Author: Associated Press

Protesters block zoo visitors from parking on lawn

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - Protesters blocked Memphis Zoo visitors from parking on a greensward near the park before reaching a compromise. The Commercial Appeal reports that police negotiated with protesters outside the zoo on Saturday to allow vehicles to park…

Wide geography for bipartisan ‘Campus Caucus’ legislators

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - At least 21 lawmakers have been camping on state-owned property at the Mississippi Fairgrounds. They call themselves the "Camper Caucus." According to members of the group and observations by The Clarion-Ledger the group includes: Rep. Chris…

Women arrested for taking down U.S. and TN Flag

CLEVELAND, Tenn. (AP) - A woman has been arrested after an off-duty deputy reported to Tennessee State Park Rangers he saw her take down the U.S. and Tennessee flags at Red Clay State Park, place them on the ground and…

Ocean Springs man pleads guilty in fraud scheme

GULFPORT, Miss. (AP) - An Ocean Springs man has admitted defrauding his investment clients out of more than $1 million. U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Davis, in a news release Friday, said 58-year-old Eduardo Guillermo Diaz pleaded guilty Tuesday before U.S.…

Gulfport unveils design of $65 million Mississippi Aquarium

GULFPORT, Miss. (AP) - Officials are unveiling the proposed design for the Mississippi Aquarium, expected to open in early 2019 near the Gulfport Harbor. The Sun Herald reports the $65 million aquarium will be spread through four buildings, with an…

Mississippi House proposes firing squad as execution method

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - The Mississippi House wants to allow the state prison system to execute prisoners using a firing squad if officials decide lethal injection is too expensive or unavailable. The House amended Senate Bill 2237 Friday before passing…

Obama declares post-flood disaster in 3 Mississippi counties

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - President Barack Obama has declared a disaster in three Mississippi counties following flooding this month. Residents in the Bolivar, Coahoma and Washington counties can apply for individual assistance, including grants for temporary housing and repairs worth…

School district mergers getting more legislative debate

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - Mississippi legislators are advancing bills that would consolidate some school districts. Two bills that passed the House on Friday are going back to the Senate for more work. The House voted 88-24 for Senate Bill 2495…

Dead farm animals wash ashore on Mississippi beach

BILOXI, Miss. (AP) - Dead farm animals are washing ashore on a Mississippi beach, and a local police chief says he's at a loss to explain why they're floating in from the Gulf of Mexico. Multiple local media outlets report…

Former personnel secretary accused of taking kickbacks

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) - A former Kentucky Personnel Cabinet secretary has been accused of taking more than $200,000 in kickbacks during his time in office. The U.S. attorney's office in Lexington said Friday that a criminal complaint unsealed in federal…

Judge’s former mistress is charged with prostitution

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - The mistress who supplied drugs to a Knoxville judge has been arrested on prostitution charges. Records from the Knox County Sheriff's Office show that Deena Castleman was arrested in a prostitution sting this week. The 38-year-old…

Chattanooga police, UTC officers to review sexual assaults

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) - The Chattanooga Police Department and officers from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga have agreed that both agencies will investigate sexual assault reports on campus. The Chattanooga Times Free-Press reports that the two agencies signed a…

Butler sheriff cleared of wrongdoing following work stoppage

MORGANTOWN, Ky. (AP) - The Butler County sheriff has been cleared of any criminal wrongdoing related to work stoppage in his office. The Daily News reports that Hardin County Attorney Jennifer Oldham said that Butler County Sheriff Scottie Ward did…

Mississippi unemployment rate falls from worst in nation

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - After posting the nation's worst jobless rate in January, Mississippi's unemployment rate declined in February, leaving the state tied for second worst. The jobless rate fell to 6.5 percent from 6.7 percent in January. That's also…

Jury indicts 2 men in shooting death of Clarksville toddler

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Two men have been indicted on charges in the killing of a 2-year-old boy and attempted killings of three other people. Media outlets report a Montgomery County grand jury indicted 24-year-old David Wi and 21-year-old Zackery…

