Mississippi lawmen seek end to false reports, fleeing suspects

Gina Holland

Thursday, Feb. 17, 2000 | 12:05 p.m.

JACKSON, Miss. - As a police chief in a Mississippi River casino town, Willie Huff has too many times investigated robbery reports concocted by a gambler to conceal heavy losses at the boats.

Huff joined lawmen at the Capitol Thursday seeking tougher penalties for false reporting of crimes. He said officers have little recourse in cases now.

Problems in his town, Natchez, mostly stem from people who lose money at casinos and "don't want to go home and face their wife or husband and admit they lost the grocery money," said Huff.

He said they make up stories about armed robberies or car burglaries.

"There's no punishment for it. It creates problems when we've got other things we should be dedicating our resources to," Huff said.

People who fabricate a misdemeanor crime could be charged themselves with a misdemeanor and inventing serious crimes could lead to felony charges under a proposal at the Capitol.

The bill is among about a half dozen sought by police chiefs and other law officers.

District Attorney Ronnie Harper said he had a case in which a woman lost money at Gulf Coast casinos, drove to Franklin County and claimed she had been kidnapped and robbed.

"Law enforcement officers from the coast to Franklin County were looking for an individual that didn't exist," he said.

Harper also supports another proposal by lawmen that would let him prosecute as felons people who flee law officers. Now, eluding a police officer is a misdemeanor.

He said prosecutors only get involved now after someone is killed by a fleeing suspect and "you'd like to prevent it before there is a death."

Sen. Neely Carlton, D-Greenville, said both issues have support at the Capitol. She said people who flee police should be prosecuted for "endangering the lives of Mississippians" in addition to any crimes they already committed.

A fleeing suspect bill has been debated before by lawmakers. Concerns about innocent people, particularly women driving alone at night, being prosecuted have killed past bills.

The bill backed by lawmen would give an exception to drivers after dusk who proceed to the nearest well-lit public area before stopping. Carlton said that should satisfy past critics of the proposal.

Hattiesburg Police Chief Charles M. Sims said about 3,500 law officers are backing the proposals to help crime fighting. Others would:

Oxford Police Chief Steve Bramlett said retirements have dropped the average tenure of his department staff from 15 years to two years.

"You want to keep your most experienced officers on the streets because new officers can make rookie mistakes," Bramlett said.

Bramlett said his town has also had problems with false reports, including one from a young person who claimed to have been kidnapped to conceal missing curfew.

"It was all a wild goose chase," he said.

The stricter penalties would "make people think twice about it," Bramlett said.