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swamp craze
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Winfield says he’ll ‘keep schedule’ despite lawsuit By Danny Barrett Jr. dbarrett@vicksburgpost.com Vicksburg Mayor Paul Winfield, accused in a lawsuit of sexual harassment of his former chief of staff, said this morning that he will continue with business as usual. “I am the mayor for the City of Vicksburg, and I intend to keep my schedule,” Winfield said from his cell phone, one day after canceling plans for a weekend trip to San Diego for an environmental issues conference. Winfield, 37, was named Wednesday in a federal lawsuit against the city filed by former chief of staff Kenya
Rising Hoops star VHS’ Erves leads Louisiana’s Xavier on the court
B1 WEATHER Tonight: cloudy, chance of rain and storms, lows near 60 Saturday: rain and storms, highs in the mid-70s 33.1 feet Rose: 0.5 foot Flood stage: 43 feet
By Holbrook Mohr The Associated Press
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DEATH • Francis Wall Cessna
TODAY IN HISTORY
1959: Rock ‘n’ roll stars J.P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson, Buddy Holly, and Ritchie Valens die in a small plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa. 1966: The Soviet probe Luna 9 becomes the first manmade object to make a soft landing on the moon. 1971: New York City police officer Frank Serpico, who had charged there was widespread corruption in the NYPD, is shot and seriously wounded during a drug bust in Brooklyn.
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www.vicksburgpost.com VOLUME 130 NUMBER 34 2 SECTIONS
See Winfield, Page A7.
Pardoned killer to fight his return to Mississippi
Mississippi River:
A7
Burks, who says she and the mayor had a consensual sexual relationship that she ended and he Mayor Paul attempted to Winfield continue. The mayor, on the day of the filing, denied the accusations, saying, “I did not have any sexual relations with Miss Burks.” Burks, who lists her address as Vicksburg in the court document and South-
Eli Baylis•The Vicksburg Post
Mississippi Department of Transportation Supervisors Melvin Taylor, left, and Lamar Davis close a flooded exit ramp on Pemberton Square Boulevard at U.S. 61 at about 9:30 this morning after a heavy rain began in the city overnight.
The National Weather Service forecast called for the precipitation to continue through Saturday with overnight temperatures around 65, a high Saturday of near 75 and total rainfall amounts of up to an inch and a half.
JACKSON — A convicted murderer who left Mississippi after being pardoned by former Gov. Haley Barbour seems poised to fight attempts to force him to return from Wyoming. Joseph Ozment’s attorney, Robert Moxley, told The Associated Press on Thursday that he will defend
Joseph Ozment
Ozment’s freedom if he decides to try to stay in Wyoming. The 40-yearold is not a fugitive and no warrant has been issued for his
arrest. However, a legal challenge See Pardon, Page A7.
Break-in, vandalism reported at home of beating victim By Pamela Hitchins phitchins@vicksburgpost.com The home of a Warren County man who remains unconscious in a Jackson hospital following an assault Sunday afternoon was reported burglarized Thursday, while a $13,500 reward has been raised for information leading to the arrest of his attackers. Fred Jackson, 62, 627 Wright Road, was breathing on his own and stable but still in serious condition at University Medical Center, said his daughter, Sheila Hedrick. Jackson was beaten and robbed Sunday while he was welding a gate at Tri-Miss Services, a recy-
cling yard at 416 Woodrow Wilson Drive in Jackson. Hedrick helped catalog damage to and items missing from Fred Jackson’s Jackson home as deputies investigated the breakin, which the family reported to authorities around 3:30 p.m. but said was discovered around 5:30 a.m. Hedrick said jewelry, small appliances, clothing and gifts were missing and other items were trashed. “A lot of sentimental things
Brenden Neville•The Vicksburg Post
See Jackson, Page A7.
Sheila Hedrick, daughter of the brutally assaulted Vicksburg resident Fred Jackson, stands outside her father’s home Thursday after reporting a break-in.
House jacks up sex abuse rules
Bryant aims to stretch Medicaid By Jeff Amy The Associated Press
By Emily Wagster Pettus The Associated Press JACKSON — Supporters say a bill that passed in the Mississippi House on Thursday is aimed at stopping sexual abuse of minors, including cases involving underage girls who are impregnated by men 20 or older. Critics say it would do little to change existing state laws that already require people who know about abuse alleSee Abuse, Page A7.
The associated press
Gov. Phil Bryant, center, talks with House Rules Committee Chairman Mark Formby, R-Picayune, right, and Rep. John L. Moore, R-Brandon, about the Child Protection Act bill.
JACKSON — Gov. Phil Bryant wants to perform a magic trick of sorts: reform Mississippi’s Medicaid program so that it doesn’t cost any more state money next year. Program officials were expecting costs to increase by 16 percent. The essence of making funds stretch is changing how the state pays hospitals to care for Medicaid patients. That group is mostly poor children, but includes some parents, disabled adults and senior citizens.
Medicaid will cost Mississippi $763 million this year. Bryant, in releasing his budget Tuesday, called it “the elephant in the phone booth.” Democratic lawmakers are questioning whether Bryant is just camouflaging cost cutting, which could mean less care for patients or less money for hospitals. “It’s smoke and mirrors for cuts,” said Rep. Steve Holland, D-Plantersville. “That’s all it is.” The hospitals say they want to see details. See Medicaid, Page A7.