Jackson mayor says police pursuits from surrounding cities ‘do not make us safer’
Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba extended his condolences to the USPS employee's family
By Kara Peters
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JACKSON, Mississippi (WAPT) — Jackson leaders were quick to respond after a Pearl police chase ended with the death of a U.S. Postal Service worker.
The mail carrier died Thursday of head injuries after his USPS truck was struck by a vehicle that was being chased by Pearl police officers. The name of the postal worker has not been released, but USPS officials said he had delivered mail since 2015.
Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba extended his condolences to the USPS employee’s family, friends and co-workers.
“According to a media release from the city of Pearl, the pursuit began after the suspect failed to pull over for a traffic stop,” Lumumba said in a statement. “I want to reiterate that police pursuits that enter our city from multiple jurisdictions do not make us safer. There are often tragic outcomes like this one for minor traffic stops, and we have experienced it before. What often isn’t considered is the effect these pursuits have on innocent bystanders, and it is something we believe needs to be changed.”
The mayor went on to say the city is not “anti-pursuit,” but is against police pursuits for minor violations that he said can end with tragic consequences.
“With the advent of new technology, such as a growing camera surveillance network and tag readers, we can apprehend suspects without endangering the public,” Lumumba said. “If our effort is public safety, it has to be public safety in every regard. We renew our request to the state Legislature to restrict the offenses for which multi-jurisdictional pursuits can occur in the City of Jackson.”
Ward 3 City Councilman Kenneth Stokes has been a longtime critic of police pursuits into Jackson. Stokes called a news conference Thursday, shortly after the incident was reported.
“I’m asking for the president of the council to schedule a meeting with the surrounding cities and towns to see if we can get a win-win to stop the chasing in Jackson. It’s important, if we have lost a government employee, that we do everything we can to stop this,” Stokes said.
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