Trooper Jay Kelly and his family are in need of your thoughts an prayers as we all begin to get ready for the Thanksgiving Holiday.  On Sunday, approximately 1400 hours, his wife, Becky, and their daughter, Jordan, received gunshot wounds while riding their horses in a designated riding area in Harrison County. The incident appears to be the result of a hunting accident and is currently under investigation.  Becky has been treated and released from Gulfport Memorial Hospital.  Jordan was taken to Ochsner’s Hospital in New Orleans for further treatment of her gunshot wound.  According to medical personnel, Jordan is in stable condition and her injuries are not life threatening. And late today, we are told that Jordan would be moved to a private room to recuperate.  Please join us in remembering the Kelly family in our thoughts and prayers.

Recently, the ENTIRE Gazzo clan took a family vacation to beautiful, tropical, romantic, exotic, peaceful Cancun. On the far right in this picture, is retired Trooper Joe Gazzo, Sr. (a rare photo of Joe as he is usually the one behind the camera!). We’re told that because the Gazzo clan - which consists of children, their spouses, and all the grandkids - had so many people in their party, they had to rent a school bus to shuttle around Cancun. Wait that’s not all… when they booked their flight down, it took two planes to carry them all. Would you be surprised if we told you that they qualified for group rates when they booked their hotel rooms - which by the way took up two entire floors! In the very middle of the picture is Trooper Jason Gazzo. Jason was not really on vacation. Sources down in Cancun tell us that he was learning the art of photography from his dad, and was the other mastermind behind skulling up this trip. Don’t let Jason tell you he was on vacation. We now know that he was doing undercover work for the Highway Patrol - or was that underwater? You can’t help but wonder if the extreme “skulling” talents of Joe, Sr., were responsible for some excellent deals down in Cancun. Roomer has it that he continued his “skulling” abilities while there and now even may own Cancun! (For those of you who don’t know what “skulling” is, well, how can I possibly explain that concept. Suffice it to say, it’s a time honored tradition that every trooper must learn to master efficiently before graduating from trooper school.) So you can’t help but ask the rhetorical question - if Joe Gazzo, Sr., does in fact now OWN Cancun, could Cancun ever be the same?

On the day of their 13th wedding anniversary, Trooper Steve Beale and his wife, Tricia, received an unexpected gift… Little Blake Gregory Beale decided to come a week early, and he was a perfect anniversary gift for the Beales. Blake was born June 3rd and weighed in at 6 lbs 14 ozs. He is pictured above as he is being welcomed into the family by his older brother, Colgan, who is about to turn four this month. Congratulations Steve, Tricia, and Colgan. On behalf of the Mississippi State Trooper’s Association, we proudly welcome baby Blake Beale as the newest member of our trooper family!

BEWARE! Mississippi Troopers will be out in force all across Mississippi this Memorial Day Weekend making sure that drivers are abiding by the rules of the road. Pictured here are Troopers Steven Beale and Alex Lizana cruising the Gulf Coast looking for speeders, seat belt offenders, DUI drivers, and other violators. Our motorcycles are another weapon in our arsenal in an effort to  protect Mississippians as they travel on the roadways. To all members of the Mississippi Highway Patrol out working this long holiday weekend, be safe!