Trooper Criss Turnipseed of Troop G looks to be having a severe, paralyzing, fast-attacking, no-going-back, nightmarish panic attack! I can hear you asking the question out loud to yourself.  What in the world could have him so torn up?  Could it be that he was driving the trooper car in the background and hit a parked trooper car?  No. Could it be that he saw himself in the reflection of that patrol car?  Well, maybe… Could it be that he discovered that someone keyed his car?  No.  Could it be that he found a spot on his freshly washed and waxed car just seconds before the big troop inspection?  Oh yeah!  Now you can just feel the goose-bumps jumping up on the back of your neck if that was YOUR car in not-so-clean condition before this big event.  Have no fear! As a seasoned member of the Mississippi Highway Patrol, Trooper Turnipseed knew exactly how to save the day and salvage his inspection.  You see, this is where that old adage of “spit shine” came from.  Once upon a time, there was a trooper, just like our Turnipseed, going through an inspection.  He found a spot on his car just after washing it.  This once upon a time trooper had no water around him, so he improvised!  A little spit, a dry rag, some elbow grease, and thus the term “spit shine” was born! Now back to our Trooper Turnipseed.  Just after the panic set in after seeing the tarnished dirty spot, he quickly regained his composure and took care of that little dirty spot leaving a perfect “spit shined” trooper car. Well that’s about all that we can tell you.  Turnipseed did have a perfectly clean car that day, but we’ve never been able to determine from sources close to Troop G if he passed inspection.  If you or anyone you know has information, please pass it on.  And to Trooper Turnipseed, looks like a little panic can make for complete perfection!

On a lazy Saturday afternoon, April 24, 2010, a devastating tornado leveled a large area in Yazoo City.  This tornado was an EF 4 with winds roaring at approximately 170 miles an hour and this system swiped through 97 miles!  Mississippi State Troopers were there in short order to begin their search for victims of this massive weather event.  In addition to Troopers who where there to search for the wounded and missing, others arrived to help maintain order in an area that was pure chaos!  Many members of our SOG Unit were swiftly mobilized into action within hours of the tornado touching down.   As Trooper cars were patrolling around the area, you could hear citizens saying to each other - “Oh thank goodness, the Highway Patrol is here!” Little children were yelling to their parents and friends as our highly recognized gray trooper cars rolled by, “Look mama, it’s the state troopers, and they’re here to help us!”  Those sentiments could be heard over and over, and it is a testament to the professionalism, dedication, hard work, courtesy, and support that Troopers provide to their fellow Mississippians in times of crisis and need.  THANK YOU Mississippi Troopers for being there when people need you the most and for being a force of calm!  For more photos of the devastation from the tornado that hit Yazoo City, please click on our “photo album” in the box below.

We told you at the beginning of the Mississippi Legislative session that the MSTA was going to ask lawmakers to codify the David R. Huggins (DRH) Act of 2002.  This year’s attempt is unique in that it would take the Huggins Act out of the appropriation bill for DPS and move it into general law.  By having the DRH Act in general law, it prohibits any one single person from ever removing it.  We are thrilled to tell you that the Mississippi Legislature has UNANIMOUSLY PASSED the “David R. Huggins Act of 2002″ as a general law as opposed to a section in our appropriation bill.  On Saturday, March 27, the Senate passed HB 1159 by a vote of 52-0.  A few minutes later, the House passed this measure by a vote of 119-0.  Mississippi Troopers extend a huge, heartfelt THANKS to all members of the legislature for their support in passing this landmark bill.  We also wish to extend our humble thanks to the the following conferees on HB 1159:  Representatives Johnny Stringer, George Flaggs, Preston Sullivan, and Senators Alan Nunnelee, Perry Lee, and Willie Simmons.  In a nutshell, HB 1159 codifies the “David R. Huggins Act of 2002″ into general law.  It gives Mississippi Troopers credit for working 171 hours.  This bill DOES NOT provide a pay increase for troopers; instead, it provides supplemental pay that legislators have intended for troopers to get since the inception of this act back in 2002! Please click on the bill number at the end of this article to read the DRH Act of 2002 as it was passed in HB 1159; the underlined language is what was voted on.  We are hopeful that Governor Haley Barbour will sign this bill into law.  A tremendous debt of appreciation goes out to David R. Huggins - the namesake of this act, the former trooper, the former chief of the Highway Patrol, and the former commissioner of DPS - for his role in providing insight, leadership, advise, and helping to broker a deal with legislators.  Again, on behalf of all Mississippi Troopers, we wish to THANK the members of the House and Senate for unanimously passing this this legislation!  HB 1159

There was breaking news tonight!  The House and Senate conferees have agreed and signed the 2010 Budget Restoration bill that has been in conference.  The most important information in SB 2495 for us is that the Highway Patrol originally had only $765,198 in the bill to help finish out the budget year which runs through June 30. Tonight, that amount now stands at $1,765,198!  Now that the conferees have done an incredible job of putting this conference report together, the bill must be passed by both the House and Senate!  It then will go to the governor.  Hats off to Lt. Gov. Phil Bryant and Speaker of the House Billy McCoy and the following conferee members as their names appear on the conference report for SB 2495:  Senators Alan Nunnelee,  Doug Davis, and Terry Burton; House of Representatives Johnny Stringer, Cecil Brown, and George Flaggs, Jr. Be sure to call your House and Senate member to ask them to support the bill, and THANK THEM for their support of Mississippi Troopers.  Please click on the bill number at the end of this article to read the bill in its entirety.    SB 2495