MAYOR WON'T RESIGN

Charges 'Silly,' Political, Says Attorney

Jackson Mayor Frank Melton's attorney said the fiery, first-term mayor
would not resign and called three grand jury indictments handed down
Friday "silly" and "politically motivated."

Melton, 56, turned himself in to authorities at the Hinds County
Courthouse shortly past noon, after a specially convened grand jury
indicted him on five felony charges related to the Aug. 26 partial
destruction of a west Jackson duplex, along with three gun violations,
one of which is a felony. If found guilty, Melton faces up to 50 years
in prison. Marcus Wright, 30, and Michael Recio, 37, Jackson police
detectives and Melton's bodyguards, also were indicted on five felony
charges related to destruction of the duplex.

Melton attorney Dale Danks said the mayor will "vigorously fight" the
charges, suggesting that the speedy way the case went to the grand
jury amounted to a political attack by Hinds County District Attorney
Faye Peterson. "I personally find it very curious that with the high
crime rate Jackson has - and is experiencing - and with thousands of
felony cases pending in the Hinds County criminal justice system that
are unable to be processed, that, in this instance, the charges
against Mayor Melton were brought in a matter of days," he said. "The
mayor will not allow politically motivated indictments to prevent him
from carrying out his work as mayor on behalf of the citizens of Jackson."

Convening a grand jury in such a rapid fashion is unprecedented in
Hinds County. Sheriff Malcolm McMillin's investigators wrapped their
case on Thursday. When asked if she could recall the last time an
indictment was handled this way, Peterson quipped, "I'm not that old."
She also responded to Danks' remarks by saying she will ask a judge to
impose a gag order forbidding people associated with the case from
publicly discussing it to avoid tainting potential jurors.

"This office is not going in any way to try this in the media," she
said. "These are very serious charges that my office has had to
bring." Danks shrugged off the idea.

"I think the DA made some pretrial comments that were improper.

I also made some pretrial comments," he said. "That's customary until
a judge tells the lawyers to shut up."

The city was last rocked by scandal in the late 1990s when two council
members, Louis Armstrong and Robert Williams, were indicted on federal
charges. Melton was released on $50,000 bond and his bodyguards on
$25,000 bond each Friday. Under the conditions of Melton's bond, the
mayor no longer can carry firearms or use police equipment such as
JPD's Mobile Command Unit, which has become a symbol of his
high-profile crime sweeps.

In addition, Melton must remain in the country, abstain from illegal
drugs or alcohol, and cannot have minor children not related to him by
blood or marriage living in his home. The mayor has had a number of
minor boys living with him, but Danks said "at this time" no minors
are living in Melton's northeast Jackson home. Plus, Don Taylor,
executive director of the Department of Human Services, said his
agency cannot intervene unless Melton, law enforcement or the
judiciary ask. "There have been no allegations that these children
have been neglected or abused," Taylor said. "We're not enforcement
officers, and we're not in a position to enforce the conditions of the
bond."

The placement of children is a "judicial decision," Taylor said. The
most serious of the charges facing the mayor and his bodyguards
involve the damage of the duplex on Ridgeway Street in Virden Addition
last month. Neighbors allege Melton and unnamed minor boys in his
company used sledgehammers to break open the front of the home rented
by Evans Welch. While Danks referred to the house as a crack house,
Welch was arrested on several misdemeanor charges, none of which are
related to cocaine trafficking. He is out of jail and has a court date
next month. Melton and Wright are charged with burglary for allegedly
entering the house armed with deadly weapons with the intent to commit
a crime.

It is not clear whether Recio will be prosecuted for burglary.

Although the charge appears on his indictment, his name is missing
from the description of that charge. At a news conference Friday
afternoon, Peterson was asked about the discrepancy and responded that
Recio was charged with conspiracy to commit burglary. Danks said the
indictments "leave a lot to be desired from a legal
standpoint."

"It looks like the whole process was rushed so much that there were
mistakes," he said. "We will be attacking them, I'll tell you that."
Danks would not say what other mistakes he had found. All three also
are charged with felony malicious mischief, another count of
conspiracy, and directing a minor to commit a felony. According to the
indictment, the minor is 17-year-old Michael Taylor, a Jackson youth
who has been living with the mayor for several months and has been
seen riding with Melton in the Mobile Command Unit. Taylor was
arrested in June by the Hinds County Sheriff's Department for failure
to appear in court to face armed robbery charges.

In addition, Melton is charged with unlawfully carrying a gun onto the
campus of Mississippi College School of Law, a felony.

He also is charged with carrying a firearm inside St. Andrew's
Episcopal Church and to Jaycee city park, both misdemeanors. The gun
charges are the result of an investigation conducted by Attorney
General Jim Hood. Hood said Friday he would not rule out the
possibility that he may personally prosecute the case. He said he
hoped the trial could be held by Christmas. While Melton did not make
a public statement Friday, Danks admitted his client may have made
mistakes in his aggressive pursuit of the city's criminals. But the
charges being brought are not appropriate, he said. "This man's out
doing a job and may have made a mistake in doing it," he said. "But to
be faced with this type of activity and these type of indictments,
particularly in the speed and numbers in which it was done, is
ludicrous and questionable."

Hood said he hoped Melton would accept a plea agreement and step down
to save the city the turmoil of a trial.

He said he spoke to the mayor on Tuesday but would not elaborate.

"It's a sad day for the city of Jackson, (and) of course, for the
mayor as well," he said. "It's always unfortunate when we have to
prosecute one of our elected officials.

It's particularly bad in this instance for a city of this size to go
through this. Hopefully, we can quickly resolve this matter." Hood
would not discuss details of what kind of deal the mayor would be
offered, but he said it would include resigning from office.

If Melton chooses to face the charges in court and is convicted,
prison is guaranteed, he said. Burglary carries a mandatory three-year
sentence with a maximum sentence of 25 years.

In May, Hood's office investigated whether Melton was breaking the law
in conducting his police-style raids and crime sweeps.

At that time, Hood announced he could not find evidence of Melton
breaking the law, but in a detailed letter urged Melton to follow
state law, particularly in regard to where he could carry his weapons.

On Friday, Hood said he was not surprised Melton did not take the
advice. "We had hoped that we could get things slowed down and cooled
off a little bit, but it didn't surprise me that he was not able to
(change his behavior)," he said.

Evidence of Melton allegedly carrying his gun onto the law school
campus came toward the end of his initial investigation, Hood said.
Jim Rosenblatt, dean of the Mississippi College School of Law, said
Melton was on campus in February to speak to a student organization.
He would not identify the organization or the subject of the speech.
McMillin, who has been in office since the early 1990s, said he
believes this is the first time he has arrested an elected official as
sheriff. "Mayor Melton and I have known each other for over 20 years,"
he said. "We have had a working relationship and friendship that goes
back 20 years.

The law is not a respecter of persons.

The law applies to everybody and makes no exception to
person."

Charles Evers, a most recent vocal supporter of the mayor, also
criticized the indictment. Stopping short of calling them politically
motivated, Evers echoed Danks' characterization of the charges being
brought too hastily. "If the district attorney and the sheriff would
do all cases as fast as they did this one, we wouldn't have any
criminals in the streets," Evers said. He said he will continue to
support the mayor and is urging Jackson residents to give the mayor a
second chance.

"It was too hasty.

Treat him like everybody else," he said. "What did he steal? You can
get indicted for saying, 'Good morning.' "