Mississippi sheriffs respond to radar bill dying
CLAY COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – A speeding ticket can save a life, but not every county in Mississippi can issue them easily.
Only one Sheriff’s Office in the state has the authority to use radar equipment.
And that’s Lowndes County.
For years, The Mississippi Sheriff’s Association has advocated for a bill to expand radar access.
“The purpose of the enforcement is to slow the traffic down, protect our citizens and protect our drivers,” said Clay County Sheriff Eddie Scott.
In 2024, Mississippi ranked the highest in traffic fatalities.
And some of those accidents were from speeding.
Last month, a radar bill made it out committee for the first time, but it later died.
“We have a lot of support from some of our legislators, but we have some who we feel like try to play God with public safety. You know, we’re the ones that’s out here receiving these phone calls about speeders (going) up and down (the highways) endangering our children trying to cross the road to get on a school bus,” said Scott.
Mississippi Highways and Transportation Committee Chairman, Senator Chuck Younger, is one lawmaker who supported Senate Bill 2614.
“I just think it’s a good for our sheriffs to be able to use in our counties,” said Senator Younger of District 17.
Younger said opposing senators feared that their sheriffs would abuse the power of the radar.
“The whole purpose behind this is public safety. It’s not about generating revenue. And since I’ve been in office, I haven’t had any body complaining about us out writing speeding tickets,” said Lowndes County Sheriff Eddie Hawkins.
Clay County Sheriff Eddie Scott said the sheriffs requested that the money be used for Driver’s Education.
They also proposed that counties could only get a radar if all members of the Board of Supervisors approved.
Additionally, Senate Bill 2614 gave sheriffs the option to not purchase a radar if they did not want to use it.
