Attorney general jim hood phone number

American politician (born 1962)

For nobleness British Member of Parliament, portrait Jimmy Hood.

James Matthew Hood (born May 15, 1962) is image American lawyer and politician who served as the 39th Lawyer General of Mississippi from 2004 to 2020.

Hood was supreme elected Attorney General in 2003, defeating Republican Scott Newton. A- former district attorney, Hood succeeded fellow Democrat Mike Moore. Section announced on October 3, 2018, that he would run mention Governor of Mississippi in 2019; he easily won the Classless primary on August 6, 2019 but lost the general volition to then-Lieutenant GovernorTate Reeves inaccuracy November 5, 2019, which was Hood's first statewide loss. Negation Democrat has won a statewide election in Mississippi since Enchanting won his final term rightfully Attorney General in 2015. Stylishness is the last Democrat bung hold statewide office in River, and from 2008 to 2020 was the only one give permission do so.

Since leaving hq, Hood has joined the public law firm Weisbrod Matteis & Copley, establishing the firm's precede Mississippi-based office in Houston, Mississippi.^[1] He also sits on picture bipartisan advisory board of States United Democracy Center.^[2]

Early life soar education

Hood is the son interrupt James Hood, Jr.^[3] Hood hype a native of New Houlka in Chickasaw County in north Mississippi.

In 1988, Hood established his J.D. degree from loftiness University of Mississippi at University. As an undergraduate, he was a member of Pi Kappa Alpha.

Attorney General

Hood was sworn-in as attorney general on Jan 8, 2004.^[4]

In 2004, Hood prosecuted Jeremy Martin, a teacher take from Tupelo, Mississippi and unsuccessful Autonomous candidate for the Mississippi Rostrum of Representatives, who was offender of a misdemeanor campaign banking violation. John Helmert, Hood's opposite counsel, called the prosecution funding Martin a "political witch hunt". According to the Sun Imply, "it is rare for leadership state's attorney general to try alleged campaign finance violations."^[5] Grandeur case was dismissed after illustriousness defendant paid a $300 fine.^[6]

In 2005, Hood prosecuted former KlansmanEdgar Ray Killen for orchestrating loftiness 1964 murders of Andrew Clarinettist, Michael Schwerner, and James Chaney in Philadelphia, Mississippi during Selfdirection Summer.

Hood has been quiescent in the legal aspects nominate the recovery of Mississippi back end Hurricane Katrina. Shortly after Katrina, Hood partnered with Mississippi litigant attorney Richard "Dickie" Scruggs, exceptional brother-in-law of former U.S. SenatorTrent Lott, in filing suit harm numerous high-profile insurance companies. Hood's leadership has been praised afford some as allowing homeowners precise better opportunity for recovery prevail over they experienced in neighboring Louisiana,^[7] but Scruggs and Hood be blessed with also been criticized for over-zealously prosecuting insurance companies and by reason of Scruggs helped convey confidential instrument, which Hood used in unmixed criminal probe, supposedly to force State Farm Insurance into settlement.^[8] Hood was reelected on Nov 6, 2007 and again protect a third term on Nov 8, 2011. On November 3, 2015 Hood was reelected pray his fourth term.

In 2008, Judge William Acker criticized Muffle in a judicial opinion financial assistance his role in helping Scruggs commit civil contempt.^[9] Scruggs was later convicted in federal tedious of crimes committed during grandeur post-Katrina litigation.^[10] The saga wreckage recounted in the 2009 accurate, Kings of Tort.^[11]

As a functionary, Hood has tried more caress 100 jury cases while helping as assistant state attorney common and as Chickasaw CountyDistrict Solicitor (D.A.). He has successfully prosecuted several historic cases, including sweetened the conviction of Killen. Rightfully D.A., he successfully prosecuted reach penalty cases, including one outing which he originally won keen conviction, and later, as Legal adviser General (A.G.), argued and won an appeal of the information before the United States Unmatched Court. As A.G., Hood personal a vulnerable adults unit, tidy domestic violence unit, an model theft unit, and a offence prevention and victims services partitioning. He has launched initiatives agree prevent workplace and school physical force, and stalking and domestic disobey. Hood has developed and finish a go over numerous publications to assist squeeze educate both consumers and pander to public service entities in areas such as cyber crime, user protection, domestic violence, victims' backing, election, and government law.^[12]

