City of Jackson Roadblocks Settlement
On October 6, 2022, the Mississippi Center for Justice (MCJ) and the MacArthur Justice Center at the University of Mississippi School of Law announced a settlement with the City of Jackson and Police Chief James E. Davis addressing the Jackson Police Department (JPD) roadblock policy known as “Ticket, Arrest, and Tow” or “TAT.” Jackson has agreed to overhaul its roadblock policies and submit to federal court enforcement of the settlement. Read the full settlement here.
The settlement results from a community-led class-action lawsuit, Rhoades v. City of Jackson, which was brought on behalf of five Mississippians who live or work in Jackson and regularly drive in majority Black and low-income neighborhoods where the plaintiffs said the roadblocks disproportionately occurred. The plaintiffs, in conjunction with the Mississippi Alliance for Public Safety (MAPS), raised concerns about Jackson’s TAT roadblocks and explained to lawyers how they were forced to endure repeated delays in disproportionately impacted neighborhoods as they attempted to get to work on time, pick up children from school, and make it to medical appointments.
The settlement requires a new Jackson Police Department (JPD) policy that prohibits the use of roadblocks for general crime control, requires roadblocks to be evenly distributed across Jackson, specifies the limited circumstances under which people may be arrested at a roadblock, and addresses practical issues such as the towing and retrieval of cars.
Selected Court Filings and Press Releases
Complaint (Feb. 23, 2022)
Feb. 24, 2022 Press Release
Settlement (Oct. 5, 2022)
Oct. 6, 2022 Press Release
Community Resources
Know Your Rights
The settlement requires JPD officers to provide any motorist being cited or arrested with a flyer that provides basic information about their rights. A PDF of the flyer is available here.
JPD Roadblock Summary Reports and Data
JPD is also required to collect and report data regarding its use of roadblocks. For each roadblock, a Summary Report must be created, which will include, among other things, the time, date, and location of the safety checkpoint, and the constitutionally permissible reason for the roadblock. The report will also include details for every vehicular search, issuance of a citation, and arrest made at the roadblock. JPD will be required to share these Summary Reports with the court and plaintiffs every three months, and they will be uploaded here.
JPD must aggregate certain data (date, location, supervisor, reason for checkpoint, number of citations/tickets, number of arrests, and number of searches) from each Summary Report into a single spreadsheet to be shared with the court and plaintiffs every three months. The data will also be uploaded here.
Mission of the Mississippi Center for Justice:
- Mississippi Center for Justice is a nonprofit, public interest law firm committed to advancing racial and economic justice. Supported and staffed by attorneys and other professionals, the Center develops and pursues strategies to combat discrimination and poverty statewide.
Mission of the Mississippi Alliance for Public Safety:
- Reclaim Public Safety from the racist, classist, violent, coercive institution of policing and create a true and effective public safety system.
Mission of the MacArthur Justice Center:
- Represent people abused by our oppressive criminal legal system and fight to vindicate their rights, hold people with power accountable and reshape the law going forward.