After Jackson tragedy, will B.A.S.S. ever come back?

Truth is, fishing tournaments are often held in more dangerous cities

The City of Jackson, Barnett Reservoir and all of Mississippi have a long history with the Bass Anglers Sportsman Society, and its Bassmaster tournament circuit.

B.A.S.S. was born in Ray Scott’s mind in the late ’60s in a Highway 80 motel in Jackson during a visit that was to include a fishing trip on Barnett Reservoir.

Now, it is feared that a tragic shooting at another hotel on another highway in Jackson will be the death of the B.A.S.S./Mississippi relationship.

Texas fisherman James “Jimmy” Johnson was shot in the face Sunday night after confronting a man he allegedly saw rummaging through his covered boat in the parking lot of Motel 6 on I-55 North in North Jackson.

Johnson, 56, died a few feet from his bass boat.

A well-liked fisherman, Johnson was in town preparing for the Bassmaster Central Open, which starts Thursday on Barnett Reservoir.

Jackson police say they are looking for an unidentified male captured on the motel’s surveillance cameras. They have not said if the man, who they described as being black and wearing a red shirt, is the suspected shooter or a witness.

The investigation is ongoing.

As could be expected, a maelstrom of reaction erupted on the Internet, both from the Jackson area and the nationwide fishing community. Much of it was vile and racist, and will be not included here.

“B.A.S.S. finally brings a tournament back to Ross Barnett and some thug murders one of the fishermen outside his hotel room,” local bass angler Trey Hammock posted on his Facebook page. “… I am sure this is the last major event we will ever have here. My prayers go out to Jimmy Johnson’s family.”

Said another, referring to B.A.S.S.’s visits to Barnett Reservoir, “Last in our lifetime.”

B.A.S.S. has not indicated any plan to drop Barnett or the Metro Jackson area from future consideration. A spokesman said the organization realized “it was an isolated incident” and that the tournament would continue as scheduled.

Obviously, you know B.A.S.S. will think hard before returning.

My question is this: If not Barnett Reservoir, then where?

Are there enough safe places, with good fishing and enough infrastructure to support an event, for B.A.S.S. to fill a complete schedule? Statistically, Jackson is no worse than many other cities B.A.S.S. visits.

Sure, shooting deaths are all too common in Jackson and Mississippi. According to the Washington, D.C.-based Violence Policy Center, the state ranked No. 2 in a 2010 analysis of gun deaths nationwide. Mississippi sees 6.9 gun murders for every 100,000 persons, nearly double the national average of 3.6.

Jackson contributed greatly to that ranking. Over the past 30 years, statistics from the Federal Bureau of Investigation show that Jackson has averaged 52 homicides a year. Between 1991-1995, considered the peak of the crack war, Jackson had over 80 murders annually, but with those years removed the average is still a fraction above 46 for three decades. Six different mayors have vowed to stop the carnage; none have done so.

Furthermore, Johnson was one of two homicide victims in Jackson Sunday. A convenience store worker was shot during a robbery attempt and later died in surgery.

Jackson was ranked No. 8 on the list of most dangerous cities in America in 2012 by Business Insider magazine, but such rankings can be deceiving and can vary in surveys based on how the crime rates are derived.

That same year, Jackson was not included on the list of 100 most dangerous cities chosen by NeighborhoodScout.com. You can find Jackson, Tenn. (No. 76), but not Jackson, Miss., and in 2011, the same list had Jackson, Mich. (98), but not Jackson, Miss.

NeighborhoodScout.com’s list also includes Birmingham (25), where B.A.S.S. is headquartered and where it has held five Bassmaster Classics. Birmingham is No. 3 on a ranking by U.S. News and Word Report.

NeighborhoodScout.com’s list also includes Tulsa, Okla. (90), where B.A.S.S. conducted its 2013 Classic, the premier bass fishing event, which draws thousands of fishermen and fishing fans to the host city.

The Classic has also gone to New Orleans (No. 5, Buisness Insider) twice in the last decade.

Looking down those lists, you will find several sites, or general locations where B.A.S.S. visits, like Detroit (as high as No. 6) and Orlando (67).

B.A.S.S. is aware of these statistics; it has to be. Yet, it continues to take its events into those cities and areas. Granted, no fishermen have ever been shot and killed at a B.A.S.S. event until Sunday, but a B.A.S.S. spokesman said there have been many incidences of non-violent crimes.

Now, back to the question about Jackson’s relationship with B.A.S.S.

Technically, there hasn’t been one for a while, probably not since the 1978 Bassmaster Classic on Barnett.

In B.A.S.S.’s last three trips to Barnett, 1996, 1998 and this year, Jackson and Hinds County have had no involvement.

The suburb of Ridgeland is the 2013 host city, and the neighboring counties of Madison and Rankin have been involved in the past.

Fact is, Barnett Reservoir is not located in Jackson nor does it even touch Hinds County.

Barnett Reservoir is the water supply for Jackson in perpetuity and cost-free (all paid up front), as well as a source of revenue and recreation for Jackson, and the city has two seats on its Board of Directors.

However, when discussing the relationship, it is best to put it this way: The city and the lake co-exist.

It takes money and commitment to bring a B.A.S.S. event to a location, and in return a B.A.S.S. tournament like this week’s Central Open brings hundreds of pro fishermen and amateur partners to the area, B.A.S.S. staff and scores of industry-related support crews for about a week.

This week’s event has 154 pros registered, and all but 20 are from outside Mississippi. Those visitors are staying in metro area motels and hotels, eating in metro restaurants, shopping in metro stores and buying gas, lots of gas, at metro stations. For each pro, there is an amateur “non-boater” also spending a lot of money.

The immediate economic impact is projected to be well over $1 million. Jackson will get some, but host Ridgeland and other suburbs like Flowood and Madison, will get the majority.

Many of the visiting pros chose to avoid Jackson, choosing Ridgeland out of respect for their sponsorship, or other suburbs out of respect for “their own personal safety.”

Speaking on anonymity, a visiting bass pro said he had heard through “the fishing grapevine” to avoid Jackson. He said he had been told Jackson was unsafe, and he chose a motel in Ridgeland that costs about $20 more a night than other options, including the Motel 6 in Jackson where Johnson was killed.

“Here’s my thinking,” he said. “I have a $65,000 bass boat filled with about $35,000 in accessories and tackle. That’s $100,000. Am I going to risk that for a $20 a night savings? No.”

Many Web site comments took that angle further: “Seriously, is a boat or fishing tackle worth risking you life to protect?”

No, but it certainly isn’t worth killing somebody over.

Nobody is blaming Johnson for his choice of motels, not one bit.

Many Open fishermen fish on shoestring budgets, cutting corners where they can to live their dream of competing on the pro circuit. Some stay in no-frill, low-cost motels; some eat a lot of peanut butter or bologna sandwiches.

It is a way of life for fishermen, which is why it is a close-knit family.

Said bass pro Pete Ponds of Madison, an Elite Series angler who is fishing the Open on his home waters: “We are like a family. We usually stay together and have travel buddies we hook up with as we hit the road. It just so happened Jimmy kind of got away from the group.

“I just hope it doesn’t give Jackson or Mississippi or Barnett Reservoir a black eye.”

The homicide is tragic, but it could have occurred at any B.A.S.S. tournament location.

It just happened to be in Jackson that a boat was being pilfered, an angler — “an unarmed fisherman from Texas, if you can believe that,” said one Internet commenter — went to confront the perpetrator in a secluded back parking lot of a motel, and ran into a criminal with a gun and absolutely no regard for human life.