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[Malyse]

The U.S. Justice Department may again reopen its investigation into the 1955 killing of Emmett Till.

The revelation came a week after Attorney General Jeff Sessions expressed his support for pursuing and prosecuting killers who went unpunished in the civil rights era. “He said no one gets a pass,” said Till’s cousin, Deborah Watts, who along with activist Alvin Sykes met with Sessions.

Till’s killers were never convicted. The African-American teenager from Chicago, who was visiting family in Mississippi, was killed three days after he reportedly wolf-whistled at a white woman.

Justice officials are exploring the possibility of reopening the Till case because Carolyn Bryant Donham has admitted she lied when she testified that he touched her — a lie she repeated to the FBI a decade ago.

Donham admitted her lie to Timothy B. Tyson, author of the new book, The Blood of Emmett Till.

“Nothing that boy did could ever justify what happened to him,” Donham was quoted as saying.

“The Department is currently assessing whether the newly revealed statement could warrant additional investigation,” acting Assistant Attorney General T.E. Wheeler II wrote U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., in a letter.

Wheeler warned against raised expectations.

“We caution, however, that even with our best efforts, investigations into historic cases are exceptionally difficult, and there may be insurmountable legal and evidentiary barriers to bringing federal charges against any remaining living persons,” he wrote.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news...rtment-may-reopen-emmett-till-case/100070664/

I really don't expect anything to come of this at all, but I can't justly opposed forward progress even if it be so minor.

 

[dskillzhtown]

Sessions done turned a new leaf? I doubt it, but this would be weird as hell with him in charge.

 

[Iksenpets]

Sessions done turned a new leaf? I doubt it, but this would be weird as hell with him in charge.

It's a good fig leaf for him to cover for doing other shit. I can't be a racist for ending all investigations of police brutality because I launched almost-certainly-doomed-to-fail investigations into 60-year-old crimes!

That said, awesome if they somehow manage to prosecute someone.

 

[Trey]

Sessions done turned a new leaf? I doubt it, but this would be weird as hell with him in charge.

No, he didn't. And even if he had, opening Till's case is much more symbolic than tangible, and fits nicely in the rhetoric that all racism and violent hate crimes only happened back in the Jim Crow era.

It's an empty gesture.

 

[Beartruck]

Weird move coming from Sessions of all people, but I approve.

 

[Cyan]

Ok dumb question: what would actually happen if this went forward, given the murderers died 20+ years ago? Do they just look at the magazine confession and go "ok they did it, officially" so people get some closure?

 

[EdibleKnife]

No, he didn't. And even if he had, opening Till's case is much more symbolic than tangible, and fits nicely in the rhetoric that all racism and violent hate crimes only happened back in the Jim Crow era.

It's an empty gesture.

100% agree

 

[wildfire]

Weird move coming from Sessions of all people, but I approve.

Agree but I seriously doubt any perpetrator is alive now. We'll see if they have a suspect who is alive and what they do from there.

 

[Escape Goat]

Ok dumb question: what would actually happen if this went forward, given the murderers died 20+ years ago? Do they just look at the magazine confession and go "ok they did it, officially" so people get some closure?

You can't convict dead people. But there's new evidence that key testimony was a lie so shit is bogus. They'd have to look at it again.

 

[Malyse]

Ok dumb question: what would actually happen if this went forward, given the murderers died 20+ years ago? Do they just look at the magazine confession and go "ok they did it, officially" so people get some closure?

See

No, he didn't. And even if he had, opening Till's case is much more symbolic than tangible, and fits nicely in the rhetoric that all racism and violent hate crimes only happened back in the Jim Crow era.

It's an empty gesture.

Unless they move on something that's less cut and dry or more importantly, move on something relevant to today (like that motherfucker with the sword) it's all basically meaningless.

Weird move coming from Sessions of all people, but I approve.

Not when this is still dogging his steps:

 

[Snowman Prophet of Doom]

They've gotta be proactive to curb the heinous crime of painting a picture of him.

On-topic, seems purely symbolic, but if it gives someone closure, hard to knock it.

 

[Derwind]

This might give more legal meat in the future for similar cases of injustice.

But I agree that it's weird given who the attorney general is...

 

[ZOONAMI]

Sessions done turned a new leaf? I doubt it, but this would be weird as hell with him in charge.

Seems kind of like a PR stunt unless something actually comes of this, then, food for him.

 

[Dan]

This feels like a hollow PR stunt. Something Sessions can point at as a deflection.

 

[Slayven]

This feels like a hollow PR stunt. Something Sessions can point at as a deflection.

