Former Hinds County District Attorney Jody Owens Permanently Disbarred; Sentencing Set for October 15
The Mississippi Supreme Court on July 29 permanently disbarred Jody Owens, the former Hinds County District Attorney, who resigned after pleading guilty to a federal charge of conspiring to commit bribery.
Owens entered the plea in June, two weeks before he was scheduled to stand trial.
The charge arose from an FBI operation in Jackson. Two undercover agents posed as real estate developers seeking to build a convention center hotel in the downtown area, on a site for which the city had previously obtained a federal development loan. The agents used Owens, who has also worked in real estate, to reach other figures in city government, including former Jackson City Council member Aaron Banks and former Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba.
The Mississippi Bar filed a complaint with the state's high court earlier in July seeking Owens' suspension from the practice of law. Owens subsequently filed a motion indicating he would resign his license voluntarily.
Owens is scheduled to be sentenced on October 15 before U.S. District Judge Daniel P. Jordan III in the Southern District of Mississippi. He faces a maximum of five years in prison.
The Hinds County District Attorney's office serves the state's most populous county.