Nixon names Messina's successor on Jackson County bench

Jennifer Phillips will succeed Judge Edith Messina as a Jackson County Circuit Court judge, Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon announced Tuesday. Phillips will be familiar with the 16th Circuit. She has been in the county prosecutor's office since 2002, including her current role overseeing the violent crimes unit and its seven trial attorneys, according to a release from Nixon's office. Before becoming a prosecutor, Phillips worked for the Missouri Department of Revenue. She attended the University of Missouri…