Official defends Mississippi Capitol Police pursuits

By MICHAEL GOLDBERG
Associated Press/Report for America

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Mississippi’s top law enforcement official said officers of a special police unit in the capital city of Jackson will not change the way they pursue suspects. Department of Public Safety Commissioner Sean Tindell met with community members following a spate of recent shootings involving the Capitol Police. The unit patrols areas around state government buildings and other neighborhoods near downtown Jackson. A man was shot and killed in an encounter with the police Sunday night. Capitol Police officers have also been involved in two other nonfatal shootings since August. Tindell said there is a “criminal element” in Jackson “that is not used to being policed.”