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On October 22, 2024, the Biloxi City Council quietly passed a resolution that most residents never noticed. It didn't involve roads, schools, or public safety. It was a simple personnel matter—or so it appeared.
Item No. 5A, Council Meeting October 22, 2024: Resolution appointing Brooke Vanover as Deputy Clerk of the Municipal Court.
The stated purpose? The Community Development Department "has situations that require immediate preparation of documents under oath at times when there is no deputy clerk available."
Read that again.
The Building Department needed its own Deputy Clerk of Court because sometimes they need to create sworn documents immediately—and they can't wait for actual court staff.
To understand why this is alarming, you need to understand what these "sworn documents" actually are.
What Is a Summons and Affidavit?
When the government accuses you of a crime—even a minor code violation—it can't just say "trust us." The Constitution requires more.
Here's something most Biloxians don't realize: a building code violation isn't just a fine or a warning. In Biloxi, ordinance violations are codified as crimes. When Jerry Creel decides you violated a code provision, he's not issuing a parking ticket. He's filing criminal charges. You become a criminal defendant. You face arrest. You need a lawyer. You could go to jail.
A summons is a legal command ordering you to appear in court to answer those criminal charges. It's how the government hauls you before a judge.
An affidavit is the document that justifies that summons. It's a written statement where the accuser—in this case, the Building Official—swears under oath that he personally witnessed you commit a violation. He signs it. He raises his right hand. He swears before God and the law that every word is true.
The oath is the safeguard. It's what separates an accusation from a criminal charge. Anyone can accuse you of anything. But to initiate the criminal machinery of the state—to summon you to court, to put your liberty at risk, to brand you a criminal defendant, to force you to hire a lawyer or face jail—the accuser must swear under penalty of perjury that the accusation is true.
Perjury is a felony. If you swear a false affidavit, you can go to prison.
That's the theory, anyway. The oath is supposed to make accusers think twice. It's supposed to ensure that only true accusations become criminal charges. It's supposed to protect you from government officials who might lie to punish you, silence you, or extract money from you.
The Deputy Clerk of Court is the official authorized to administer that oath—to witness the accuser raise his hand, swear the statement is true, and place his signature on the affidavit. Traditionally, this clerk works at the courthouse, for the court, independent of the accuser. The clerk is supposed to be separate from whoever is filing charges. Independent. A neutral check on the system.
That's how it's supposed to work.
What happens when the accuser gets his own Deputy Clerk of Court embedded in his own department?
"Advantageous"
Look again at the resolution's language:
"The Community Development Department has situations that require immediate preparation of documents under oath at times when there is no deputy clerk available to take an officers' oath and that it would be advantageous to have employees on duty at such times to complete the sworn documents for code enforcement violations."
Advantageous.
Not "necessary." Not "required by law." Not "in the interest of justice." Not "to protect public safety."
Advantageous.
The City of Biloxi, in its official resolution, admitted in writing that giving the Building Department its own Deputy Clerk of Court would be advantageous—beneficial, favorable, profitable—for creating criminal charges against citizens.
Advantageous for whom?
Not for you, the citizen, who now faces a Building Official with the power to manufacture criminal charges in-house without any independent oversight.
Not for justice, which requires separation between accusers and the machinery that makes accusations official.
Not for due process, which demands that the person swearing out criminal charges against you doesn't control the clerk who administers the oath.
Advantageous for Jerry Creel. Advantageous for Peter Abide. Advantageous for a system that profits from every criminal defendant it creates.
They said the quiet part out loud. They put it in writing. They passed it unanimously.
And nobody asked: advantageous for whom?
The Resolution's True Purpose
The resolution was recommended by one person: Jerry Creel, Director of Community Development.
Jerry Creel recommended that his own department get its own Deputy Clerk of Court. The Mayor agreed. The Council approved it. And just like that, the Building Official got his own court.
Translation: Sometimes Jerry Creel needs to file criminal charges against citizens quickly, and he can't wait for actual court staff to administer oaths on his affidavits. So the City gave him his own clerk—on his payroll, in his department, under his supervision—to swear in his accusations on demand.
