DeSoto County, Mississippi — A new billboard greeting drivers entering Mississippi from Memphis is drawing attention for its blunt warning about crime and the death penalty.
The sign, placed along southbound Interstate 55 near the Tennessee state line, reads: “Welcome to Mississippi. Where the firing squad is legal. Think twice.” DeSoto County District Attorney Matthew Barton announced the campaign, saying it is intended to deter violent crime and reinforce the county’s law-and-order posture.
“We are going to be loud and clear that DeSoto County does not coddle violent criminals,” Barton said, adding that people who bring violence across the state line will be prosecuted aggressively.
The billboard follows Barton’s earlier “Turn Back Now” campaign, which also warned criminals not to come into DeSoto County. Supporters of such messaging argue it sends a clear deterrent signal, while critics may view it as performative or unnecessarily harsh.
Mississippi authorized firing squad executions in 2017 as an alternative method if lethal injection drugs are unavailable. The law also allows other execution methods, including electrocution and nitrogen gas, under certain circumstances.
The issue comes as the Department of Justice has also moved to revive the use of firing squads and electric chairs in some federal death penalty cases.
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