JACKSON — Mississippi House members argued angrily about the meaning of Christian compassion Tuesday as they considered a bill that would expand judges’ ability to wipe some felony convictions off people’s records.
House Judiciary A Committee Chairman Ed Blackmon, D-Canton, said that in the most famous trial in world history, a man was convicted and sentenced to death without being given a second chance.
“That man was Jesus Christ,” Blackmon said. “We are here today talking about whether or not we want to give people a second chance, and this man gave all of us a second chance.”
Blackmon said arguments some House members made against the bill go “against Jesus Christ” and the message of forgiveness.
Republican Rep. Greg Snowden of Meridian sprang up from his chair and yelled his objection.
“That’s an outrageous comment and slurs the people in this House,” Snowden said.
The bill passed the House 78-41 — but it was sent back to a committee for negotiators to make some changes sought by prosecutors. The latest version of the bill would allow district attorneys to keep nonpublic records of the cleared conviction. The records would be kept “for law enforcement purposes only,” according to the bill.
Both chambers must approve the new version of the bill before it could go to Gov. Haley Barbour.
Sen. Terry Brown, R-Columbus, said several business people have called the Capitol to object to making it easier for anyone to ask a judge to erase certain convictions.
“They’re worried that they could be hiring people who are embezzlers,” he said.
Brown said he’s willing to forgive some crimes committed when people are “young and stupid,” but not when they’re older.
Current state law already allows people to have their records cleared of convictions for certain crimes, such as shoplifting, that occur before they’re 26.
Under the bill that’s up for consideration, certain offenses, such as drunken driving, crimes against children or illegal drug distribution, could not be removed from someone’s record.
Public officials convicted of crimes related to their office also would not be eligible to erase the convictions.
House Corrections Committee Chairman Bennett Malone, D-Carthage, said some people have trouble finding steady jobs because of crimes they committed decades earlier.
“I get phone call after phone call after phone call from people that committed minor violations,” Malone said. “They go down and fill out a job application. When they check it yes, it automatically is not even looked at.”
Rep. Mark Formby, R-Picayune, said two years is not long enough for someone to wait before having a conviction cleared. Formby said his car has been broken into three times in the past four years in Jackson, and he’s still angry that people stole his belongings, including a class ring.
“I’d really rather they walked up and punched me in the face,” Formby said. “I’d get over that.”
The bill is House Bill 619.
State News
Miss. proposal would clear some felony convictions
- State News
-
- Miss. high court hears arguments over pardons Feuding attorneys asked the Mississippi Supreme Court on Thursday to determine the validity of pardons that Haley Barbour gave to convicted killers and other convicts during his final days as governor. Chief Justice Bill Waller Jr. said the court would not rule Thursday, but he didn’t say when a decision would come.
- Senate votes to merge 3 Sunflower school districts The Mississippi Senate passed a bill Wednesday that would merge Sunflower County’s three school districts into one, easing into the politically sensitive topic of consolidation by focusing on a single area in the impoverished Delta.
-
Kansas, Missouri fight to keep Marine data center
Kansas and Missouri officials are working together to fend off New Orleans’ effort to lure a Marine Corps data center and its 400 high-paying jobs away from Kansas City.
The congressional delegations and governors from both states have written to Marine Corps Commandant James F. Amos, arguing to keep the center where it is. -
Judge temporarily blocks Mississippi execution
A federal judge on Monday temporarily blocked the execution of a Mississippi inmate who killed two men during a robbery spree in 1995. The man’s attorneys asked for the order, not arguing guilt or innocence, but that corrections officials prevented Edwin Hart Turner from getting medical tests that could prove he is mentally ill.
-
New rules, tests proposed for public aid in Miss.
People who receive public assistance would be subject to random testing for drugs or nicotine and would have to perform community service under new requirements being considered by Mississippi lawmakers.
-
Home strengthening may lower insurance
Mississippi Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney said he is working with legislators on a bill that would require insurers to offer discounts to homeowners who have strengthened homes against wind damage.
State officials told the Sun Herald that they hope the reinforcement of roofing, doors, windows and other components also will qualify homeowners for insurance discounts, although there are no guarantees. -
Inmate asks courts to stop execution
Condemned inmate Edwin Hart Turner’s lawyer told a federal judge Friday that a corrections policy prevented Turner from getting tests that could prove he’s mentally ill and ineligible for execution.
-
Pardoned killer to fight return to Mississippi
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 Ozment’s freedom if he decides to try to stay in Wyoming.
-
Universities say financial aid fund running short
Recipients of state scholarships could see their aid packages trimmed unless the Mississippi Legislature puts more money into financial aid. That includes the more than 20,000 students who receive the Mississippi Tuition Assistance Grant.
-
Bad info infuriated kin of pardoned man’s victims
In another twist in the often confusing aftermath of pardons granted by former Gov. Haley Barbour on his way out of office, Mississippi corrections officials said Tuesday that victims’ relatives were given bad information by the state that fanned their outrage.
- More State News Headlines
Denver's Largest-Ever Drug Bust Nets Dozens
Marines: No Punishment for Nazi-like Flag
Vets Look to Translate Military Skills Into Jobs
Expert: Removing LA School's Staff 'Appropriate'
Raw Video: School Bus Burst Into Flames
LA School Reopens Amid Sex Abuse Scandal
$25B Settlement Reached Over Foreclosure Abuses
Pentagon: Allow Women Closer to Front Lines
Obama Gives Education Waivers to 10 States
Giffords Aide to Run for Her Seat
LA School in Sex Abuse Scandal Reopens
Winter Slamming North Asia, Parts of Europe
Syrian Forces Renew Bombardment of Homs
States, Banks Reach Foreclosure-abuse Settlement
Raw Video: Italy's Mount Etna Bursts Into Life
Greeks March; Angry Despite Debt Deal
Raw Video: U.S. Pullout Celebration
Raw Video: Annual Empire State Building Run-Up
Man Killed in Courthouse Shootout
Air Force Airlines: Leaders Get Polished Service