The safeguard is gone. The independence is gone. The check on false accusations is gone.
The Law They Bypassed
Mississippi Rule of Criminal Procedure 2.2 is titled "Duty of Judge upon Making of a Charging Affidavit." Not "Duty of Clerk." Not "Duty of Building Department Staff." Duty of Judge.
The rule states: "If it appears from the charging affidavit and the evidence submitted that there is probable cause to believe that the offense complained of has been committed and that there is probable cause to believe that the defendant committed it, the judge shall proceed."
A judge. An independent judicial officer. Someone whose job is to evaluate whether an accusation has merit before the machinery of criminal prosecution destroys a citizen's life.
The rule continues: "Before ruling on a request for a warrant, the judge may examine under oath the affiant and any witnesses the affiant may produce."
The judge can question the accuser. The judge can probe the facts. The judge can refuse to issue charges if the affidavit smells wrong.
Rule 1.4(d) defines a "charging affidavit" as a statement made upon oath before "a judge, clerk of the court, or other officer authorized by law to administer oaths." The clerk is a fallback—for when a judge isn't available. And the clerk is supposed to be at the courthouse, working for the court, independent of whoever is filing charges.
July 10, 2025 was a Wednesday. Normal business hours. The Biloxi Municipal Court was open. Multiple clerks were on duty—Ashley, Tyler, others. A judge was presumably available to review probable cause, as Mississippi law contemplates.
Yet Jerry Creel didn't walk to the courthouse. He didn't present his affidavits to a judge who might ask uncomfortable questions. He didn't even use the court's own clerks.
He used Brooke Vanover. His employee. In his department. On his payroll.
The resolution didn't say Vanover would be used "when no judge is available." It didn't say "when the courthouse is closed." It didn't say "in emergencies only."
It said her appointment would be "advantageous."
Advantageous for creating criminal charges without a judge ever reviewing probable cause. Advantageous for bypassing the constitutional safeguard that exists specifically to prevent government officials from filing false accusations. Advantageous for ensuring that no one—not a judge, not an independent clerk, not anyone outside Creel's control—ever questions whether his sworn statements are true.
The City of Biloxi didn't just give Jerry Creel his own Deputy Clerk. They gave him a way around the judge entirely.
The Machine
To understand why this matters, you need to understand how Biloxi manufactures criminal charges against its own citizens.
Step one: Jerry Creel decides you've committed a violation. Not a real violation, necessarily. Just one he says exists. Remember—this isn't a civil citation. This is a crime.
Who is Jerry Creel? He's a hydra.
Building Official. Community Development Director. Code Enforcement Director. Secretary to the Board of Adjustments and Appeals—the very body that reviews his own decisions. Historic Preservation Director.
Five hats. One head. Zero accountability.
Presumably the City of Biloxi stopped short of also appointing him Superman and Supreme Court Justice, but give them time.
When Creel issues a Stop Work Order, you appeal to a board where Creel serves as secretary. When Creel's code enforcement team cites you, it reports to Creel. When Creel decides your property falls within the Historic District—boundaries he helped expand, which he admitted on national television exist solely for "aesthetic" purposes—you answer to Creel.
And when Creel decides to file criminal charges? He walks down the hall to his own Deputy Clerk.
Here's what makes the hydra profitable: every criminal charge Creel manufactures becomes billable hours for Peter Abide—the highest-paid attorney in Biloxi history, pulling $566,000+ annually while the City claims it needs to raise your property taxes. Creel creates the charges. Abide bills to prosecute them. Abide bills to defend the City when you sue over them. Abide bills to block your public records requests about them.
The hydra feeds the machine. The machine feeds Abide. Abide feeds the hydra.
Step two: Creel writes an affidavit swearing he personally witnessed the violation.
Step three: That affidavit needs to be sworn under oath before a Deputy Clerk of Court to transform his accusation into an official criminal charge.
Step four: Who administers that oath? Before October 2024, Creel would have needed to go to the Municipal Court and use their staff. That creates a paper trail. That involves people outside his control. That takes time. That might invite questions.
