Judge orders county to make back payments to city

CLARKSDALE — A judge has ordered Coahoma County to return the city of Clarksdale about $62,000 — back payments that county’s appears to have been withholding in an annexation dispute.

The board of supervisors met Wednesday but left the meeting with board president Paul Peterson telling the Clarksdale Press Register the matter is “ongoing litigation.”

Earlier this month, Circuit Judge Johnnie Walls ruled the county’s actions were in retaliation for Clarksdale refusing to negotiate over the annexation issue.

The deadline for the county to appeal Walls’ ruling to the Mississippi Supreme Court is March 8.

Last May, the county began withholding the monthly payments to the city from casino tax collections. It continued paying the towns of Lula, Lyon and Coahoma. The county has one casino, the Isle of Capri.