Top 10 Coast news stories of 2019: Officer down, algae in the Sound and BP funds flow
The Coast closes the books on 2019 having experienced two tragedies — the violent death of a law enforcement officer and the drownings of three teenage friends in the Biloxi River.
Also in 2019, the Bonnet Carré Spillway opened for a record-setting 143 days, one of South Mississippi’s regional mental health centers faced financial collapse, and members of the military filed lawsuits over mold exposure in military housing run by a private company.
Hurricanes are rarely out of the Coast news, and 2019 was no exception. But this year it was about building back what a monster hurricane, Camille, destroyed 50 years ago: the connection between east and west Ship islands. Camille Cut is no more.
Here is a look at each of the Top 10 Coast news stories for 2019.
▪ Officer down: Biloxi police Officer Robert “Mack” McKeithen, 58, was standing in the parking lot of the Public Safety Center downtown when he was ambushed and shot five to six times. A 19-year-old suspect, Darian Tawan Atkinson, was identified entering the building before he came back out and McKeithen was shot. Atkinson faces trial on a capital murder charge, while two of his brothers and three others are charged as accessories after the fact.
▪ Gulfport teens drown: Best friends Javonte Johnson, Travis Roberson Jr. and Eric Smith Jr. went for an afternoon swim in the Biloxi River and lost their lives trying to save one another from drowning. The three attended church together each Sunday at the Salvation Army’s Kroc Center in Biloxi, where the congregation was heartbroken by the losses, as were residents of Pelican Landing, where the teens lived.
▪ Fisheries disaster declared: The Bonnet Carré Spillway opened twice in one year for a total of 143 days, a record for the flood-control spillway operated since the 1930s by the Army Corps of Engineers. As Mississippi River water poured into Lake Pontchartrain and the Mississippi Sound beyond, aquatic life suffered enough to warrant declaration of a national fisheries disaster. Coast and state leaders called for evaluation of the flood-control plans and said Mississippi should have a voice in spillway decisions.
▪ Regional mental health threatened: Gulf Coast Mental Health, the regional agency for Harrison, Hancock, Pearl River and Stone counties, announced July 16 that it would run out of funding and close its doors by Aug. 11. The state Department of Mental Health stepped in, as did counties, to provide funding so critical services for adults and children would continue. The center has since hired a new director and other personnel working to straighten out billing and improve finances.
▪ Officer involved shooting investigated: A grand jury cleared Moss Point police officer Lancen Shipman in the fatal shooting of Toussaint Diamon Sims, 27, but the family has notified the city that they intend to sue over the death. Sims was running from police, first in a car and then on foot. Police say Sims had a gun in his hand as he ran on foot, prompting Shipman to fire his weapon, hitting Sims several times.
▪ BP restoration continues: Funding continued to pour into the Coast from the 2010 BP oil catastrophe, with the Gulf Coast Restoration Advisory Board recently recommending that the Legislature in 2020 fund $85.5 million in proposed projects geared toward economic development.
▪ Lawmaker acquitted on domestic violence charge: State Rep. Doug McLeod of George County was charged with domestic violence after his wife suffered a bloody nose and face at their home, but she later testified that he had done nothing to intentionally harm her. McLeod was acquitted on the charge, but his fellow lawmakers indicated they still have questions about what happened.
▪ Ocean Springs couple dies in crash: A 46-year-old couple, Clark and Amelda Levi, died Oct. 10 when their Porsche Boxter left the road and hit a tree. Clark Levi was the owner of the iconic Lovelace Drugs on Washington Avenue downtown. Between them, the couple were the parents of eight children. The family has since decided to sell the drugstore.
▪ She won the Senate seat, briefly: Biloxi Councilwoman Dixie Newman bumped Scott Delano from his Senate seat with one vote in the Republican primary. But incumbent Delano challenged the results, leading to a special election that saw him take back the seat with a 202-vote edge.
▪ Military families fight mold: A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit filed over mold in Keesler housing built after Hurricane Katrina, saying the family who sued had failed to prove that toxic mold caused their illnesses, but the decision is being appealed. The lawsuit is one of 14 pending in Gulfport against housing owner Hunt Southern Group and its management company. Military families across the country have reported problems with privatized housing, including lead poisoning and slum-like conditions. The Senate Armed Services Committee has been investigating the issues.
This story was originally published December 29, 2019 at 5:00 AM.
