MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE

2017 1st Extraordinary Session

To: Rules

By: Senator(s) Simmons (12th), Norwood, Butler, Simmons (13th), Blackmon, Witherspoon, Frazier, Hopson, Jordan, Dawkins, Jackson (11th), Stone, Barnett, Turner-Ford, Blount, Jackson (32nd)

Senate Resolution 11

(As Adopted by Senate)

A RESOLUTION RECOGNIZING THE DISTINGUISHED PROSECUTORIAL SERVICE OF UNITED STATES ATTORNEY FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF MISSISSIPPI GREGORY K. DAVIS WHO WAS THE FIRST AFRICAN-AMERICAN ATTORNEY TO SERVE IN THIS POST.

     WHEREAS, Honorable Gregory K. Davis has announced his retirement from office as United States Attorney for the Southern District of Mississippi; and

     WHEREAS, President Barack Obama nominated Gregory K. Davis to serve as a United States Attorney in June 2011; and

     WHEREAS, "I am pleased to nominate Gregory K. Davis to serve the people of Mississippi as a United States Attorney," said President Obama; and

     WHEREAS, Gregory Davis was a member of the law firm Davis, Goss & Williams, PLLC since 1989.  He cofounded this firm and his practice focused on Civil Litigation.  From 1987 to 1989 he was an Associate Attorney for the law firm Stamps & Stamps.  Mr. Davis graduated from Mississippi State University in 1984 and Tulane University School of Law in 1987; and

     WHEREAS, U.S. Attorney Gregory Davis was active in youth mentorship, speaking at Forest Hill High School in January 2017 as the most recent stop in his Legal Enrichment and Decision-Making (LEAD) Campaign, which helps educate young people to understand and confront some of the challenges they face in their lives each day.  Mississippi teens' first encounter with law enforcement should be in a classroom, not a courtroom.  "We have seen a lot of things that have affected them, bullying, cyberbullying, gangs, violence, drugs, and we want to talk to them so they can see what the consequences of the decisions they make today can be for them," Davis said.  "We also want to show them what positive effect education and employment can have on their lives."  Davis has given the presentation around the state, and he can see in the reactions of his young audiences that they are already facing a lot of the challenges the LEAD Campaign targets.  "That is why it is important to go ahead and give them the educational tools they need to feel good about making the right decisions.  Prevention is a major part of enforcement," he said; and

     WHEREAS, Honorable Gregory Davis was a leader and mentor in The Mississippi Bar, consistently following the standards of the practice, including ethics, integrity, civility, courtesy, and adherence to the Golden Rule.  His contributions to the federal court system have honored both The Mississippi Bar and this great state that Gregory Davis has served:

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, That we do hereby recognize the distinguished prosecutorial service of United States Attorney for the Southern District of Mississippi Gregory K. Davis who was the first African-American attorney to serve in this post, and extending our best wishes to Gregory and his family for success as he enters the next chapter of his career.

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That this resolution be presented to Gregory Davis, forwarded to the Administrator of Courts for the Southern District of Mississippi and The Mississippi Bar, and made available to the Capitol Press Corps.