Thursday, June 23, 2005

Mississippi finally does something right

From CNN:

Ex-Klansman sentenced to 60 years

Killen convicted in 1964 slayings of civil rights workers

PHILADELPHIA, Mississippi (CNN) -- A Mississippi judge Thursday sentenced former Ku Klux Klansman Edgar Ray Killen to 60 years in prison for the manslaughter of three civil rights workers in 1964.

Killen, an 80-year-old part-time preacher, was convicted on three counts of manslaughter Tuesday, 41 years to the day a Klan mob ambushed and killed the civil rights workers -- James Chaney, 21; Andrew Goodman, 20; and Michael Schwerner, 24. (more)


Rest in Peace; Andrew, James and Michael

5 comments:

Damien said...

Hearing you on that one Lizzy, still getting pissed that the News reports keep saying "which inspired the movie". 60years, should have made it a hundred!

Sheryl said...

Just curious: how did they manage to try him again if they already tried him in 1967? Because there were three different murders?

halcyon67 said...

I think the first trial resulted in a hung jury, and I think he was tried with others as well.

There are people saying he doesn't deserve 60 years in jail. He spent over 30 a free man evading the law.

For once, Justice Was Served by putting this societal monster in jail.

Sheryl said...

If he was evading the law for 30 years, then they must have let him out after the first trial, unless he escaped or jumped bail. They obvious must have had him in custody initially at least if he was tried in 1967. Cause they can't try you if you are not there to face your accusers.

Perhaps they found more evidence or something, which would allow them to get around the double jeopardy aspect of the law.

They never report the interesting parts, eh?

Lizzy said...

From CNN:

In a 1967 federal trial, an all-white jury deadlocked 11-1 in favor of convicting Killen. The holdout said she could not vote to convict a preacher.