Latest news with #DeSotoCounty
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Severe weather rolls through Mid-South
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A severe thunderstorm is rolling through the Mid-South on Sunday evening, leading to a Tornado Warning and Severe Thunderstorm Warnings for several counties. A Tornado Warning was issued for DeSoto County, Mississippi, until 11 p.m. Sunday. Hernando, Mississippi, was directly in the path of the tornado-warned storm. Severe Thunderstorm Warnings were issued for several Tennessee and Mississippi counties, including Shelby, DeSoto, Tate, Panola, Lafayette, Marshall, Panola, and Tunica counties. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Daily Mail
15-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Fugitive child rape suspect filmed paying ultimate price after reaching for gun during traffic stop
A fugitive child sex offender was shot dead after opening fire on Florida deputies during a traffic stop, newly released body camera footage has revealed. Matthew Steven Rollie, 30, was wanted in Georgia for enticing a child for indecent purposes and for failing to register as a sex offender. A warrant was issued for his arrest on January 24 and a manhunt ensued in DeSoto County, north of Sarasota, where authorities believed Rollie was located, but the search was unsuccessful. The next day, DeSoto County sheriff's deputies conducted a traffic stop along State Road 72 after the driver failed to stop at a stop sign. Officers had also suspected that Rollie was a passenger in the vehicle. Body camera footage obtained by shows that Deputy Jose Trujillo was working to confirm Rollie's identity as Sgt. Niurvis Nunez approached the passenger side door. Trujillo asked the driver to exit the vehicle while Nunez was looking at the fugitive's drivers license. Rollie, as Nunez is reviewing the document, unbuckled his seat belt, reached for his gun and fire multiple shots, the video shows. Despite being struck twice, Trujillo returned fired. Footage captured by a camera inside the patrol car shows that after Rollie shot Trujillo, he turned the gun on Nunez. But the deputy opened fire multiple times and the suspect fell to the ground. Rollie was pronounced dead at the scene. In an update released Wednesday, DeSoto County Sheriff Jim Potter revealed the officers have been cleared of any wrongdoing. An investigation by the sheriff's office, state attorney's office and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement determined that both Trujillo and Nunez complied with agency policy and state statue. Trujillo was airlifted hospitalized after the January 25 shooting and, at one point, had been unable to walk. Potter said Trujillo is currently at home as he continues to recover from his injuries. Nunez has since returned to duty. 'I want to thank our brave deputies for their courage and their outstanding performance during this incident,' Potter added. 'I also want to reach out with a heartfelt thanks to our fire and EMS here in DeSoto County for their response and rendering of aid to our injured deputy.' He further thanked the community for their 'support of the law and order here in DeSoto County' and for the 'outpouring support that you've given to our two deputies who were involved in this incident'.
Associated Press
12-05-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
Federal court approves Mississippi legislative redistricting. Special elections will proceed
A panel of three federal judges has approved a revised legislative redistricting plan from the Mississippi Election Commission, which will allow special elections to move forward this year for 15 legislative seats. The court in April had ordered state officials to develop yet another legislative map to ensure Black voters in the DeSoto County area have a fair opportunity to elect candidates to the state Senate. The panel, comprised of U.S. District Judge Daniel Jordan, U.S. District Judge Sul Ozerden and U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Leslie Southwick, previously ruled that when lawmakers redrew their districts in 2022 to account for population shifts, they violated federal civil rights law because the maps diluted Black voting power. To remedy the violation, the court allowed the Legislature to propose a new House map redrawing House districts in the Chickasaw County area and a new Senate map redrawing districts in the DeSoto County and Hattiesburg areas. Earlier this year, during the 2025 session, the Legislature attempted to comply with the order and tweaked those districts. However, the plaintiffs still objected to parts of the Legislature's plan. The plaintiffs, the state chapter of the NAACP and Black voters from around the state, did not object to the Hattiesburg portion of the Senate plan. But they argued the Chickasaw County portion of the House plan and the DeSoto County portion of the Senate plan did not create a realistic opportunity for Black voters in those areas to elect their preferred candidates. The judges accepted the Chickasaw County redistricting portion. Still, they objected to the DeSoto County part because the Legislature's proposed DeSoto County solution 'yokes high-turnout white communities in the Hernando area of DeSoto County to several poorer, predominantly Black towns in the Mississippi Delta,' which would make it hard for Black voters to overcome white voting blocs. The panel, comprised of all George W. Bush-appointed judges, ordered state officials to, again, craft a new Senate map for the area in the suburbs of Memphis. The panel has held that none of the state's prior maps gave Black voters a realistic chance to elect candidates of their choice. The court in its latest ruling set deadlines and a schedule for special elections for Mississippi legislative seats impacted by the new maps. The deadline to publicize and share the maps with local election officials is May 12. Candidate qualification to run will run from June 2-9 and the slate of candidates will be submitted by June 13. Absentee voting for the Aug. 5 primaries will begin June 21. Absentee voting for general elections will begin Sept. 20 and general elections will be Nov. 4. ___ This story was originally published by Mississippi Today and distributed through a partnership with The Associated Press.
