Scotus Won’t Hear Rap Case
The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to reinstate a $15 million lawsuit filed by the organizers of a planned 2000 concert featuring
The lawsuit was filed in 2001 against sheriffs departments in the Jackson, Miss., area for allegedly staging unfair roadblocks and searches that led to charges and convictions of fans heading to the event.
A federal judge dismissed the complaint in 2005, a ruling that was upheld by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in December. The plaintiffs had asked the Supreme Court to hear the case.
For the rap concert, Houston Collins Jr. and his wife Sharlet leased Collins Field (near Hazlehurst) from Collins’ brother Robert and his wife Velma.
The plaintiffs said the group never performed because police prevented fans from making it to the show. They allege officers intimidated and harassed concertgoers and randomly stopped and searched vehicles without probable cause.
Most of the arrests near Collins Field were misdemeanors.
