A Mississippi judge has dismissed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of legislation supporters say was written to combat crime while opponents call the bill a racist power grab in the state capital.
On Monday, Hinds County Chancery Judge Dewayne Thomas ruled that the process by which judges would be appointed written in the legislation doesn’t violate the state Constitution.
On April 21, Gov. Tate Reeves signed House Bill 1020—set to become law on July 1—which increases funding and expands the jurisdiction for the Capitol Police, and sets up a municipal court to hear cases in the Capitol Complex Improvement District, the 17.5 square mile area surrounding the Capitol building in Jackson, Mississippi….