Even with various legality concerns raised, the Jackson City Council voted to approve an ordinance that would require security personnel at businesses where three violent crimes have occurred within a period of 90 days.
As soon as the ordinance was brought up, City Attorney Drew Martin told the council he thought it was unenforceable and against state law. Other cities around the country have passed similar ordinances, but they haven’t withstood constitutional challenges, he said.
“I’ve advised the council on a couple of occasions now that while I think this is a well-intentioned ordinance, I do not believe that it is enforceable,” Martin said. “I don’t believe that the law would allow the city to require the businesses to hire security personnel.”
Ward 3 Councilman Kenneth Stokes, who first introduced the ordinance, wasn’t worried about the legal issues that might be associated. For Stokes, the ordinance is another tool for the city to decrease crime and increase public safety — a major priority for 2024 he shared with the Clarion Ledger in January.
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“If somebody wants to challenge it, this the United States of America, you can challenge any law you want,” he said. “If (the city’s) legal department feel they can’t defend it, then get outside counsel. But don’t tell these citizens ‘you got to keep dying in this city and ain’t nobody going to do nothing.'”
That being said, multiple legal questions were raised during the meeting, including: How does the city enforce the ordinance? What constitutes a “violent crime?” Can a city even require a business to hire security? Isn’t public safety the job of the police department? What happens to the business if it doesn’t hire security?
None of those questions were answered. Instead, a vote was called and the ordinance passed 5-1. Stokes, Ward 5 Councilman Vernon Hartley, Ward 1 Councilman Ashby Foote, Ward 2 Councilwoman Angelique Lee and Ward 6 Councilman Aaron Banks voted in favor. Ward 4 Councilman Brian Grizzell voted against. Ward 7 Councilwoman Virgi Lindsay abstained.
Additionally, before the vote, Stokes and Hartley were both tough on the city’s attorneys, questioning why they didn’t try to solve the legal questions before the meeting.
“Mr. Stokes is sitting on top of murders. I am sitting on top of murders,” Hartley said. “What I’m asking you is to think outside the box and don’t necessarily think lawyer, lawyer, lawyer this and that … I want you to take every comment that the council is making and see how we can make it work, If not, I’m along that same line, let’s just hire an outside firm that can do that.”
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Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba quickly came to the legal department’s defense.
“The City Attorney’s Office has just in recent weeks defended multiple, big litigation cases against the city and prevailed and they continue to do that,” Lumumba said. “I think you have a legal department, like all of our departments, that is overburdened, that has a number of things that they have to accomplish.”
“In no regard are they (the city attorney’s office) unwilling to do this,” he added. “I think it is public knowledge that you (Stokes) and I don’t always agree, right? I support the spirit of what you’re trying to accomplish. The question is how do we get to the destination.”
Lee, as well as Lindsay, also suggested waiting to vote on the ordinance to allow the legal department to have more time to review, but Stokes wasn’t having it. He wanted the ordinance adopted right then and there.
“As long as these people keep dying, I’m bringing legislation,” Stokes said.
Ordinances take effect 30 days after passage. With the ordinances’ legal concerns, city attorneys said they will ask the Jackson Police Department and the city’s Department of Planning and Development for suggestions, as well as see if adding amendments could help.
Stokes’ ordinance follows another that was recently passed — also with constitutionality concerns — requiring gas stations and convenience stores to connect their surveillance cameras to the Jackson Police Department’s Real Time Command Center, giving JPD live access to the store’s surveillance cameras.
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