Reputed Klansman's conviction overturned in 1964 deaths

[warrior1]

Source: CNN

(CNN) -- A federal appeals court overturned the kidnapping conviction of a reputed Klansman in connection with the 1964 deaths of two black teenagers in Mississippi.

A three-judge panel from the Fifth Circuit Court Appeals sided with James Ford Seale's claim that he should have never been tried for the disappearances of Charles Eddie Moore and Henry Hezekiah Dee because the statute of limitations on the alleged offenses had expired.

snip

Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/09/09/conviction.overturned/index.html

---

Klan wins again.

[provis99]

1. since he had an ongoing cover up of the crime occuring,

statute of limitations doesn't apply. These judges are idiots.

[merwin]

4. Ongoing coverup for 40 years? Yeah right!

I'm pretty sure there wasn't an ongoing investigation for 40 years straight. That thing was probably shelved and not looked at for AT LEAST 30 of those years.

[sasquatch]

2. Are those Bush appointees?

[jjr5]

3. Wow, these judges were not thinking.

Take this back to court and re-evaluate.

[merwin]

5. While it sucks for the people involved, I think the court made the correct decision.

The article states that he was tried 40 years after the crime. Statute of limitations on kidnapping is 5 years. What argument do you have to overturn the statute of limitations?

[norepubsin08]

6. Different Crime

shouldn't have been tried for kidnapping, but for civil right violations

[merwin]

7. Then that charge should be brought against him.

He legally cannot be prosecuted for kidnapping after the statute of limitations expires.

[norepubsin08]

9. I agree

[hughee99]

8. I wonder if he will be retried for murder, instead?

No statute of limitations for that.

[glitch]

10. He'd better be. nt

[happyslug]

20. Murder is a State Crime, Kidnapping was a Federal Charge brought up against him.

If I remember right, the defendant was tried in State Court for Murder and Acquitted in the 1960s, thus double jeopardy kicks in. Further research shows that was another ase, so Mississippi can still bring Murder charges but that is up to the State of Mississippi NOT the Federal Government.

For more on see:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Ford_Seale
http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070306/NEWS/703060390
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/earl-ofari-hutchinson/the-indictment-of-james-f_b_39602.html

[Gregorian]

11. And Mumia rots. And Troy Davis is to be executed on the 23rd.

http://www.gfadp.org/TakingAction/TroyDavis/tabid/68/Default.aspx

There really seems to be unbalanced justice in this country.

Edit- I know. I know. Statute of limitations. Whatever. I just get so disappointed. I should have not even posted.

[Mudoria]

12. Mumia deserves to rot.

[wellst0nev0ter]

21. Yeah, We Should "Fry That N*****"

The trial judge seems to thinks so.

[Gregorian]

24. You're a frightening person.

[Ex Lurker]

13. Former KKK Member's Conviction Vacated

Source: WLBT TV

There has been a shocking decision by the U-S Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.

The court has overturned the kidnapping conviction of former Ku Klux Klansman James Ford Seale and rendered a judgement of acquittal.

"The jury is from Mississippi and I hope every citizen of Mississippi; Franklin County can rest tonight with the veil of shame off of their eyes." That was Thomas Moore's reaction in June 2007. He had waited 43-years, nine days of trial and two hours of jury deliberations to hear a guilty verdict returned against James Ford Seale.

Seale is the former KKK member convicted of kidnapping and conspiring to kidnap Moore's brother, Charles Eddie Moore and his friend, Henry Hazekiah Dee in 1964. The teenagers were taken into the woods and beaten, driven across the state line into Louisiana, strapped to an old engine block and some railroad ties and dumped alive into the Mississippi River....murdered for no apparent reason other than the color of their skin.

Read more: http://www.wlbt.com/global/story.asp?s=8981189

---

Two Reagan, one GHWB appointee on the three judge panel.

[DUlover2909]

14. Have you ever seen the last episode of Lexx?

[Solly Mack]

15. K&R

[kayell]

16. A very sad day for a historically great court.

"During the late 1950s, Chief Judge Elbert Tuttle and his three colleagues John Minor Wisdom, John Brown, and Richard Rives became known as the "Fifth Circuit Four" (or simply "The Four") for decisions crucial in advancing the civil rights of African-Americans" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Court_of_Appeals_for_the_Fifth_Circuit

And look who appointed the judges for this court. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Court_of_Appeals_for_the_Fifth_Circuit#Current_composition_of_the_court

Judges: Why who is in charge of the White House changes the country for decades after their term.

