Weekly Publisher Takes E&P to Task
Friday, August 4th, 2006Writes Neshoba Democrat editor and publisher Jim Prince in the recent letters column of Editor and Publisher:
“I publish and edit the weekly Neshoba Democrat in Philadelphia, Miss., and read with interest Joe Strupp’s article (”10 That Do It Right: The Clarion-Ledger,” July E&P, p. 24) crediting Jerry Mitchell with the conviction last June of Edgar Ray Killen in the 1964 civil rights murders.
“The prosecution in the Killen trial relied solely on the transcripts of a 1967 federal conspiracy trial. In short, there was no new evidence presented at the Killen murder trial, despite this myth that, shockingly, is multiplying exponentially in journalism circles.
“It was a Neshoba County grand jury that indicted Mr. Killen and a jury that ultimately convicted him, and my hunch is they were influenced more by the nearly four decades my predecessor spent keeping this case at the forefront than anything The Clarion-Ledger in Jackson, Miss., has ever done, although I recognize and appreciate Jerry’s contribution. He is an exceptional reporter, a friend, and a credit to our industry.
“In 2000, my predecessor, Stanley Dearman, wrote of the killings in his final editorial and said, “Come hell or high water, it’s time for an accounting.” And more than anything, a 1989 interview that Dearman conducted with Carolyn Goodman, mother of Andrew Goodman, one of the dead civil rights workers, did more to change perceptions in Neshoba County than almost anything else. For the first time ever a human face was put on the civil rights workers, and over time, people — myself included, as a young man — began to accept Dearman’s premise that murder is murder. In 2004, community leaders issued a call for justice.
“This call for justice in the Neshoba County murders came from within. It was an issue people in the community felt compelled to address largely because of the quiet work of Stanley Dearman, I am convinced.
“If you can point out specifically the “revelations” and the “legwork” that led to the Killen conviction which you credit to the Clarion-Ledger, then I would be happy to withdraw my objection.”
UPDATE: Jerry Mitchell responds…
C-L correspondent Jerry Mitchell replied to Prince’s letter in this note to E&P, which we found online…
“I read Jim Prince’s letter in the August issue of E&P, and I have to say I agree with much of what he had to say.
“The first-ever prosecution by the state of Mississippi involving the Ku Klux Klan’s June 21, 1964, killings of James Chaney, Andy Goodman and Mickey Schwerner wouldn’t have happened without the good people of Neshoba County seeking and demanding justice.
“Prince and Leroy Clemons together chaired the Philadelphia Coalition, a multi-racial citizens’ group that formed in 2004 (with the help of Susan Glisson, executive director of the Institute for Racial Reconciliation) and called for prosecution of this case. In early 2005, a Neshoba County grand jury indicted Edgar Ray Killen for orchestrating the killings.
“Attorney General Jim Hood credited his September 2004 meeting with the coalition, where he talked with Goodman’s mother and brother as helping convince him the case should go forward.
“Stanley Dearman, the retired editor of The Neshoba Democrat, serves as a courageous example of what weekly newspaper editors should be. Since 1989, he has called for the prosecution of these killings — killings that still bring tears to his eyes.
“Despite impossible odds, prosecutors and investigators persisted. And the jurors who convicted Edgar Ray Killen on the 41st anniversary of the killings deserve plenty of credit as well.
“I have no doubt in my mind this case would have never wound up in court if not for Prince, Dearman, the coalition and so many others, including the families of those slain, who never gave up believing justice would be done one day.
“What happened in Philadelphia in the summer of 2005 continues to serve as an example for this state and this nation as we continue to move toward redemption.”
Jerry Mitchell
Reporter
The Clarion-Ledger
Jackson, Miss.
