The Mississippi Immigrant Rights Alliance has filed a lawsuit against the Mississippi Secretary of State’s office claiming that a voter registration requirement for naturalized citizens is illegal.

In the lawsuit, MIRA says that Mississippi’s voter registration requirements for naturalized citizens are more stringent that for citizens born in the U.S. A naturalized citizen must show his or her naturalization certificate or similar proof of citizenship before being allowed to register. For those born in the U.S., they only have to check a box to certify their citizenship.

“An important part of our work of MIRA involves helping applicants complete the naturalization process – and with registering to vote. We help folks with their applications, interviews, obtaining approvals, and navigating bureaucratic hurdles through the swearing-in ceremony and beyond,” said Bill Chandler, MIRA executive director, in a statement.

“There is no reason to treat naturalized citizens any differently than other citizens. This law is grounded in white supremacy, xenophobia and racism, and should therefore be abolished.”

According to the suit, the difference in the two requirements is unconstitutional because it discriminates against one group of citizens. It also claims that no similar laws exist anywhere in the U.S.

“Mississippi’s discriminatory proof of citizenship requirement, which dates back to the Jim Crow era, constitutes a textbook violation of the United States Constitution,” said Kristen Clarke, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights, who, along with the Mississippi Center for Justice, the Law Office of Robert McDuff, and the law firm of Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, represents MIRA in the suit.

Data from the U.S. Census Bureau indicates that Mississippi’s naturalized citizen population has increased by more than 50 percent between 2000 and 2015 to roughly 26,000. Mississippi’s naturalized citizen population is predominantly non-white: about 12,000 were born in Asia, 8,000 were born in Latin America, 4,000 in Europe and 1,500 in Africa.

“Our democracy only works when every legitimate voter can exercise their fundamental right to cast a ballot that counts,” Clarke said. “This is yet another unfortunate example of how Mississippi’s antiquated voting laws and procedures hurt people of color.”

On Friday, Nov. 15, Vicksburg Police officers arrested six local teenagers in connection with a robbery.

Five of those arrested were under the age of 18.

Officers responded to a report that a man had been robbed at gunpoint and beaten at the apartments at 1101 Bowmar Ave. The officers arrested four males and two females.

The six defendants appeared before Judge Angela Carpenter in Vicksburg Municipal Court on Monday, Nov. 18. All six were bound over to the Warren County Grand Jury.

Lashunta Fulks, 18, of Jackson, was arraigned on one count of strong-armed robbery and one count of conspiracy to commit a crime. Her bond was set at $175,000.

Ashanti Hardin, 17, of Vicksburg, was charged with one count of strong-armed robbery and one count of conspiracy to commit a crime. Her bond was set at $150,000.

Kenan Jackson, 17, of Vicksburg, was charged with one count of strong-armed robbery, one count of possession of a stolen firearm, and one count of conspiracy to commit a crime. His bond was set at $165,000.

Samuel Smith, 17, of Vicksburg, was arraigned on one count of strong-armed robbery, one count of possession of a stolen firearm, and one count of conspiracy to commit a crime. His bond was set at $190,000.

Cameron Roby, 17, of Vicksburg, was charged with one count of strong-armed robbery, one count of possession of a stolen firearm, and one count of conspiracy to commit a crime. His bond was set at $190,000.

Demarion Smith, 15, of Vicksburg, was charged with one count of strong-armed robbery, one count of possession of a stolen firearm, and one count of conspiracy to commit a crime. His bond was set at $190,000.

The Vicksburg Police Department also reported the following:

Residential Burglary

On Friday, Nov. 15, officers responded to an address in the 3000 block of Washington Street, where the complainant reported an earlier burglary. According to the complainant, tools and ladders were taken,

Shots Fired

On Friday, Nov. 15, officers responded to the 2700 block of Alcorn Drive in reference to shots fired. When they arrived on the scene, the officers saw no signs of suspicious activity.

On Saturday, Nov. 16, officers responded to the 3200 block of Iowa Boulevard in reference to shots fired. When they arrived on scene, officers saw no signs of suspicious activity.

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A Mississippi man has been sentenced to three life sentences plus 20 years for a triple homicide and aggravated assault in Carroll County.

Michael Martin Barnhill, 30, pleaded guilty to killing his wife, Marlee Jones Barnhill, and a couple, Brooks and Jim Harrell.

On March 1 of this year, the four were together to celebrate Marlee’s 27th birthday.

Over the course of the evening, Michael Barnhill got drunk and became “angry and combative,” when others tried to get him to stop his belligerent behavior, according to a statement from Carroll County Sheriff Clint Walker,  the Clarion Ledger reported at the time.

Michael Barnhill’s victims: wife Marlee Barnhill, left, and Brooks and Jim Harrell.

Marlee Barnhill kept her husband’s keys to stop him from driving drunk. Michael Barnhill retrieved a .40 caliber pistol from his vehicle and returned to shoot his wife in the chest.

When Jim Harrell went to her defense, Michael Barnhill also shot him and then shot Brooks Harrell as she tried to help her husband.

Also in the house at the time of the shooting where two other women, Mauri Suggs and Amber Garrard, and a 10-year-old boy, who escaped to an upstairs room and locked themselves in. Apparently, Michael Barnhill shot at one of the women.

Michael Barnhill was not at the scene when police arrived, but he returned while they were still there, claiming he didn’t know what happened. The survivors told deputies that he was the killer. Michael Barnhill was arrested that night.