Protesters continue to rally after dismissal of Ricky Ball case

COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – People have continued to protest the Attorney General’s decision to dismiss a manslaughter charge against former Columbus Police officer Canyon Boykin.

He was charged in the 2015 shooting death of Ricky Ball.

When the attorney general dismissed a case, the case would rarely be re-opened.

Protest organizers said they’re aware of this, but they hoped their protest would go beyond Ball’s case.

“She may have won the battle, but she didn’t win the war,” said protest organizer Jermaine Shanklin.

Shanklin said Attorney General Lynn Fitch’s recent decision to drop the Ricky Ball case came as a shock.

“You know, I think she should have waited and had a little more thought process into it,” said Shanklin.

Shanklin said he’s aware the case would most likely not be re-opened, even after petitioning and collecting over 2,500 signatures.

“The overall goal is to continue to get people to sign the petition and continue to get the citizens here in Columbus Ms and Lowndes County also, registered to vote, so that we can also have power into getting justice done the right way and getting people that we need in the office that’s going to stand up and be a voice for us,” said Shanklin.

He said, for him, the protest goes deeper than just one case.

“If this case doesn’t get reopened, we’re going to settle with her ideas and her thoughts that she used into the process, but it is important, again, that we don’t stop here because hey, it could be my child, it could be your child, it can be anybody’s child. We will start a rally for them. All we want is true justice and to be handled in a lawful term,” said Shanklin.

Shanklin believed change would start at the ballot box.

“We have people that have sacrificed their lives for us to be able to vote. Voting is important. Whether people think their voice is not heard, your voice can be heard. It can be heard just by signing that piece of paper whenever elections come around,” said Shanklin. “Maybe, four or five months from now, we can all look back and say hey we gave it all we had, and we did try and get everyone in to register to vote and get the community out to let us know their input just as well as we’re going to give you our input. We’re willing to do whatever it takes to get the case solved.”

The Attorney General’s office released a statement Wednesday saying “We are working with District Attorney Scott Colom to provide full transparency on the evidence, to the extent permissible by law, at this time.”