Mississippi discriminates against Black residents with appointed judges, Justice Department says
BY EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS
Published 6:03 PM EDT, July 12, 2023
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A new Mississippi law discriminates against residents of the majority-Black capital city of Jackson by requiring the appointment of some judges in a state where most judges are elected, the U.S. Justice Department said in court papers filed Wednesday.
The department is seeking to join a federal lawsuit the NAACP filed against the state shortly after Republican Gov. Tate Reeves signed the law in April.
Kristen Clarke, the department’s assistant attorney general for civil rights, said in a statement that Mississippi lawmakers created “a crude scheme that singles out and discriminates against Black residents” in Jackson and Hinds County, where the city is located. Clarke said the law creates a “two-tiered system of justice” with judges and prosecutors chosen by state officials.
“This thinly-veiled state takeover is intended to strip power, voice and resources away from Hinds County’s predominantly-Black electorate, singling out the majority-Black Hinds County for adverse treatment imposed on no other voters in the State of Mississippi,” Clarke said.
https://apnews.com/article/mississippi-appointed-judges-lawsuit-e9e4c709dca14d4b8e67a30f7e335c20
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