Frank Ervin Melton (March 19, 1949 – May 7, 2009)[1] was the mayor of Jackson, Mississippi, United States, from 4 July 2005 until his death on 7 May 2009.

Governor Haley Barbour, who defeated Musgrove in the 2003 gubernatorial election, dismissed Melton and other holdover political appointees when he took office.

Yet many city residents, including the NAACP and the ACLU, have disagreed with the mayor's crime-fighting tactics and what they call illegal and unconstitutional actions.

[4] In April 2006, Melton lambasted Hinds County District Attorney Faye Peterson because she would not put his star witness, Christopher Walker, on the stand to testify against Albert "Batman" Donelson, the alleged leader of the Wood Street Players.

Soon after Donelson was acquitted, Melton held a press conference with Walker, during which he accused the county's first black female district attorney of having an affair with a murdered bail bondsman, an allegation that was not substantiated.

Within days of that press conference, federal investigators revoked Walker's probation because he had failed nearly a dozen drug tests during the period leading up to the Donelson trial.

Melton told the Jackson Free Press that he did not have to heed Hood's warning, and continued to carry weapons wherever he wanted.

Melton was also indicted on three gun charges—a felony for carrying his weapon onto a college campus, two misdemeanors for the church and public park—the same day.

Melton, Michael Recio and Marcus Wright were acquitted on all counts filed in the Ridgeway Street incident on April 26, 2007.

"[9] He later on stated he viewed Joseph Stalin, John F. Kennedy, and Mao Zedong as his political influences, which caused him more controversy and cost him support from conservatives.

[9] Other African American leaders, including the president of the state NAACP, Derrick Johnson, and the director of the ACLU of Mississippi, Nsombi Lambright, called for justice for the victims of Melton's unorthodox and illegal crime-fighting strategies.

Those groups are leading an effort to start a civilian review board, in part in response to Melton's methods.

After reviewing the applicable state laws and ethics rules, counsel determined the Sheriff could head both agencies legally and be compensated from both.

Nov. 15, 2006 – Melton pleaded guilty to two misdemeanors for carrying a weapon into a church and a park, and no contest to a reduced charge on what had been a felony count involving a gun onto the grounds of the Mississippi College School of Law.

March 7, 2007 – Frank Melton left the hospital in the early morning and returned home without alerting the Sheriff's Department.

After his ankle bracelet alerted his probation officer that he was back at home, the sheriff called and told Melton to turn himself in to Hinds County authorities.

March 8, 2007 – The Mississippi Supreme Court vacated the arrest warrant for Frank Melton, and asked that Hinds County Circuit Judge Tomie Green be recused without explaining the reasons for either decision.

April 24, 2007 – Frank Melton goes on trial for felony charges stemming from the September 15, 2006 demolition of a house on Ridgeway Street.

February 24, 2009 – Melton's federal civil rights trial ended in a mistrial when jurors notified the judge that they could not arrive at a verdict.

On March 26, 2009, Jones County Circuit Court Judge Billy Joe Landrum ordered Melton restored as a Democratic mayoral candidate.

Landrum said Melton "overwhelmingly rebutted" the charge by showing documents with his Jackson home address, including his Mississippi driver's license, utility bills and voting records.