ACLU of MS

Jackson Free Press

by Adam Lynch
Photo by Brian Johnson
June 7, 2006

Weeks ago, District Attorney Faye Peterson forwarded information to Attorney General Jim Hood’s office requesting that he investigate accusations of possible misdemeanors and felonies committee by Jackson Mayor Frank Melton, including numerous unconstitutional vehicle and home searches, carrying unlicensed guns and impersonating a police officer.

Melton exuded complete confidence in Hood’s conclusion before Hood even gave it, telling the press the investigation was “over” before Hood started examining Peterson’s concerns and weeks before Hood rendered a decision. On May 31, Hood announced to reporters that Peterson’s concerns against Melton were too difficult to bring before a jury, but that he had warned the mayor to be careful to follow state and federal law.

Melton immediately claimed victory, saying Hood had given him good “advice” in a meeting before the press conference. The daily media reported that Hood had found that Melton “broke no laws,” leaving the district attorney stunned that Hood had told the media something different from what he told her—which was that he was going to “warn” Melton, not simply give him “advice.”

Indeed, in a May 26 letter that the JFP got from the attorney general’s office Friday, Hood had warned Melton in no uncertain terms not to continue his questionable habits. “After reviewing allegations that your conduct in several particulars has exceeded lawful authority, our career prosecutors have identified several criminal statutes of which you need to be aware. Should sufficient, credible evidence arise in the future of any subsequent violation of the criminal statutes set forth herein, you will be prosecuted,” he wrote.

In the letter, Hood made it clear to Melton that the mayor’s statutory duty to enforce laws “does not convey authority upon a mayor to act as a law enforcement officer” without proper training and certification. The AG found that Melton has no such training, despite his frequent public claims otherwise.

Hood told Melton that stopping pedestrians and vehicles without probable cause does not violate a particular state law, but may violate federal criminal law. “Since you are not a law enforcement officer, you do not have qualified immunity and may have subjected yourself to both federal and state civil lawsuits by the person whose property was searched,” he wrote, adding: “Police work should be left to the men and women who are trained to do that work.”

In a May 20 letter to Peterson, Hood explained that charging Melton with criminal violations might not bring prosecutions—yet. “[T]he defenses available to the possible criminal charges and the uncertainties of some pertinent statutes would make it difficult to convict” the mayor for carrying unlicensed guns, parading around in police garb and stopping school buses. In 1999, Commissioner of Public Safety Jim Ingram wrote a letter for Melton saying his life had been threatened, and he just filed for a gun permit—long after declaring that he had one.

In a lengthy interview with the JFP on Friday (see page 14), Hood explained that he had been tougher in the letter than in the press conference because he believed he should “do unto others” by not eviscerating Melton in public. He also explained that state laws tie his hands a bit, containing gray areas that “you can drive a truck through,” thus making it difficult to convict Melton of the laws he may well have violated.

Still, Hood made it clear that the mayor has been going too far—and that if he continues on the same road, Hood’s warning letter would be “Exhibit A” in charges brought against him. That is, he had been warned.

Hood also gave Melton a list of 19 places where he is forbidden to carry guns—many of them places where Melton routinely carries weapons in shoulder and leg holsters. Hood added, “[Y]ou may not stop and/or board any school bus without the permission of state or local school officials. … If you have blue lights in your personal vehicle, then they should be removed.”

In the May 26 letter, Hood bolstered Peterson’s statements that Melton’s evidence-gathering techniques are inadequate and, in fact, can hurt prosecutions. He wrote to Melton: “You should also bear in mind that the job of a prosecutor is an uphill battle. Overcoming the presumption of innocence and proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt are rarely easy in the best of cases. You do no one any favors by handing issues to defense attorneys on a silver platter.”

The attorney general emphasized to Melton that Police Chief Shirlene Anderson has the sole authority to direct the operations of the police department. “While the Chief may certainly act on information or suggestions you offer, she is in charge—not you,” Hood wrote. At the end of the letter, he told the mayor that his presence during police operations had helped raise the profile of crime-fighting in Jackson, and he is free to be there with the chief’s permission; “however, it is ill advised for you to actively participate in the operations.”

Additional reporting by Donna Ladd. [Ed. Note: Read the attorney general’s letter to the mayor.]