2017 Legislative Session Opens Today
The 2017 legislative session has officially begun in Jackson with a number of topics important to the Coast on the agenda. News 25's Katarina Luketich joins us from the state capitol.
Possible Tornado Touchdown
A possible tornado moved through Mississippi Monday afternoon, damaging several buildings. You can see not much remains of these buildings near Mount Olive. A major highway through the town was temporarily shut down after some trees fell over, blocking the…
Storms Lift Church From Foundation
A church in Mississippi was lifted of its foundation by a powerful storm that moved across the state Monday afternoon. These pictures show the damage to Sweetwater United Methodist Church in Wesson. Emergency officials spent the afternoon checking on the…
2017 Legislature Session Preview
It’s back to the hustle and bustle in Jackson for state lawmakers with plenty of key issues on tap. News 25 sat down with a couple of Coast legislators before they head up to Jackson tomorrow to see what they’re…
Parents Arrested in Deadly Greenville House Fire
The parents of the children who were killed in the house fire in Greenville, Mississippi have been charged with their deaths. Today the father, 24-year-old Dewane Turner, turned himself into Greenville police. The mother, 33-year-old Jennifer York, was taken into…
Dept. Of Transportation Reaches Deal Alabama
U.S. Department of Transportation officials say they have reached an agreement with Alabama after determining that black residents were disproportionately hurt by the state's closure of rural driver's license offices. The state in 2015 shuttered 31 part-time offices. The closures…
Mississippi Budget
The budget transparency and simplification act was intended to streamline spending by wiping out the practice of some state government agencies paying others for expenses such as rent and technology services. It also was supposed to move all "Special Funds,"…
Possible Change for Charter School Funding in Mississippi
A legislative watchdog agency suggests Mississippi should change how it funds its charter school board. The Joint Committee on Performance Evaluation and Expenditure Review says lawmakers should consider funding the Charter School Authorizer Board through regular appropriations. The board is…
Lawmakers Vague on Tax Proposals
Mississippi lawmakers passed a substantial tax-cut package in 2016 with reductions phasing in over several years. Leaders are vague about whether they will propose other tax changes during the 2017 legislative session that begins January 3rd. An economist with the…
House Fire Kills Two Children in Greenville, MS
Fire officials say two children have died in a house fire in West Mississippi. Greenville Fire Department Chief Ruben Brown says the fire occurred shortly after midnight Wednesday. Children, ages one and three, died in the fire as four other…
Discussing the 2017 Legislative Session
Tonight in Ocean Springs, residents met with State Representative Hank Zuber to discuss issues of importance for the upcoming 2017 legislative session. News 25’s Hank Davis has more. The state of Mississippi’s 2017 legislative session is drawing near and State…
Governor Bryant Meets With Trump's Team
Governor Phil Bryant continues to meet with Donald Trump and members of his selected cabinet. This after the governor campaigned for Trump in a few states during the election. According to a post on Bryant's Facebook page, he met with…
"Merry Christmas" Bill Pre-Filed
A Mississippi lawmaker pre-files a "Merry Christmas" bill for the 2017 legislative session. Democratic representative "Tom Miles" made the announcement on Facebook saying Mississippians should not have to be afraid of celebrating the Christian holiday. If passed, the "Merry Christmas"…
Legislative Town Hall Meeting Tomorrow
The 2017 legislative session is just a week away with some big topics up for discussion and probably the most important to Coast residents is the allocation of BP oil spill settlement money. Lawmakers stress the importance of reaching out…
Christmas Eve Shooting in Pearl
Police in Pearl say a 22-year-old man fatally shot his girlfriend and wounded her father before killing himself on Christmas Eve. Reports say police received a call Saturday about a man with a gun at a Pearl home. Pearl police…
Fire Had No Political Motivation Greenville
The Mississippi fire marshal says investigators don't see politics as the motivation for the burning of an African church in Greenville. Yesterday, Andrew McClinton was arrested and charged with first degree arson of a place of worship. Today his bond…
Guilty Plea Withdrawal Rejected
A federal judge is rejecting an attempt by a former Mississippi lawmaker to withdraw his guilty plea in a prison contracting bribery case. U.S. District Judge Henry T. Wingate ruled Wednesday Cecil McCrory's request to undo his plea didn't meet…
Man Arrested for Burning Down Greenville Church
A man is now behind bars for burning down a Greenville church on November 1st. Greenville police arrested 45-year-old Andrew McClinton of Leland and charged him with one count of first degree arson of a place of worship. McClinton is…
Mississippi's Child Welfare System
Mississippi officials and child advocates have reached another set of agreements in continuing attempts to improve the performance of the state's child welfare system. The two agreements approved Monday by Senior U.S. District Judge Tom Lee are at least the…
Mississippi’s No Call Registry
Almost 100,000 Mississippians have signed up for the Mississippi No Call Registry for cell phones in just six months. The Mississippi Public Service Commission began registering cellphones back in July. The service is free and although they can't clock all…
Desegregation Plans for Cleveland School District
The U.S. Justice Department rejects the latest desegregation plan from the Cleveland School District. Federal officials saying they prefer the plan ordered by a judge back in May. U.S. District Judge Debra Brown ordered Cleveland to merge two middle schools…
The Electoral College Votes
The Electoral College will formalize Donald Trump's election as the 45th President of the United States. The 538 members meet today in all 50 states to cast their official votes 306 votes for Trump to Hillary Clinton's 232. Republican Donald…
Tornado Touchdown
Officials say two tornadoes touched down in Northern Mississippi. The national weather service confirms tornadoes touched in Holly Springs early Sunday and in Tate late Saturday night. The heavy storm caused significant tree damage and a was shed destroyed, but…
Church Fire in Northern Mississippi
A fire destroyed a church in northern Mississippi 10 days before Christmas. The fire was reported around 6 pm Thursday. The Barton United Methodist church building is now a total loss, but no one was inside and no one was…