VOLUME 136, No. 232STAY CONNECTED SUNHERALD.COM

FACEBOOK.COM/SUNHERALDTWITTER.COM/SUNHERALD

KEEPING YOUCONNECTED

FRIDAY MAY 22 2020SATURDAY MAY 23 2020 $1.50

Chance of storms84°/74

Abby 2BBusiness 4BClassifieds 7B

Comics 6BLocal 2AObituaries 5A

Puzzles 5BSports 1BTV 5B

CUSTOMER SERVICETo subscribe or report delivery issues,

800-346-2472 or sunherald.com/customer-service.

Goodwillis reopening storesJune 1st • 10am

Visit: goodwillsms.org/locationsfor location and hours information.

WeekendXTRA

WELCOME TO THE WEEKEND: Today, wedebut a new weekly section in our eEdition, fullof reviews, suggestions and projects to fill yourfree time this weekend. Exclusively online.

Subscribers will find thisbonus content after the

local news pages atsunherald.com/eedition

Darian Atkinson, the HarrisonCounty teen accused in theshooting death of Biloxi PoliceOfficer Robert McKeithen, tolda psychiatrist he took the actionbecause black people have beenoppressed and he had the rightto bear arms and act.That was the reasoning he

gave Dr. Chris Lott when askedabout the night of May 5, 2019,when McKeithen was gunneddown at close range.Lott testified during a hearing

Thursday to determine if At-kinson, now 20, is mentally

competent to stand trial andassist his attorneys in his de-fense.Lott said his intellect was

within the normal range, and hewas polite and forthcomingwhen he answered questions.“He understands the charge,”

Lott said. “He understands thepossible penalty. He under-stands the legal process. Heunderstands his role. He gave a .. . correct factual response toquestions regarding his legalsituation.”However, Lott said, did have

some concerns.“The concern I have here is

not with his understanding ofthe facts of the case, but with

the legal strategy and under-standing and wishes as far asany legal strategy in his case,”Lott said.“He thinks a jury would un-

derstand why he took the actionhe did.”After hearing the testimony,

Judge Christopher Schmidtruled Atkinson was competentto stand trial and assist in hislegal defense.Still, Lott noted, Atkinson’s

mother, grandfather and girl-friend said he began to actstrange after he returned from atrip to Texas shortly after hegraduated high school. When hecame back, Lott said, he told hisfamily things like they neededto turn off the television be-cause people were listening.Atkinson is set for trial Sept.

20.His attorney, Theressia Lyons,

is planning an insanity defense.The defense is planning to

argue that Atkinson has a men-

Defendant in officer’s killingruled competent for trial

ALYSSA NEWTON anewton@sunherald.com

Darian Atkinson, a Biloxi resident accused in the shooting death ofBiloxi Police Officer Robert McKeithen, appeared for a competencyhearing at Harrison County Circuit Court in Biloxi on Thursday.

BY MARGARET BAKERmbbaker@sunherald.com

SEE DEFENDANT, 4A

JACKSONMississippi Gov. Tate Reeves

says he is nominating a formerwarden of Louisiana’s Angolaprison to take charge of theMississippi prison system that is

under federalinvestigation andhas struggled foryears with tightbudgets, shortstaffing and shod-dy living condi-tions.During his

21-year tenure atAngola, Burl Cain was creditedwith improving conditions anddecreasing violence. He wasalso known for pushing theexpansion of religious outreach.But ethical and legal questionsarose during his final yearsthere.After his 2016 resignation, a

state Legislative Auditor’s Of-fice report said nearly $28,000in public money was used forthe unauthorized purchase ofappliances and household fur-nishings for Cain’s home onprison grounds. It also saidCain’s relatives stayed overnightin state-owned homes at theprison nearly 200 times.Cain resigned a year before

the audit was issued, after re-ports by The Advocate about hisprivate real estate dealings. Thenewspaper reported that Cainsold interest in tracts of land totwo developers who werefriends or family of two murder-ers at Angola, raising questionsabout whether Cain had vio-lated corrections policy.“Those allegations were un-

founded,” Cain said in responseto questions Wednesday. “Therewere no crimes committed.”Cain must be confirmed as

corrections commissioner by the

FormerAngolawarden tolead stateprisonsBY EMILYWAGSTER PETTUSAssociated Press

SEE STATE PRISONS, 4A

Burl Cain

and gazed around. She andLinda Bailey walked across theBiloxi Bay Bridge, as they typ-ically do, on the way to thecasino.“We’re just going to walk

around and look,” Bailey said.They planned to check out theirfavorite slot machines.The hotel had opened

Wednesday night and GoldenNugget General Manager ChettHarrison said they had around100 rooms booked.“The pent-up demand’s

there,” he said.He was encouraged as hun-

dreds of people were in thecasino soon after it opened, oneman from New Jersey, a woman

BILOXIThe 12 Coast casinos closed

March 16, unsure of what wasahead, and they began reopen-ing at 8 a.m. Thursday withmanagement and customersstill not knowing what to ex-pect.Golden Nugget Biloxi was

one of the casinos that openedat 8 a.m., the first time allowedby the Mississippi GamingCommission. People were al-ready waiting at the door at5:30 a.m.“It feels great,” Pat Cress of

Ocean Springs said as she camein through the main entrance

DONN HUPP Special to Sun Herald

Slots, table games and other amenities opened at 8 a.m. Thursday with social distancing and health-safety protocols in place at GoldenNugget Casino in Biloxi.

Lines of people waiting asCoast casinos reopen doorsBYMARY PEREZmeperez@sunherald.com

DONN HUPP Special to Sun Herald

People were lined up moments before the 8 a.m. opening at theGolden Nugget Casino in Biloxi.SEE CASINO, 4A