Councilman Kenneth Stokes says hospitalized wife is ‘doing a lot better’

JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) - The wife of Jackson City Councilman Kenneth Stokes remains in the intensive care unit of St. Dominic’s Hospital in Jackson, but he says she is “doing a lot better.”

Stokes says his wife, Judge Larita Cooper-Stokes, was hospitalized Thursday morning after telling him she was having trouble breathing once she woke up.

Larita Cooper-Stokes serves as a County Court Judge for District 2 in Hinds County.

Councilman Stokes says they have taken nearly a liter of fluid from her body and that doctors will continue to run additional tests on her as deemed necessary.

“I want to start off by saying ‘thank you’ to Saint Dominic’s hospital, the doctors, the staff,” said Councilman Stokes. “We have a lot of things going wrong in Jackson, but one of the good things that’s taken place in Jackson is our medical facilities. We need to say a lot more about medical facilities.”

His wife is expected to remain under intensive care into next week.

Stokes has asked that everyone keep her in their prayers during her road to recovery.

“We just want to take a second and say thank you,” said Councilman Stokes. “Black, white, green, grey, polka dot, young, old, fat, skinny. People saying they praying for us and they ask what they can do, and I tell them: prayer. Prayer is the answer. If you want to do something for us, pray for us.”

Judge Cooper-Stokes was hospitalized in 2016 due to an erratic heartbeat. She was in a hospital in Houston, Texas for the same problem in April of 2015.

Want more WLBT news in your inbox? Click here to subscribe to our newsletter.

Copyright 2023 WLBT. All rights reserved.