5 min read
Major Takeaways
Former Hinds County District Attorney Jody Owens was sentenced Thursday to 41 months in federal prison in the Jackson bribery case.
The court also ordered Owens to pay a fine of $100,000.
Former Jackson Councilman Aaron Banks was sentenced Thursday to 45 months in federal prison in the same case.
The court ordered Banks to pay a fine of $15,000 and to serve three years of supervised release after prison.
Both men were ordered to report to prison on January 4, 2027.
Former Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba will learn his sentence when his hearing concludes on November 20.
The Sentence in Jackson
A federal judge in Jackson sentenced former Hinds County District Attorney Jody Owens to 41 months in prison on Thursday.
United States District Judge Daniel P. Jordan handed down the sentence in the federal bribery case that has shaken Jackson for two years.
The court also ordered Owens to pay a fine of $100,000.
Owens will also serve three years of supervised release after his prison term.
Owens pleaded guilty on June 29 to one count of conspiracy.
He resigned as district attorney effective July 1.
The Mississippi Supreme Court later accepted his surrender of his law license and disbarred him permanently.
Standing before the court on Thursday, Owens spoke of shame.
He told the judge he could not begin to tell the court the shame he feels.
He said he betrayed himself, his family, his friends and his colleagues.
He apologized to his family, to the court and to the people who once worked beside him.
Jordan called the decision somber.
The judge said this is a serious offense.
Jordan noted that Owens was the top law enforcement officer in Hinds County.
The judge said Owens took an oath to uphold the law.
Court records cited in the hearing described Owens as the ringleader behind the scheme.
Banks Gets 45 Months
Former Jackson Councilman Aaron Banks was sentenced Thursday afternoon to 45 months in federal prison.
Judge Daniel P. Jordan handed down the sentence hours after sentencing Owens in the same courtroom.
The court ordered Banks to pay a fine of $15,000.
The judge waived interest on the fine.
Banks will also serve three years of supervised release after his prison term ends.
The court ordered Banks to enroll in outpatient treatment for alcohol abuse.
Both Banks and Owens were ordered to report to prison on January 4, 2027.
Banks pleaded guilty on July 6 to one count of conspiracy.
He represented Ward 6 and served as president of the council.
Prosecutors said Banks sought $50,000 in exchange for supporting the hotel development.
He received a $10,000 payment through Owens.
Standing before the court, Banks said, “I knew better.”
He spoke of financial difficulties, the demands of ministry and a desire to provide for his family.
He said he spent his own money helping residents during the Jackson water crisis.
He said a season of desperation overshadowed years of lessons about faith, integrity and accountability.
Jordan said Owens was clearly more culpable than Banks.
The judge said Banks carried two prior convictions that raised his criminal history category and his guideline range.
Jordan said that without those prior convictions, the guideline range for Banks would have been 37 months to 46 months.
Even so, Banks received four more months than Owens, the man court records described as the ringleader of the scheme.
How the Bribery Scheme Worked
The case grew out of an undercover operation run by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Agents posed as developers who wanted to build a hotel near the Jackson Convention Complex.
Prosecutors said Owens accepted at least $115,000 in cash and promises of future benefits.
Prosecutors also said he helped move more than $80,000 in bribe payments to other Jackson officials.
The money was meant to buy support for the downtown hotel project.
Owens was indicted in November 2024 alongside Lumumba and Banks.
All three men first pleaded not guilty and prepared for trial.
That trial was set to begin on July 13 of this year.
Owens changed his plea two weeks before trial.
Lumumba and Banks pleaded guilty one week later, on July 6.
Each man pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy.
The charge carried a maximum of five years in prison.
It also carried a maximum fine of $250,000.
Owens received 41 months, inside the range the court had weighed during the morning objections hearing.
For more background, read our earlier coverage of the Jackson bribery scheme revelations that first laid out the case against city leadership.
What Happens Next for Lumumba
With Owens and Banks now sentenced, one defendant remains.
Lumumba appeared in court on Thursday for the objections portion of his case.
He was not sentenced on Thursday.
His sentencing will conclude on November 20.
During the objections hearing, the judge discussed a guideline range of 37 months to 46 months for Lumumba.
That range is not a sentence, and Lumumba will address the court before he is sentenced later this month.
Our coverage of Lumumba being disbarred by the Mississippi Supreme Court explains the professional fallout he already faces.
Two other figures in the wider case, former Councilwoman Angelique Lee and businessman Sherik Smith, pleaded guilty earlier and still await sentencing.
Why This Matters to Jackson
Jackson is a majority Black city that has fought for honest government for generations.
The district attorney is the person residents trust to prosecute corruption, not commit it.
When the top prosecutor sells his office, every case he touched loses public trust.
Families in Hinds County send their loved ones through that court system every day.
They deserve to believe the system treats them fairly.
Thursday was also a reminder that the scheme reached the mayor, the council president and the district attorney at the same time.
That is not one bad actor.
That is a circle of power that failed the people who elected it.
Owens once presented himself as a reform minded prosecutor.
He was first elected in 2019 and built his name on promises of a fairer system.
His fall is now complete, from the courthouse office to a federal prison term.
Jackson now has to rebuild trust office by office.
A special election process will decide who leads the district attorney office next.
Voters will be watching every promise made in that race.
Owens and Banks are now both headed to federal prison, and the book is closed on their part in this case.
We will also be in Jackson for the Lumumba sentencing on November 20.
Read more of our reporting in the Urban City Podcast News section.
