Hinds County DA thrown hat in Democratic ring for governor

Published 2:09 pm Monday, February 25, 2019

The third-term district attorney for Mississippi’s largest county has filed to run for governor.

Robert Shuler Smith tells news outlets he filed with the state Democratic party.

That would put him in a gubernatorial primary with fourth-term Attorney General Jim Hood and retired Jackson State University employee Velesha P. Williams.

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Smith was out of the office Monday and did not immediately answer a call to his home.

Hood’s office has unsuccessfully prosecuted Smith three times.

Two juries in Hinds County acquitted Smith of hindering-prosecution charges after Hood accused Smith of providing aid to a defendant who faced multiple charges.

A jury in Rankin County acquitted Smith on a robbery charge and could not reach a verdict on a stalking charge involving a woman he dated.