Mississippi House passes ban on cellphone telemarketer calls

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - The Mississippi House has passed a bill that would protect residents from getting unwanted calls and text messages to their cellphones from telemarketers. Senate Bill 2366 would add cellphone numbers to a list that protects people…

Lawmakers complete work on bill to speed rape-kit tests

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - Kentucky lawmakers have completed work on a bill aimed at accelerating the testing of rape kits. The House passed the bill without debate Friday and sent it to Gov. Matt Bevin. A rape kit is a…

Kentucky House passes bill for 1 marriage license form

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - Kentucky's state House has passed a bill that would create one marriage license form for both gay and straight couples in an effort to defuse controversy over the licensing of gay marriages. The measure passed by…

2nd case of Zika virus found in Mississippi, after travel

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - A second case of Zika virus has been confirmed in Mississippi. The State Department of Health says Friday the case is in a Noxubee County resident who recently traveled to Haiti. The first, announced Thursday, is…

US official says 2 Americans perished in Brussels attacks

BRUSSELS (AP) - At least two American citizens have been confirmed killed in this week's attacks in Brussels, a U.S. official says, as Secretary of State John Kerry is visiting the city to express his condolences to the Belgian people.…

Cousins admit stealing alcohol from Keesler Air Force Base

GULFPORT, Miss. (AP) - A former employee at Keesler Air Force Base and his cousin have admitted stealing thousands of dollars in alcohol from retail stores on the military base. The Sun Herald reports Dameon Mack, who worked for the…

Port commission reaffirms contract despite bid protest

GULFPORT, Miss. (AP) - The state port's Board of Commissioners has reaffirmed its decision to award a $44 million construction contract to Necaise Bros. Construction Co., despite a protest filed by W.C. Fore, who was low bidder on the project.…

Woman sentenced to 7 years for apartment complex fire

BILOXI, Miss. (AP) - A 28-year-old woman has been sentenced to seven years in prison for setting fire to a 20 unit building at a D'Iberville apartment complex. Judge Chris Schmidt said Thursday he considered the severity of the crime…

Jury indicts 2 men in shooting death of Clarksville toddler

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Two men have been indicted on charges in the killing of a 2-year-old boy and attempted killings of three other people. Media outlets report a Montgomery County grand jury indicted 24-year-old David Wi and 21-year-old Zackery…

Prescribed burn to benefit Perryville Battlefield wildlife

PERRYVILLE, Ky. (AP) - A section of Perryville Battlefield State Historic Site will be closed for a prescribed burn meant to help develop the park's quail habitat. The Advocate-Messenger reports state wildlife officials will soon be burning invasive species of…

Jobless rates rise in 114 Kentucky counties

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - State officials say unemployment rates rose in 114 Kentucky counties between February 2015 and February 2016. The Kentucky Office of Employment and Training said Thursday that jobless rates fell in four counties during that period -…

Visitor centers at 3 TVA dams to open next month

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - The Tennessee Valley Authority says it will be opening visitor centers on the reservations of its tallest dam, its first dam, and its longest dam on April 2. The TVA said Thursday that the visitor center…

TBI investigating inmate death at Johnson County Jail

MOUNTAIN CITY, Tenn. (AP) - The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is looking into the death of an inmate in the Johnson County Jail. TBI spokeswoman Susan Niland tells the Johnson City Press the agency is investigating the death of 48-year-old…

Tree planting planned for former mine site in western Ky.

