Forrest County backs bill to let sheriffs use radar for speed enforcement
FORREST COUNTY, Miss. — Forrest County supervisors approved a resolution this month backing legislation that would let sheriffs and deputies use radar to enforce speed limits, the Stockstill family said. The county is one of 19 in Mississippi to pass such a resolution, the family told the board, as they visit counties seeking support for the proposal.
The measure, Senate Bill 2614, was sponsored by Sen. Mike Thompson, R-Gulfport, and would have given county law enforcement authority to use radar for speed enforcement. The Mississippi Senate tabled the bill on Feb. 12, halting its progress for the session, according to legislative records. A separate proposal, Senate Bill 2616, called “Ayden’s Law” and introduced by Sen. Angela Burks Hill, R-Picayune, died earlier in committee, the bills’ sponsors and supporters said.
The effort is centered on Ayden Stockstill, a 14-year-old Picayune High School freshman who died in a crash last year, the Stockstill family said. During a recent Forrest County Board of Supervisors meeting, family members presented supervisors and Sheriff Charlie Sims with challenge coins bearing the phrase You Can’t Spell Team Without Ayden, the family and county officials said.
Supporters told supervisors they believe allowing sheriffs to use radar could reduce speeding and serious crashes, lower auto insurance costs and ease the economic toll of crashes. Estimates cited by supporters show the societal cost of traffic crashes in Mississippi exceeded $14 billion in 2024, they said. State law currently limits radar enforcement to the Mississippi Highway Patrol and municipal police departments, according to previous reporting by the Roy Howard Community Journalism Center.
Opponents argue expanding radar authority could prompt revenue-driven ticketing and produce inconsistent enforcement across counties, critics said. The Stockstill family asked Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann to bring SB 2614 back for a roll call vote, and supporters noted similar proposals allowing sheriffs to use radar have repeatedly failed to advance in the Mississippi Legislature, they said.
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