, 2026
**A 14-year-old girl allegedly shot an 8-year-old girl on Abraham Drive yesterday after school. The 14-year-old was arrested by the Warren County Sheriff’s Department for Aggravated Assault With A Deadly Weapon. In accordance with state law, she was charged as an adult. The 8-year-old is being treated at UMMC.
**The Board of Mayor and Aldermen have voted to hire Consulting Plus to audit city finances from now through October 10th. Mayor Thompson said the internal audit is needed to make sure things are getting done in accordance with state law. He said the independent auditor will assess every department and make sure the city is in compliance. He said he expects them to make some recommendations to the board. The mayor said, “I think this brings accountability to our managing the finances of the city.” Mayor Thompson said the auditors will answer only to the Board, not to any department head.
April 12, 2026
**Amazon Web Services Vice President of Economic Development Roger Wehner says Amazon has been considering Vicksburg-Warren County for a data center location for 6 yearsSpeaking at Friday’s chamber luncheon in Vicksburg, Wehner said Non-Disclosure Agreements had to be signed by local officials for the project to proceed. He called it a defense against speculators. The Amazon Web Services data center will be located on 61 South near Cain’s Bridge Road. Wehner addressed concerns of local citizens about Amazon’s water usage to cool their equipment. He said, “If you look at (Vicksburg’s) committed capacity of water and then you take the excess capacity, this will account for point five percent (of the excess.)”
April 10, 2026
**Amazon Web Services has announced two more data center investments in Central Mississippi—an $11 billion expansion of their existing data center in Madison County and a new billion dollar center in Clinton. That increases Amazon’s data center investments in the state to $25 billion. ($3 billion of that is earmarked for Warren County.) Mississippi is attracting these investments by providing Amazon a 10-year, 100% corporate income tax exemption and potential sales/use tax exemptions for up to 30 years, plus substantial infrastructure upgrades and other incentives. Amazon has recently pulled or suspended data center projects in Virginia, Minnesota, and Arizona, largely due to local opposition and environmental concerns, and delayed projects in Indiana and Missouri. Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves says, “This is Mississippi’s time.”
**Vicksburg police say the shooting on Athens Street Wednesday night was part of an ongoing feud between two individuals. The person shot was last reported in stable condition. No arrest has been reported. So far, the names are being withheld.
**A Certified Nursing Assistant at a local nursing home has been convicted of misdemeanor elder abuse. Jessica Massey was sentenced to the maximum 364 days in jail and $1,000 fine for tying a patient to the bed with bedsheets. She worked at The Bluffs at the time of the crime.
April 9, 2026
**Gunshots were fired within the city limits of Vicksburg last night. Witnesses in and around the 100 block of Athens Street reported hearing approximately 12 shots shortly before 8 p.m. One person was injured and taken to the hospital by private vehicle.
**Citizens concerned about the environmental impact of the $3 billion Amazon Data Center coming to Warren County were given the opportunity to ask questions at this week’s Board of Supervisors meeting. Each board member confirmed that they had not signed a non-disclosure agreement regarding the project, and citizens were referred to various agencies better equipped to address their inquiries. This group of questioners will host the public at a question-and-answer event on Saturday, April 25, at the Warren County-Vicksburg Public Library.
**The game “Assassin” is played by teenagers in Vicksburg-Warren County and across the nation using airsoft or water guns and pretending to ambush and assassinate unsuspecting people, including adults. This activity can be dangerously misinterpreted, leading to tragic incidents—one student in Florida was shot and paralyzed, another in Texas was killed recently. With over 58% of Mississippi adults and an unknown number of juveniles in possession of guns, officials, including Warren County Sheriff Martin Pace, have warned against the risks of playing Assassin.
**Dr. Dan Edney announced yesterday that he is happy serving as State Health Officer in Mississippi if he doesn’t get appointed Director of the Centers for Disease Control. Dr. Edney, who practiced medicine in Vicksburg for 30 years, is reportedly one of three finalists for the role. If selected, he would work under Health and Human Services Director Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is highly critical of America’s vaccine policy. Dr. Edney strongly supports evidence-based vaccinations. The White House has delayed naming a permanent nominee for reasons they haven’t explained.
April 8, 2026
**The Board of Mayor and Aldermen has approved 4 speed humps after receiving the required petitions from the neighborhoods involved. These will be installed on National Street, Chambers Street, First Avenue and Meadowvale Drive. If cars are going too fast on your street you can get information on having a speed hump installed by contacting the city clerk’s office.