After October 2024? Brooke Vanover—Community Development staff by day, Deputy Clerk of the Municipal Court by resolution—administers the oath right there in Creel's department. No trip to the courthouse. No outside eyes. No independent verification. No questions asked.
Step five: The charges are filed. You're now a criminal defendant. You get arrested. You face prosecution.
Step six: Peter Abide's supervised prosecutor pursues the case. Peter Abide's controlled judge hears it. Peter Abide's law firm bills $150/hour to defend the City against your constitutional claims.
One man. Five hats. His own clerk. His own court.
Meet the Accomplices
Jerry Creel doesn't operate alone. Every machine needs parts.
Brooke Vanover — Community Development staff by day, Deputy Clerk of the Municipal Court by resolution. She's the one who administers the oaths. She's the one who makes Creel's accusations official.
On July 10, 2025, Vanover put her signature on four criminal affidavits. She administered the oath. She certified that Jerry Creel raised his right hand and swore before God and the law that he personally witnessed violations at 10:00 AM that morning.
We already know what happened next: the 10:30 AM email about routine paperwork. The citizen recovering from eye surgery. The timeline that doesn't survive five minutes of scrutiny.
Vanover's signature is on those documents. Not Creel's signature alone—hers too. A Deputy Clerk of Court who administers an oath has one job: ensure the person swearing is telling the truth. She certified that Creel's word was reliable enough to turn a citizen into a criminal defendant.
She works for Creel. He recommended her appointment. She owes her Deputy Clerk position to him. And when it mattered—when her signature would launch criminal charges against a man three days out of eye surgery—she signed.
Tara Busby — Code Enforcement Manager for the City of Biloxi. She supervises the inspectors who generate the violations that become the criminal charges that Vanover swears in that Creel signs off on that Abide's prosecutors pursue that Abide's judges hear that Abide's firm bills to defend.
Busby doesn't just enforce codes. She enforces Creel's will. When Creel decides you're a target, Busby's team finds the violations—or creates them. When Creel needs documentation, Busby's inspectors produce it. When the machine needs fuel, Code Enforcement delivers.
On August 5, 2025, someone from the City entered a citizen's property at 929 Division Street without consent, photographed the premises, and interrogated the citizen's wife. No warrant. No permission. No legal authority.
That's Code Enforcement under Tara Busby. That's the team Creel commands. That's the machine in action.
These aren't innocent bureaucrats following orders. Vanover chose to administer oaths on affidavits she had reason to question. Busby chose to run a code enforcement operation that targets citizens rather than protects them. They work under Creel, but they have their own signatures on the documents. They have their own names on the actions. They made their own choices.
In federal court, they're named as defendants—sued in both their official and individual capacities. Because when you participate in a conspiracy to deprive citizens of their constitutional rights, "I was just following orders" isn't a defense. It's a confession.
The False Affidavits
On July 10, 2025, Jerry Creel signed four criminal affidavits against a Biloxi citizen.
The affidavits claimed Creel personally witnessed violations at "10 o'clock" that morning. Four separate criminal charges. Four separate accusations sworn under oath.
There was just one problem: the citizen was home recovering from eye surgery performed three days earlier on July 7, 2025.
At 10:30 AM on July 10—thirty minutes after Creel supposedly witnessed these urgent criminal violations—Creel emailed the same citizen about a routine engineering review. No mention of violations. No mention of criminal charges. No urgency whatsoever.
If Creel had actually witnessed crimes at 10:00 AM, would he casually email the criminal about paperwork thirty minutes later?
The affidavits were sworn before Brooke Vanover.
The same Brooke Vanover whose appointment Creel personally recommended eight months earlier. The same Deputy Clerk embedded in Creel's own department. The same clerk who exists specifically so the Building Department can create sworn documents "immediately" without involving actual court staff.
Did Vanover ask Creel any questions before administering the oath on those affidavits? Did she verify that Creel was actually at the property at 10:00 AM? Did she notice that Creel sent a routine email thirty minutes after supposedly witnessing criminal activity?
We don't know. But we know this: an independent court clerk—one who doesn't work for Creel, doesn't report to Creel, doesn't owe her job to Creel—might have asked those questions.