PARADISE, Ky. (AP) - Community groups and the Boy Scouts are conducting a tree planting on former mine lands in western Kentucky this weekend. The Department for Natural Resources' Division of Abandoned Mine Lands says about 1,100 trees will be…

Cochran, Wicker: $4.5M for Mississippi airport improvements

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - Mississippi's two U.S. senators say 19 airports in the state will benefit from more than $4.49 million in Federal Aviation Administration grants awarded by the U.S. Department of Transportation. U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran, in a news…

Lawsuit: 2 doctors operated pill mills, defrauded government

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - The United States government and the state of Tennessee have sued a Lenoir City chiropractor and a Manchester doctor, accusing them both of fraud and operating pill mills. Officials with the U.S. Attorney's office in Nashville…

Police: Inmate stabs girlfriend while out on 3-day pass

MAGEE, Miss. (AP) - Authorities say an inmate is accused of stabbing his girlfriend while he was out of jail on a weekend pass. Multiple media outlets report Magee Police Chief Randy Crawford says Carl Hoskins was serving a 15-year…

Suspect in custody after deadly Jackson gas station shooting

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - Authorities say a suspect has been arrested in connection with a deadly gas station shooting in Jackson. Multiple media outlets report the incident happened Thursday night. Jackson Police Department Commander Tyree Jones says the unidentified woman…

2 charged after possible human remains found near Cawood

CAWOOD, Ky. (AP) - Kentucky State Police have arrested a man in connection with possible human remains found in Harlan County. Police say in a news release that 27-year-old Michael Curtis was arrested Tuesday and charged with murder, tampering with…

Appointed superintendents bill going to Mississippi governor

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - A bill headed to the Mississippi governor would eliminate the election of school superintendents after the current term. The House passed Senate Bill 2438 with little debate Thursday night. The bill passed the Senate in February…

Mississippi reports first case of Zika virus

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - The first case of Zika virus has been reported in Mississippi. The Mississippi State Department of Health said Thursday the case was in a Madison County resident who recently traveled to Haiti. Zika is a mosquito-borne…

Grimes scheduled to speak at UK election law symposium

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes will deliver the keynote address during a symposium on election law at the University of Kentucky. The symposium is scheduled for Friday from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at the…

Judge to determine if woman gets conviction overturned

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - A judge in Tennessee will determine if a woman convicted of killing her husband should get a new trial because of the misdeeds of the judge who presided over her case. The Knoxville News Sentinel reports…

House passes Haslam’s shakeup of Tennessee college boards

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - The Tennessee House has approved Gov. Bill Haslam's proposal to give six public four-year universities their own boards. The chamber voted 71-19 on Thursday to pass the measure despite misgivings raised by several lawmakers about whether…

Tennessee man to plead guilty to Sandy Hook charity fraud

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - A Tennessee man has agreed to plead guilty to charges he stole money from the charity he created to benefit the people of Newtown, Connecticut, following the December 2012 massacre at the Sandy Hook Elementary School.…

‘Bogus Beggar’ pleads guilty to fraud charges

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (AP) - A Kentucky man who claims to have made as much as $100,000 annually by panhandling while pretending to be disabled has pleaded guilty to similar duping charges. Local news outlets report that 33-year-old Gary Hank…

Bill would computerize Medicaid records, audit recipients

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - A Mississippi Senate committee has passed a narrower version of a bill that would require an electronic records system for Medicaid and regular audit of Medicaid recipients. House Bill 1116 would contract an outside company to…

Police: Man with shotgun fatally shot by officer in Memphis

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - Police in Tennessee say a man with a mental condition who pointed a shotgun at a police officer has been fatally shot by the officer. Memphis Police Department spokesman Louis Brownlee said officers were called to…

Missing vases returned to Meridian cemetery

MERIDIAN, Miss. (AP) - Investigators with the Secretary of State's office and the Lauderdale County Sheriff's Department have located most of the flower vases that they say were stolen from a local cemetery. Lauderdale County Chief Deputy Ward Calhoun tells…

Amtrak on track to return to Gulf Coast

BILOXI, Miss. (AP) - Five weeks ago an Amtrak inspection train rolled across South Mississippi for the first time since Hurricane Katrina. On Wednesday, The Sun Herald reports officials met in Biloxi to move along the dream of restoring passenger…