This. "See I love the Negros, especially the dead ones"

 

[Angelus Errare]

Sessions done turned a new leaf? I doubt it, but this would be weird as hell with him in charge.

Nothing Sessions does will make him even remotely likeable or respectable among black America, he is and will always be a piece of shit until his dying breath.

The only people who will champion this are Van Jones and those like him, and racists.

 

[OG Shaka Zulu]

If he doesn't lock up Till's accuser for perjury then he's full of shit. She should pass away with prison medical staff at her bedside instead of family.

 

[Mammoth Jones]

No, he didn't. And even if he had, opening Till's case is much more symbolic than tangible, and fits nicely in the rhetoric that all racism and violent hate crimes only happened back in the Jim Crow era.

It's an empty gesture.

Glad someone understands this.

 

[The Last Wizard]

May? Didn't the woman admit to lying?

 

[JCX]

No, he didn't. And even if he had, opening Till's case is much more symbolic than tangible, and fits nicely in the rhetoric that all racism and violent hate crimes only happened back in the Jim Crow era.

It's an empty gesture.

Yep, this is exactly right.

 

[LifEndz]

Saw this thread and was prepared for Sessions somehow wanting to exonerate the two monsters that killed Till.

 

[Heroman]

Saw this thread and was prepared for Sessions somehow wanting to exonerate the two monsters that killed Till.

They already were.

 

[kswiston]

If he doesn't lock up Till's accuser for perjury then he's full of shit. She should pass away with prison medical staff at her bedside instead of family.

Is Carolyn Bryant still alive? Was it the wife of the brother-in-law who died recently?

 

[PataHikari]

I thought the murderers were arrested, tried, and declared Not Guilty in a disgusting example of Jury Nullification protecting racism. So you can't reopen the case because Double Jeopardy is in effect.

 

[Heroman]

Is Carolyn Bryant still alive? Was it the wife of the brother-in-law who died recently?

Yes

 

[kswiston]

I thought the murderers were arrested, tried, and declared Not Guilty in a disgusting example of Jury Nullification protecting racism. So you can't reopen the case because Double Jeopardy is in effect.

They only tried Bryant's husband and his half-brother. Both of them have been dead for a long time. Bryant lied on the stand, and there could have been other people involved.

EDIT: This will no doubt be symbolic given that the event was 62 years ago and anyone involved is dead or very old, but it's still worth doing.

Yes

Thanks. I know I participated in that thread, but couldn't remember who died.

 

[Mortemis]

No, he didn't. And even if he had, opening Till's case is much more symbolic than tangible, and fits nicely in the rhetoric that all racism and violent hate crimes only happened back in the Jim Crow era.

It's an empty gesture.

My thoughts as well.

 

[Sho_Nuff82]

Even if they could reopen the case (they can't), what purpose would it serve? The killers admitted to doing it a year after they were acquitted by an all white jury.

There is no recourse to the family. We all know who did it. We know why they did it. We know why they got away with it. Unless you want to start a scholarship fund in his name, or actually tackle the racism in the criminal justice system that causes such injustice, what else is there?

For Sessions to deny the victimhood of modern black civilians with his nonchalant dismissal of the Ferguson/Chicago reports, and then have Wheeler say "The Department is currently assessing whether the newly revealed statement could warrant additional investigation", it just seems like empty rhetoric to fulfill the 'hey, we tried that one thing one time aren't we progressive' quota.

Edit: Thinking about it more, the implication is even worse. "Only now, now that a white woman has recanted her testimony 50 years after the fact, can we possibly consider maybe opening up a federal investigation into the most heinous, blatant, open & shut hate crime of the 20th century. But don't expect much."

 

[TheCochese]

Distraction tactics, but you take what you can get.

 

[Malyse]

If he doesn't lock up Till's accuser for perjury then he's full of shit. She should pass away with prison medical staff at her bedside instead of family.

It's an old white lady who had her eyesight tarnished by the vision of a negro child.

It was the 1950's, how could she have known any better?

I think that living with the shame of what's she's done for all these years is a far greater burden than any the courts could impose on her.

Let's all have a Pepsi and move on.

 

[Kusagari]

No, he didn't. And even if he had, opening Till's case is much more symbolic than tangible, and fits nicely in the rhetoric that all racism and violent hate crimes only happened back in the Jim Crow era.

It's an empty gesture.

Exactly. Notice how he specifically says no one who went unpunished in the civil rights era will get a pass.

He's trying to subliminally hint toward the fact that crimes like this are from a bygone era. Sessions and the GOP think they're clever with this shit.