Latest Mississippi Headlines
All the headlines from our Mississippi Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Mississippi Counties Declared Disasters from River Flooding
Aug 12 2011 // Gov. Haley Barbour said several Mississippi counties that reported agricultural losses will be eligible for federal assistance in the aftermath of the Mississippi River flood. The U.S. Department of Agriculture reviewed...
Mississippi Lawsuit Claims ‘The Help’ Movie Used Real Person’s Identity
Aug 11 2011 // Lawyers for Kathryn Stockett want a judge in Mississippi to dismiss a lawsuit that accuses the author of “The Help” of basing a character on a real-life maid who works for Stockett’s brother. The...
New Fire Station Set to Improve Ratings in Miss.
Aug 8 2011 // Energy savings and an improved fire insurance rating are two of the likely benefits Starkville, Miss. officials are touting now that a new fire station has opened in the western part of the city. Officials told The...
Mississippi Supreme Court Asked to Settle Lawyer Fees Dispute
Aug 5 2011 // Republican state Auditor Stacy Pickering has asked the Mississippi Supreme Court to declare funds the attorney general collects from lawsuits to be public money and to require the money to all be turned over the...
Essentials: Read the Policy
Aug 1 2011 // The insurance agent told his client to “read the policy.” It was simple but important advice. More likely than not, the client did not heed the advice. When the insurance policy was received it was probably...
Mississippi Fire Departments Share $15M Insurance Tax Proceeds
Jul 28 2011 // Fire departments around Mississippi this week are receiving checks for their share of $15.3 million in state fire insurance rebate money. For example, the departments in Lee County are sharing $438,573. The money comes...
Slot Machine Gambler Sues Mississippi Casino for Arm Injury
Jul 27 2011 // A Tennessee man is suing a Mississippi casino because he claims the slot machine he was playing broke apart and injured his arm and back. Randy E. Perkins of Hickman County, Tenn., said he was injured at Tunica Roadhouse...
Mississippi Says It’s Owed Tobacco Settlement Money
Jul 25 2011 // A Jackson County judge is scheduled to hear a claim that R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. has underpaid the state of Mississippi at least $1 million in the tobacco settlement payments. Jackson County Chancery Judge Jaye Bradley...
More States Join Surplus Lines Tax Sharing Proposal
Jul 22 2011 // Four new members joined a surplus lines premium tax sharing agreement supported by state regulators this week, even while some predict confusion over a competing proposal may lead to the demise of any surplus lines...
Mississippi Judge Tosses Lawsuit Against Scruggs Book Authors
Jul 20 2011 // A Lafayette County, Mississippi circuit judge has dismissed a lawsuit against a former federal prosecutor and a political blogger over a book they co-wrote about the judicial corruption case involving former attorney...
Mississippi Woman’s Accident Expert Paid by Public Funds
Jul 19 2011 // A judge has set aside $2,000 in public money for a Jackson woman to hire an expert in her fight against a drunken driving charge. The Clarion-Ledger reported that 46-year-old Jeanette Sterling is charged with aggravated...
Mississippi Supreme Court Halts Asbestos Case Over Trial Judge
Jul 18 2011 // The Mississippi Supreme Court has halted all proceedings in an asbestos case until it determines whether the trial judge should have stepped down. The case resulted in a $322 million verdict. In an order signed Tuesday,...
Mississippi Sues BP Gulf Oil Claims Fund
Jul 13 2011 // Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood filed a lawsuit Tuesday to force Kenneth Feinberg, administrator of BP’s $20 billion fund for Gulf Coast oil spill compensation, to release documents it says it needs to ensure...
Home Schooling
Jul 4 2011 // Homeowners in states hit hard by this spring’s tornadoes have some of the highest average insurance premiums. Louisiana’s average annual premium is $1,155 and Mississippi’s is $980; in Alabama it’s...
Mississippi Rates Leveling Off
Jul 4 2011 // Mississippi Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney said property insurance rates in his state have leveled off for the time being. Chaney told a meeting of the Gulf Coast Business Club that more carriers have entered the...
Florida, Mississippi, Hawaii in Surplus Lines Pact
Jul 4 2011 // Florida, Mississippi and Hawaii have entered into an agreement that will allow them to keep millions of dollars in taxes on surplus lines insurance policies. The agreement was the result of federal legislation – the...
Insurers Cover Mississippi County for Misuse of Funds
Jul 1 2011 // A second bond company has reached a settlement in the state auditor’s investigation of former Alcorn County Supervisor Danny Crotts. RLI Insurance Co. has agreed to pay $31,809. The board of supervisors agreed to...
Mississippi High Court to Hear Appeal in Lawyer Fees Case
Jul 1 2011 // It’s round two for Republican state Auditor Stacy Pickering and Democratic Attorney General Jim Hood in a fight over the constitutionality of a law that allows Hood to hire private lawyers to represent Mississippi in...
Katrina Fund Helps Mississippi with Other Disaster Costs
Jun 28 2011 // Mississippi officials said the state budget is in good shape to survive this spring’s twin natural disasters of tornadoes and river flooding. The state still has tens of millions of dollars set aside from Hurricane...
Imprisoned Trial Attorney Scruggs Wants Corruption Conviction Tossed
Jun 27 2011 // Imprisoned former attorney Richard “Dickie” Scruggs asked a federal court last week to throw out his conviction in the judicial corruption case involving former Hinds County Circuit Judge Bobby...