**Six local women involved in a street fight on Grange Hall Road that was captured on video and shared on social media have each been sentenced by Judge Angela Carpenter to 120 days in jail, with 30 days suspended. Police Chief Larry Burns said his department is going to take a look at other social media videos of local fights in order to arrest the people involved and send the message that such activity won’t be tolerated in Vicksburg.
**The Vicksburg-Warren School District Campus Police recently conducted an active shooter response training session. Led by Campus Police Chief LaToria Kerr, the event included participation from multiple agencies to enhance emergency preparedness. This type of training is essential in today’s environment. Over the past ten years, Mississippi has experienced 36 school shootings, and according to the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, gunfire remains the leading cause of death among children in Mississippi.
**Vicksburg Police arrested two people on drug chargers at the Studio 6 motel last week. 49-year-old Larry Parson was charged with possession of cocaine, possession of methamphetamine and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. 40-year-old Latoya Williams was arrested on charges of possession of cocaine and possession of methamphetamine.
April 7, 2026
**In the legislative session just ended, the Mississippi House passed a $5,000 teacher pay raise. The Senate passed a $6,000 teacher pay raise spread out over three years. Because the measures differed, they had to reconsider and find a number they could agree on. Usually, they split the difference but the end-result this time was just a one-time $2,000 teacher pay raise. So Mississippi teachers will apparently remain the lowest-paid in the nation.
**Entergy Mississippi plans to build an Advanced Power Station in Vicksburg. Such power stations give off an enormous amount of wastewater and plans are to discharge that wastewater into the Vicksburg sewer system. They’ve got to have state approval for that so they’ve applied for a wastewater pre-treatment permit. Vicksburg residents can submit comments on this application to https://www.mdeq.ms.gov/
The comment period ends April 30.
April 6, 2026
**The Board of Mayor and Aldermen approved Police Chief Larry Burns’ request for 10 license plate readers to track down vehicles in the city. Chief Burns said he’ll be back with suggestions for additional technology to make Vicksburg a safe city, including devices for gunshot detection and facial recognition. Chief Burns said the city of Greenville reduced their crime-rate 60% with the use of these modern systems and he wants to do the same in Vicksburg.
**Republicans in the Mississippi legislature cut nearly $50 million from the Department of Human Services budget. That means, among other things, that thousands of families that have been getting child-care vouchers won’t be getting them after July first. They also cut $9 million from early childhood education.
April 2, 2026
**A two-vehicle collision on Fisher Ferry Road yesterday resulted in the death of 65-year-old Loretta Williams-Brown of Vicksburg. A person from the other vehicle was hospitalized.
**Governor Tate Reeves has signed into law the Mississippi SHIELD Act. Under this new law local voting officials will have to conduct an annual audit of voter rolls to ensure American citizens are the only ones voting. If they flag an American citizen, that citizen will have to prove they are a citizen through certain documentation. For example, if they flag a woman and her married name is different from her birth name, she’ll have to present an official birth certificate and an official marriage license to match up with her drivers license and then they’ll match her address, not through the post office but through a nationwide credit company and only then will she be eligible to vote. Some 647 thousand female voters in Mississippi have a married name. Governor Reeves said this should not be controversial. It’s just “to keep the Democrats from outsourcing the management of our country to those who shouldn’t be here.”
April 1, 2026
**On Clay Street near I-20 yesterday, a Vicksburg police officer spotted a suspect in the February 11th Demby Drive murder. The suspect sped West on the Interstate at speeds of over 140 miles-per-hour, with Vicksburg police and Warren County deputies in pursuit, later joined by the Mississippi Highway Patrol, the Louisiana State Patrol, and the Madison Parish Sheriff’s Department. The murder suspect parked the car near the levee in Delta and fled on foot along with two other occupants of the car. The murder suspect’s father convinced him to surrender to Sheriff Martin Pace who escorted him to Madison Parish authorities. The other two occupants of the car were found about an hour later and booked on a variety of charges after officers found a gun, drugs and cash in the car. Two additional suspects in the February 11th murder, have been in custody for several weeks.
**The Warren County Sheriff’s Department arrested 21-year-old Payton Jones after reports of shots fired on Boy Scout Road Monday. Jones is the alleged owner of guns found in the investigation, including a handgun with an illegal Glock switch that made it fully automatic and a high-powered rifle with an automatic switch. He was already out on bail for similar charges so now he’s being held without bail.