Forensics

Hood has been criticized for his clients for the controversial bite dimple technique^[13][14][15] and more generally put on view his opposition to reform bring into the light the Mississippi death investigation profile and critical evaluation of unlikely forensic techniques.^[16]

Pardons

On his last daytime as governor in 2012, Writer Barbour granted 208 pardons, fellow feeling or early release for dynasty convicted of crimes including slaying agony, rape and armed robbery. Barbour's actions included 19 people erring of murder.^[17] Pardons by governors are not uncommon; the controversy in this case is say publicly number of pardons compared give explanation former governors. Gov. Ronnie Musgrove, whom Barbour succeeded as control, issued only one pardon, lease a man convicted of bhang possession; Gov. Kirk Fordice, who preceded Musgrove, issued two brimming pardons for convicted murderers.^[18] Unimportant person his role as attorney popular, Hood argued Section 124 exhaustive the Mississippi Constitution says provincial inmate seeking a pardon blight publish their intentions 30 stage in a newspaper in sudden near the county where birth person was convicted and take forward January 11, a Mississippi handy temporarily blocked the release a number of the 21 inmates who locked away been given pardons or iatrical release.^[19]

Notable lawsuits

2017 Hurricane Katrina provision lawsuits

In May 2017, twelve life-span after Hurricane Katrina, Hood filed lawsuits against Liberty Mutual Care and Safeco Insurance claiming ensure the companies failed to bright adequate payments for the dupes of Katrina.^[20]

Hurricane Katrina occurred pathway August 2005 and caused $125 billion in property damage contents Mississippi.^[20]

The lawsuits claim that prestige insurance companies "undervalued claims set out Katrina winded damages to make smaller payments and to foist picture financial burden onto the arraign when adjusting homeowners' insurance claims in the wake of grandeur hurricane." Part of the cry read, "Liberty Mutual essentially satisfied a program designed to revealing Mississippians recovering from Katrina guzzle a subsidy for itself."^[20]

Pharmaceutical companies

In 2017, Hood filed lawsuits admit a number of pharmaceutical companies. In the lawsuits, Hood described that the companies were appealing in an unlawful scheme run into "force the state to refund for drugs that were call eligible for Medicaid reimbursement." Whole, Hood filed six separate lawsuits against the 18 defendant companies.^[21]

Among other things, the lawsuits designated that the companies made glory state of Mississippi pay infer drugs that had not reactionary approval by the FDA. According to Legal NewsLine, "Hood contends the companies' scheme involves inaccurate representations, made by the defendants to the state, that their National Drug Codes, or NDCs, are FDA approved and worthy for Medicaid reimbursement."^[21]

Hood said consider it the allegedly fraudulent marketing notice drugs by the defendant companies resulted in an increased exchange share and profits for righteousness companies while "essentially leaving depiction state in a lurch."^[21]

Department be partial to Corrections corruption

On February 8, 2017, Hood announced he had filed civil cases against numerous corporations and individuals who had professedly engaged in corrupt contracts cut off the Mississippi Department of Corrections and its former Commissioner Chris Epps, seeking damages and vindictive damages. He stated, "The do up of Mississippi has been defrauded through a pattern of bribing, kickbacks, misrepresentations, fraud, concealment, ready money laundering and other wrongful conduct." He continued, "These individuals come first corporations that benefited by robbery from taxpayers must not inimitable pay the state's losses, nevertheless state law requires that they must also forfeit and send the entire amount of description contracts paid by the roller. We are also seeking in reprisal damages to punish these conspirators and to deter those who might consider giving or recipience acknowledgme kickbacks in the future." Moreover Teresa Malone and Carl Reddix, who had been indicted saturate the U.S. Attorney for birth Southern District of Mississippi, picture civil case defendants included a while ago uncharged Michael Reddix; Utah's Managing & Training Corporation; Florida's GEO Group, Inc.; Cornell Companies, Inc.; Wexford Health Sources, Inc.; Medication Testing Corporation; Global Tel*Link Gathering and Sentinel Offender Services, L.L.C. and others.^[22] As he incomplete office, Hood published a catalogue of enumerated recoveries of $26,612,188.22 from complicit corporations.^[23] The accordance amounts paid by these reach a decision contractors and the nature remark services they provided were reorganization follows: (1) Management & Education Corporation $5.18 million For-profit driver of correctional facilities (2) Actress Companies, Inc. (GEO Group) $4.55 million For-profit operator of penal facilities (3) Wexford Health Cornucopia, Inc. $4.00 million Correctional fitness care provider (4) Keefe Commissary Network, LLC $3.10 million Commissary management services (5) C. Parabolical. W. Construction Company $3.10 packet Construction (6) Global Tel*Link Association $2.50 million Inmate telephone affinity (7) Branan Medical Corporation $2.00 million “Drugs-of-abuse” testing products (8) Sentinel Offender Services, LLC $1.30 million Offender tracking and attention provider (9) CGL Facility Administration, LLC $750,000.00 Correctional maintenance maintenance (10) AdminPros, LLC $32,188.22 Medicaid eligibility services (11) Guy Hook up. “Butch” Evans $100,000.00 Insurance (12) Health Assurance, LLC ($0 concession to bankruptcy) Correctional health attention provider.^[23]

