What kind of a backward town is that anyway?

Either McMillan had a death wish or he had balls of steel. Most people with that many strikes against them in Mississippi find a way to leave. Sticking your head up and neck out and running for mayor is a very dangerous thing to do if you're not a WASP.

RIP, friend. I hope they find out who did this to you. I want whoever it is off the street.

And, again, this doesn't seem to have had anything to do with politics, and his orientation wasn't an issue in the campaign. Clarksdale is a great town and I hate to see people who have never been there use this tragedy as a way to bash it without any evidence.

And Clarksdale is a wonderful town.

Law enforcement seems to disagree with you, saying it is "almost certain" politics were not a factor.

It could have been robbery or a carjacking, but the best guess is that it was a sexual encounter that turned into a murder.

The sheriff is black, the dead candidate is black, and the perp in custody (who crashed the victim's car and is still in the hospital, and told the police where to find the body), is black. The perp is 22.

I don't know why you would think this was political. It doesn't look like a hate crime.

As to the "backward" town - the murdered man was popular enough to run for mayor with everyone knowing he was gay, which suggests it wasn't much of a factor. He was an exceptional person, and because a person who had done so much doesn't deserve to have stereotypes as his tombstone, I'd like to post this link to his bio:
http://www.marcomcmillian.com/about.html

All I can say is that your town should be so backward as to have a person like this willing to run as ITS mayor.

spot on. Racism isn't the villain here. Yes, its still an enormous problem in Mississippi but it isn't even a minor factor in this particular case. Thanks for having the class to point that out and shame on the jackasses who take cheap shots that aren't deserved. God knows, this is a hellhole but it doesn't deserve to be shamed on those rare occasions when it is innocent.

Are we really surprise from a state that just ended slavery last week.

Do the newspapers in Miss say 1877 on them?

imo: still far too many hate crimes for a beautiful state.

Last edited Fri Mar 1, 2013, 02:23 AM - Edit history (1)

Maybe homophobia? Perhaps they were having a sexual relationship and the perp freaked out?

I have also read carjacking as a possible motive. The young suspect was found in the victim's crashed SUV and told authorities where the body was.

A lot of people have been getting excited about "Teabilly Joe Bob" being the murderer, but it doesn't appear to be the case this time.

You really shouldn't let movies inform you about a place you haven't been

I'd say the same thing if this happened anywhere else, because of what happened, not where it happened.

And which movie did I watch that informed me about Mississippi? Please, enlighten me.

Just to point it out..

The death of McMillian was not being investigated as a hate crime...

The death is not considered politically motivated...

In fact, we think he was actually bitten by a shark and attacked by killer bees.

The police think this was a "personal" murder, but with no access to any evidence you're sure they're wrong?

but that is the way to bet.

Police in the Deep South sometimes investigate the murder of gay blacks objectively, but I wouldn't wager any money on it.

Not sure why you think he'd not take the murder of a gay black man seriously.

How long have you spent in Mississippi? What do you actually know about it that wasn't filtered through media made by people who wouldn't ever set foot there?

that bit of evidence makes a difference. I withdraw my remark.

As to my qualification to judge police misconduct in the South, I have lived in NC and SC, and have first hand knowledge of pervasive police misconduct from personal experience.

In the future I will avoid snap judgements.

Thank you for pointing out my error. I *do* appreciate it.

I grew up in Mississippi and learned to play bass by going to blues festivals, including in Clarksdale, and I get all spiky when people make assumptions about us

is a Bull Connor wannabe. And apologize for impugning you indirectly.

respect for Marco-he had the guts to put himself out there honestly in Clarksdale Mississippi against Bill Luckett, (a white millionaire and Morgan Freeman's business partner) and Henry Espy (brother of Mike Espy, ex-SecAgric under Clinton). He faced outragous odds and still had the guts to run.

But his death had nothing to do with racism or police misconduct or the south or any of the other usual suspects. They have the bastard that murdered him and the story will come out and when it does-I'll be the first to point it out. ..It was a young man of his own race. The details aren't clear but the murderer apparently is. We'll learn the details in time. Until then, I'll reserve judgement.

Meanwhile, my heart is breaking for the family of this kid who had such a brilliant future. He looks like such a sweetheart of a guy.

Thank you for giving me the latest new.

I am falling into the same mental trap the police often do, drawing conclusions before all the evidence is in.

I am humbly chastened.

"Police have a person of interest in custody but are not releasing a name and have not filed charges, Rooker said."

Do they have a suspect or not?

I am a person, and I think I am very interesting, especially I don't play games with the damned language.

Not grousing at you, but "person of interest" is a BS phrase.

The police sometimes want to play their cards close to their vest.

because that is what they are really saying.

In England, they don't have suspects, just people "assisting the police with their inquiries".

There may be some internal policy about when to refer to people as one or the other, but if it ever was a way to not spook the "person of interest", I'd wager those days are over.

I never heard it used prior to 9/11, then it was in reference to the scientist (Hatfill?) who they were getting ready to blame the anthrax attacks on.

I think it came into use after the FBI was sued by Richard Jewel when they tried to pin the Olympic Park bombing on him. All they have done is use three words were one will suffice.

Man, 22, in custody following murder of Mississippi's first gay candidate for mayor whose body was found dumped on riverbank

• Lawrence Reed, 22, reportedly being held as 'person of interest' but has not been charged, sources said
  
  
• Political star Marco McMillian, 34, found dead on the Mississippi River levee around 9am on Tuesday
  
  
• A Democrat candidate vying to become mayor of Clarksdale would have been the first openly gay mayor in Mississippi
  
  
• Unnamed driver crashed McMillian's SUV on the highway at the time his body was discovered
  

By Katie Davies and Louise Boyle
PUBLISHED:23:27 EST, 27 February 2013| UPDATED: 14:24 EST, 28 February 2013

A man is in custody today after Mississippi's first openly gay mayoral candidate was found murdered and his body dumped alongside a river.

Lawrence Reed, 22, of Clarksdale is reportedly being held as a person of interest but has not been charged, sources said.

Rising political star Marco McMillian, 34, was found dead on the Mississippi River levee at around 9am on Tuesday. Reed was allegedly driving McMillian's SUV when it was involved in a head-on crash around that time.

The relationship between the two men is unclear. An autopsy report on McMillian's cause of death is expected later today.

More:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2285727/Mississippis-openly-gay-candidate-mayor-murdered-body-dumped-riverbank.html#ixzz2MEPv3Q2I

according to the LA Times: http://www.latimes.com/news/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-man-arrested-in-murder-of-gay-mayoral-candidate-in-mississippi-20130228,0,7289545.story

Was this a car-jacking? Was something else involved? (G-d, I hope not!) This is all so tragic.