‘A tremendous loss.’ Slain Coast judge was devoted to church, mentoring and the Cowboys
The killing of Jackson County Justice Court Judge Sheila Osgood has left the Coast community in shock and mourning.
“This has taken us all by surprise,” the Rev. Larry G. Hawkins Sr., of Union Baptist Church in Pascagoula, said Thursday. “Often I tell my parishioners in situations like this that when we cannot trace God’s hands, we must trust his heart and believe that he knows what’s best for us.
“This is one of those untraceable moments … where we must let God show us his purpose even in this.”
Osgood, 65, died Wednesday at her home on Davis Street in Moss Point. She was the victim of a homicide, and her alleged killer was her son, Gregory Jackson Jr., 45, according to authorities.
Moss Point police officers shot and killed Jackson at the home after he repeatedly charged at officers with a large butcher knife, according to a release from Moss Point Police Chief Brandon Ashley.
After the shooting, police found Osgood dead inside her home.
The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office is heading up the homicide investigation. The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation is heading up an independent investigation into the fatal police shooting.
A fixture in Jackson County courts
Osgood served as deputy clerk in Jackson County Justice Court and Circuit Court for years before she ran for the District 2 judge’s seat vacated by the late retiring Judge Ennis Millender.
In November 2018, voters elected her to the judge’s seat.
In her campaign, Osgood boasted of her 30 years of experience in the legal profession as both a deputy clerk and as a longtime paralegal for friend, attorney and former Moss Point Municipal Judge Maxine Lawson Conway.
As judge, Osgood pledged to bring a combination of “courtroom experience, sound judgment and dedication to community service” and vowed to work everyday to “render impartial decision-making in the pursuit of justice.”
In he months preceding her death, Osgood spent time encouraging voters to get out and vote at the elections to make their voices heard.
“She was very involved in the community,” Hawkins said.
When Osgood wasn’t sitting on the bench, she devoted her time to worship, family and football.
A die-hard Cowboys fan
For over 25 years, Osgood was a devoted member of Union Baptist Church.
She sang in the choir, taught Sunday school classes, served as a prayer coordinator for weekly prayer meetings and mentored young ladies on decorum and the challenges they could face in life based on her own experiences.
“There wasn’t anything here at the church that Sheila wouldn’t do,” Hawkins said. “She was just a faithful church member who was very involved in our district on a local and state level.”
Osgood had a quick wit and often used humor to break the ice in a room, Hawkins said.
Like others in Jackson County, Hawkins is devastated by Osgood’s tragic end.
“I lost a good church member but also a good friend,” he said. “I will miss that infectious smile of hers and her willingness to get the job done.”
He’ll also miss the light-hearted wranglings the two had over their rival teams in the NFL.
Osgood was a die-hard Dallas Cowboys fan, and Hawkins is a big backer of the New Orleans Saints.
Osgood was such fan of the Cowboys that she even wore a team mask around town to protect herself and others from contracting the coronarvirus.
“The last time I saw her, we were taking about the Cowboys,” Hawkins said, adding that Osgood even jokingly remarked that she’d give up her Cowboys mask for one like he was wearing.
“She wasn’t going to give up that Cowboys mask,” he said.
NAACP leader in disbelief
Curley Clark, president of the Jackson County chapter of the NAACP, said he had been fielding calls Thursday from people who had heard the news about Osgood’s death.
“We are just shocked and in disbelief,” Clark said. “She was a self-made role model for young girls in the Black community. She was an example of someone who could turn their lives around with the help of a spiritual influence. It’s going to be a tremendous loss for Jackson County.”
In the months preceding her death, Osgood spent time encouraging voters to get out and vote at the elections to make their voice heard.
Others who knew Osgood, including fellow colleagues at Jackson County Justice Court, found themselves Thursday trying to let it sink in that Osgood was gone.
“She was a caring person and had a big heart for helping people,” Jackson County Justice Court administrator Lisa Fairley said. “She will be greatly missed.”
This story was originally published October 23, 2020 at 5:50 AM.
