Mississippi

When the federal Department of Health and Human Services recently issued a request for proposals, seeking competitive applications for the production, analysis and distribution of "marijuana cigarettes," the request might have seemed a bit unusual to those unfamiliar with Washington's dance around cannabis research. The federal government, after all, is not widely known to support marijuana cultivation. But those in the know just shrugged. The department has issued similar requests every few years to select a contractor to conduct government-approved marijuana research, and with depressing regularity it has then awarded an exclusive contract to the University of Mississippi.

Mississippi's plan to divert $600 million in hurricane housing relief to a port expansion project won federal approval Friday, despite vigorous opposition from those who said the needs of thousands of people displaced by Hurricane Katrina had not been met. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson, in a letter to Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, said he was concerned that Mississippi's plan would shift money from "more pressing recovery needs."

. -- Some people in this tiny Katrina-ravaged town talk of Harry Hull's modest, vinyl-clad home as if a spaceship had landed on the bayou. It stands out not because it is built on land only 5 feet above sea level -- scores of people have rebuilt on low land -- but because it looms 18 feet above ground. It is raised so high on wooden pilings that Hull, 70, must climb 26 steps to get to his front door.

Over the years, Richard F. "Dickie" Scruggs earned a reputation as one of the nation's wiliest and most powerful plaintiff's attorneys. Along the way he was hailed as a champion of the little guy. He was also derided as a scoundrel who would stoop as low as necessary to get his way -- and fatten his bank account. On Friday, his critics rested their case in the court of public opinion.

Republican presidential hopeful John McCain returned to his aviator roots Sunday, attending an air show at a field named after his grandfather. The Arizona senator and his wife, Cindy, attended the "Wings Over Meridian" show at Naval Air Station Meridian's McCain Field. He was a flight instructor at the field, which is named after the late Adm. John S. McCain Sr.

Strong thunderstorms toppled trees, knocked out power and damaged homes Friday in Mississippi and Alabama, while flooding in Kentucky forced evacuations and killed a 2-year-old girl. Across Mississippi, fast-moving storms unleashed possible tornadoes, heavy rain and some hail. Power failures were reported in several communities, including Jackson and downtown Vicksburg. Tate Moudy of Brandon, east of Jackson, had just walked into the Southern States Utility Trailer Sales office on U.S.

Mississippi Democrat Travis W. Childers won a special election to Congress on Tuesday, helping his party to a third victory this year for seats that had long been in Republican hands. The victory puts Childers into the House seat vacated by Roger Wicker, a Republican appointed to the U.S. Senate when Trent Lott resigned. The win also gives the Democrats a 236-199 majority in the House -- if only for a few months, until November's general elections.

Some places are defined by a single event. Roswell, N.M., will always be known for space aliens, Dallas for assassination. And this little town in the Piney Woods of eastern Mississippi will forever be the site of one of the most brutal crimes of the civil rights era.

There were women in pearls, men in seersucker -- enough well-heeled Mississippians to conjure up a charity auction or summer fete. They were crowded Friday into a small wood-paneled federal courtroom behind a long line of sober, dark-suited attorneys to watch Richard F. "Dickie" Scruggs, a legendary plaintiffs' attorney, receive a five-year prison sentence after pleading guilty in March to conspiring to bribe a judge.

Oscar-winning "Million Dollar Baby" actor Morgan Freeman broke his arm and his elbow in a Mississippi car accident but "was in good spirits" in a Tennessee hospital Monday, his publicist said. "He is having a little bit of surgery this afternoon or tomorrow to help correct the damage," spokeswoman Donna Lee, the veteran actor's sister-in-law, said in a statement. "He says he'll be OK and is looking forward to a full recovery.