Mississippi Mayor -- Man Of The People Or Elected Thug?

MayorBob.

Posted to Etcetera on Tue Sep 26, 2006 at 07:05:35 PM EST. RSS.

When you live in a city riddled with crime and swimming in drugs, you look to civic leadership for a way out.  So it goes for the citizens of Jackson, Mississippi.  They looked to their mayor for a way of waging war against the drug dealers and violence which accompanied them.  His honor, Frank Melton, answered the call with a no-nonsense, kick-ass sense of mission.  Going on drug raids, conducting roadblocks, donning police garb and packing a gun, he became the scourge of the Jackson drug underworld.  However, some claim their elected civic leader has become a vigilante.  At least that's what the Hind County prosecutor's office says when they produced multiple felony indictments against him which might result in him spending the next 50 years behind bars.  

The 57-year-old Melton succeeded Jackson's first black mayor last year.  Melton, a former television station executive for nearly 20 years, had served on several Mississippi state agencies, including a short and controversial stint with the Bureau of Narcotics.  Thus when Melton became mayor, it was just a matter of time before he found himself accused of using controversial means to fight crime and drugs.  So it was in April of this year when Melton stopped school buses so he could give the kids aboard "individual hugs" for being in school and not taking drugs.  According to Melton, he had the authority to "stop `em (school buses) anytime I want to stop `em."  According to a school district official, Melton lacked that authority and, in fact, state law prohibits individuals from "directly or indirectly" interfering with their operation without the okay of the school district.  Next up came his decision to impose a curfew on homeless persons in Jackson.  It was a decision which led a representative from the National Coalition for the Homeless to denounce Melton for trying to bring back "Jim Crow laws."  Considering Melton is black, that charge sounded a bit much, but things were about to heat up.

It was Melton's foray into urban renewal late last month which got him into his current difficulties, however.  The charges were that the mayor headed a flying squad of youths which partially demolished a private residence.  Melton says he was just patrolling the neighborhood, a haven for drug dealers, and that he took no part in the demolition.  He said the duplex was in disrepair, a claim the owner disputes.  The question was then put before the Hinds County grand jury which returned indictments against Melton and two police officers.  They were charged with "malicious mischief, house burglary, conspiracy and directing a minor to commit malicious mischief" for their part in the demolition job on the duplex.  The mayor was also charged with carrying a concealed weapon into a college, school, and church.  Melton has stated he will not step down as mayor.

Melton does have supporters in Jackson.  They showed up at his indictment to vocalize their support, just the way they did at a recent Jackson City Council meeting by chanting "fight, Frank, fight."  Yet many of his critics note that crime has increased by 16 percent since he took office.  According to Tricia Raymond, a Melton supporter, the reason the crime rate has gone up was that it was underreported during the previous administration: "I can't say there's been a positive long-term effect.  I do know that the community just feels energized simply because we have a mayor that's willing to address the problem."  However, for all this public support members of Jackson City Council sought to distance council from Melton, probably to limit damages which could be levied on the city.  The local bar association and the NAACP began calling for action against Melton before the indictments were handed down.  But, anyone believing recent events might take the wind out of Melton's sails is clearly going to be disappointed:

"I'm going through very tough times . . . but I've been through them before.  Will I continue to take down houses? Absolutely. I'm going to make sure they're legally taken down, but we're going to continue to aggressively take down the crack houses in Jackson, Mississippi."