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POLICING
Governor’s Policing Surge In Jackson May Not Prevent Violence, Address Causes
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August 4 - 31, 2021 • jfp.ms
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Causes of Crime in Jackson The mayor and many others, including crime-prevention experts, say problems, or “precursors,” that lead to crime must be addressed at a root level for real change to occur, rather than policing surges to react to problematic symptoms that result when deep causes are left unaddressed. A 2016 State of Mississippi-funded study of Jackson crime found that the top two precursors for adult crime were young people dropping out of school and being put into the criminal-justice system. Introducing young people into the system, or a police car, or rough treatment by police officers, can thus have the opposite effect of decreasing community safety. State Defender André De Gruy em-
phasizes that the State expanding its police force in the capital city is not enough to remedy Jackson’ crime. “We’ve got to do more than just simply put more police on the road,” De Gruy said in an interview. “The problem is much bigger than that.” Reeves’ solution invokes two recently passed laws—Senate Bill 2788 and House
“You have so many people buying guns,” she continued. “You have more hurt people who will hurt people. You have disinvestment that has been exacerbated. You have governments that aren’t funding parks, rec centers, summer jobs. You don’t have in-person religious services. You don’t have outreach workers on the streets or the STATE OF MISSISSIPPI
arts of Mississippi’s capital city are seeing a “saturation” of state police that Gov. Tate Reeves promises will counter a spike in crime and violence that has worsened since the pandemic began. The governor is bringing in the Mississippi Highway Patrol, Capitol Police and Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics officers to beef up patrols and drug enforcement inside the Capitol Complex Improvement District and along state highways, he said at a press briefing on July 15. The Mississippi Legislature voted in the spring to allow more state enforcement inside the Jackson district, with much of the discussion focused then on misdemeanor arrests. “To have a safe Jackson, we must have a safe downtown,” Reeves said. No Jackson elected or police officials were present because Reeves said he didn’t invite them. The strategy created a stir in this majority-Black city with heavy pockets of poverty, limited resources and a broken water-sewer system that the State of Mississippi has been slow to help to repair. Critics question whether punitive policing in the capital city will have a real effect on violence there. Much of Jackson’s violence is domestic between people who know each other, not random street crime. “In order to realize true impact, it is necessary to also stand up and bolster the social supports and community programs that lift up our communities by addressing issues of poverty, joblessness, mental health, gaps in education and opportunity, and more,” Jackson Mayor Chokwe Lumumba said of Reeves’ plan in a statement.
by Julian Mills
Gov. Tate Reeves announced what he called a “saturation” of state police into the capital city—from increased traffic stops to more undercover drug ops.
Bill 974. These bills, which went into effect July 1, have already resulted in increased traffic stops and police presence, Department of Public Safety Commissioner Sean Tindell said on July 15. “I can tell you that since these bills went into effect on July 1st, the Mississippi Highway Patrol has issued 87 traffic citations within the city of Jackson and over 14 DUI citations within the city of Jackson,” Tindell said. “So already there’s been an increase in the presence, and that presence will continue to grow with this saturation.” It was unclear how those low-level arrests would prevent the kinds of violence Jackson and other cities are experiencing during the ongoing pandemic, however. Criminal-justice experts say that COVID-19 creates a perfect storm of conditions for increased crime and violence. “When you look at the reasons that people generally offer for any major spike in violence, all of them come into play with COVID. You have a little bit of everything,” Caterina Roman, Ph.D., a professor of criminal justice at Temple University in Philadelphia, Pa., said in a July 6, 2021, interview with The Crime Report at John Jay College of Criminal Justice.
typical social services. And then you have compounded stress.” Roman calls for smart enforcement strategies that avoid “sending police out on calls that have nothing to do with violence” and warns that “[y]ou can reduce violence but harm people” in the process of responding to crime spikes. She doesn’t shy away from urging prevention solutions that have little to do with flashing blue lights. “Libraries, parks, rec centers, pools, free internet—those are all crime prevention activities and resources,” she told the New York Times last year. Massive Surge in Traffic Stops Mississippi is taking a more punitive approach, however, including a massive surge in traffic stops. In the 2021 session, Senate Bill 2788 removed regulations on the Mississippi Highway Patrol, which had prevented them from establishing stationary radar installations inside cities with populations over 15,000—essentially making it easier for them to patrol parts of Jackson. “It will be felt on the interstates,” Tindell said. “It will be felt within the city.” Another impetus for SB 2788 and the increased Highway Patrol presence is
incidents of drag racing in neighborhoods and along highways, which culminated in racers blockading Interstate 55 during the wee hours of New Year’s Day, which Reeves called “nefarious acts.” “In the event that an interstate is shut down, the Mississippi Highway Patrol has to be immediately contacted,” Reeves said. House Bill 974 transferred Capitol Police from the Department of Finance and Administration to the Department of Public Safety, while increasing their jurisdiction to include the greater Capitol Complex Improvement District, granting them overlapping power with JPD. “Within the Capitol Complex District, Capitol Police will be saturating its resources along the streets of the capitol district, ensuring that all available Capitol Police officers are mobilized in their vehicles, creating a greater visibility within the Capitol district,” Tindell said. “The Capitol District extends from Jackson State University, all the way to I-55, and up into the Fondren area or just past the University of Mississippi Medical Center.” From Drug Operations to ‘Bandos’ Commissioner Tindell also said the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics will increase secret drug-enforcement efforts in Jackson. “The Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics will be increasing its clandestine drug operations with its federal and state and local partners within the city of MOST VIRAL STORIES AT JFP.MS: 1. “Mississippi Teachers’ Union Sues Jackson Chapter President for Embezzlement” by Kayode Crown 2. “Second Inmate Found Hanging in Hinds County Jail” by Kayode Crown 3. “Delta Variant Now Dominant Strain In Mississippi, Focused in Hinds, Madison, Rankin” by Julian Mills 4. “Mississippi Teacher Pay Raise Finally Arrives After Long Delay” by Julian Mills 5. “Jefferson’s Grill: Barbecue Advice from an Old-School Pitmaster” by Nate Schumann