That's why the safeguard exists. That's why oaths are supposed to be administered by independent court officials. That's why Jerry Creel wanted his own Deputy Clerk—and that's why the City Council should never have given him one.
The Confrontation
On November 7, 2025, the citizen whose life Creel had upended appeared before the Board of Adjustments and Appeals.
In front of eight board members, two police officers, defense counsel, city inspectors, and a court reporter, he confronted Creel directly.
He called Creel a perjurer. He specified the four false affidavits. He detailed the July 10 timeline—the supposed 10:00 AM observation, the casual 10:30 AM email, the eye surgery recovery. He accused Creel of being a criminal. He said there was an active FBI investigation.— November 7, 2025 Board of Adjustments and Appeals
Creel said nothing.
No denial. No defense. No explanation. No outrage at being falsely accused.
Two police officers stood right there. If the accusation was false, Creel could have demanded an arrest for defamation. Attorneys were present. He could have threatened a lawsuit. At minimum, an innocent man would say: "That's not true."
Silence.
Under Federal Rule of Evidence 801(d)(2)(B), silence in the face of accusatory statements may constitute an adoptive admission when a reasonable person would deny if the accusation were untrue.
The prosecution later collapsed. On September 19, 2025, the Municipal Court dismissed the case after the prosecution failed to produce evidence despite a discovery order.
But here's the twist: the dismissal order maintained the Stop Work Order indefinitely. The criminal charges were dropped, but the punishment continues. The citizen still cannot occupy his own home. The $1.2 million property remains unusable.
This is how the machine works. The charges don't need to stick. They just need to exist long enough to destroy you.
The Structural Corruption
This is not a story about one bad actor. This is a story about a system designed to fail citizens and enrich insiders.
The hydra doesn't hunt alone.
When Creel files criminal charges, they're sworn before his own departmental Deputy Clerk of Court. Prosecuted by attorneys supervised by Peter Abide. Heard by judges whose pay Abide controls. Defended by Abide's law firm at $150/hour.
When you request public records about any of this, Peter Abide—who "shall not be considered an employee of the City"—blocks the request and charges you 26,000% above statutory rates.
When you file a federal lawsuit, Creel admits on the record that you "bypassed us and filed a federal lawsuit" and "flooded us with public records requests." Thirty-four days later, criminal charges appear.
This is not law enforcement. This is a billing operation with badges.
The Bottom Line
The October 22, 2024 resolution wasn't about administrative convenience. It was about completing the machine.
Jerry Creel needed the power to create criminal charges without outside oversight. The resolution gave him that power. Now he can accuse you, swear the accusation before his own Deputy Clerk of Court, file the charges, manage your appeal, and maintain enforcement orders against you indefinitely—all while Peter Abide's network bills taxpayers for every hour of your suffering.
The oath was supposed to protect you. The clerk was supposed to be independent. The system was supposed to have checks.
The City of Biloxi gave its Building Official his own court.
And you're paying for it.
A Note on Transparency
Before publication, an email was sent to Jerry Creel, Michael Whitehead, Esq., Zachary Curthirds, Esq., and J. Henry Ross, Esq., inviting them to rebut any fact contained in this article.
Every claim made here is based on publicly available City of Biloxi ordinances, resolutions posted on the City's own website, and the criminal affidavits Creel himself signed—documents attached below for readers to verify independently.
Unlike Mr. Creel—who filed criminal charges against a citizen without warning, without investigation, and without any opportunity to respond—we believe in transparency. Unlike the attorneys who have billed taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars to defend the indefensible while blocking public records requests—we believe in directness.
They are welcome to defend themselves. If they reply, their response will be posted in full, unedited.
As of publication, we have received no response.
Documents Referenced
- Item No. 5A, Council Meeting October 22, 2024: Resolution appointing Brooke Vanover as Deputy Clerk
- Resolution No. 327-17
- July 10, 2025 Criminal Affidavits
- November 7, 2025 Board of Adjustments and Appeals Transcript
- Mississippi Rule of Criminal Procedure 2.2
- Mississippi Rule of Criminal Procedure 1.4(d)
- Federal Rule of Evidence 801(d)(2)(B)
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