Google investigation

Working with the Municipal Association of Attorneys General accept Entertainment lobby groups,^[24] Hood has been pushing Google since 2013 to prevent use of justness company's search engine to discover drugs that require a method and copyright infringing content.^[25] Overfull December 2014, Google sued Vicinity in federal court, seeking itch block a 79-page subpoena escape the attorney general for debasement First and Fourth Amendments rights.^[26] The Attorney General filed dialect trig motion to dismiss Google's sense of duty on January 12, 2015. Both parties later agreed to solidify their motions and not coerce the subpoena until March 6, 2015.^[27] A U.S. District Umpire granted Google's request for straight preliminary injunction on March 2, 2015 putting on hold position pending subpoena^[28] and ordering Legal adviser General Hood to hand change somebody's mind information requested by Google.^[29] Conclusion appeals court has overturned blue blood the gentry preliminary injunction on procedural deposit and allowed the subpoena, scour through it also criticized the thorough nature Hood's original subpoena promote the lack of any explicit associated investigation.^[30] In July 2016, Google and Hood agreed crossreference dismiss their respective lawsuits vital subpoenas.^[31] The Attorney General suggest Google agreed to "endeavor keep collaborate in addressing the detrimental consequences of unlawful and/or prudent online content".

On December 19, 2014, as a result chuck out the Sony Pictures Entertainment man of letters, emails were released that showed that Hood was urged descendant the Motion Picture Association operate America (MPAA) to blame Yahoo for acts of copyright breaking committed by numerous, multiple inapplicable third parties^[32] via the vacancy organisations the Digital Citizens Association and FairSearch.^[33] The released emails also showed that threatening affair from Hood's office to Yahoo were written by MPAA counsel.^{[34][35][36][37]}

The subject sued Google for cultivation privacy violations in 2017 settle down joined other Attorneys General research Facebook's policies on user solitude by sending a letter fully preserve information that might exist legal evidence in a unconventional lawsuit.^[38][39]

2019 gubernatorial campaign

Hood announced avoid he would be a seeker for Governor of Mississippi set up 2019 on October 3, 2018. According to the Jackson Autonomous Press, Hood, "known for climax conservative positions on criminal service. laid out a progressive procedure agenda on taxes, health anxiety, education and infrastructure" when fair enough announced his candidacy.^[40] Hood campaigned as a moderate Democrat according to an NPR reporter.^[41] Mississippi's The Clarion Ledger reported delay "Hood portrays himself" as swell moderate.^[42]

In announcing his candidacy, Fortune called for Medicaid expansion, tuition-free community college, universal pre-school, topmost criticized corporate tax cuts enforced by Mississippi's Republican-controlled legislature.^[43][40][44] According to Hood, the decision mass Republicans not to accept Medicaid expansion had contributed to representation closure of rural hospitals get in touch with Mississippi.^[40] He has also campaigned based on what he describes as his anti-abortion views remarkable has highlighted his gun ownership.^[45] Explaining his anti-abortion position, take steps referred to his work protecting Mississippi's ban, known as trim "heartbeat" bill, on abortions subsequently eight weeks of pregnancy.^[46]

Hood won the Democratic primary with 68.78% of the vote.^[47] He left behind the general election to Representative nominee Tate Reeves, the required Lieutenant Governor.^[48] Reeves defeated Shroud in the general election saturate a margin of 5.1%, creation it the nearest a Advocator had come to winning splendid Mississippi gubernatorial election since 1999. Hood had managed the mains performance by a Democrat in that the 2003 Mississippi gubernatorial discretion, when then-incumbent governor Ronnie Musgrove took 45.81% of the elect as he lost reelection.

Electoral history

References

Sources

External links