[judasdisney]

17. What do we expect, when the White House is filled with Klansmen?

What kind of fantasy world do liberals live in, thinking that after 1968, somehow all the Klansmen "integrated" into society or just faded away?

[tom_paine]

18. Just another day in Bushie Amerika.

I wonder which Liberals this Klansman has quietly agreed to murder for the Bushies in exchange for being let go.

You DO realize that one of the few salient differnces left between us and the Germans of the 1930s is we have no Brownshirt Corps yet to terrorize us on a daily basis.

We may never have one, but only because it would be bad PR for the Bushies and that's MAYBE the one of the tiniest handful of things they dare not try because their is the TINIEST CHANCE (and after eight years living in a broken, cowardly zombified occupied Amerika has showed me the chance is TINY INDEED).

OTOTH, using their S. America template, oine could reasonably expect the Bushies to be putin together their usual Right-Wing Death Squads in secret.

Yes, I know this is somewhat :tinfoilhat: and I am also saying I am not certain this is the case.

But would it surprise me, given they rest of what we know about the bottom sewer of corruption and tyranny that is the Bushies and by extension the Republican Party they have taken over and destroyed, even as they swelled it' power to Third World Levels.

Nope, wouldn't surprise me a bit. I would guess there a roughly 30% chance that the Bushies are indeed, through their spooks, spies, and HS, putting togather Right-Wing Death Squads made of former Klansmen and the like, for when Crunch Time Comes.

Wouldn't surprise me a bit. Wouldn't surprise me if THAT was why the Bushie judges freed their new ally and friend.

Since the Right-Wing Death squads, if the exists, are now mostly being quietly assembled (though there have been more than a few mid-level liberal activists murdered or suicided under mysterious conditions. In a short period in 2004-2005, at least two and possibly as many as five of these very important liberals (but none famous to trigger a media response that would force a throuogh investigation; in the absence of such pressure, Loyal Bushies are free to tank the case in peace and quiet anonymity) were killed.

One in a "robbery" in which nothing was stolen.

Another was invited by a "contact" to the empty top floor of a building undercconstruction. Next thing, said liberal journalist/activist, was found lying at the bottom of the building after having "jumped" 20 or more stories.

Suicide. Yeah. Especially after he told his family before he left that if anyhing happened to him, it was most definitely not suicide and that he was working on something dangerous.

These two stories I am certain of, for I remember when thy came out and then quickly disappeared.

I believe there are others.

Again, let mne stipulate I amn not certain of this analysis, however it wouldn;t surprise me if that brief spate of murders wasn't Bushie Feasibility Testing to check police response, how much effort it took the Loyal Bushies in the FBI and at the local level to tank the investigation and kill, and perhaps whetehr there where any local cops who might ask qeustions and how best to intimidate them into silence.

Now, the feasibility tests are over and i's time for the Bushies to start some serius RECRUITING.

What better way to start the recruitment process than to let one of their liberal-killing friends and allies go free?

What better way than to get the Bushies' Right-Wing-Death-Squads (which must be chafing at their idleness and chomping at the bit to get down to some serious Brownshirt actovities if only the Bushies would get to it and give the word), than to let them off of a certain long conviction.

There can be no doubt that the Klan is now eternally grateful to the Bushies, just for this assistance (and likely there are many other Bushie "Klan assists" if we but look for them).

The only question is WHY the Bushies feel it necessary to earn the gratitude of murdering thugs?

I have a guess...

[Thothmes]

19. The decision to reverse

was based on the fact the crime took place in 1964 and the indictment for the crime was 2007. The Federal statute of limitations for kidnapping is 5 years.

[merwin]

26. Funny how people's opinion of the law changes when it comes to certain crimes.

We're all about applying the law equally to everyone until it's someone we don't like, then throw the laws out the window to convict them.

The statute of limitations is clear, and the federal court did the correct thing here... Doesn't stop some people here from saying the federal court made the wrong decision. If they want to convict the guy so badly, find a charge that will stick.

[Hugabear]

22. This is what happens when you let rethugs pick judges

You get dumb-ass decisions like this, allowing a racist murdering asshole free.

[Robb]

23. It was a bad prosecution

...Shouldn't have tried him for kidnapping this late in the game. Any judge would've made the same decision re:statute of limitations. I even recall it being discussed at the trial. :shrug:

It was the correct decision, not a dumb-ass one. The racist murdering asshole should've been tried more effectively. :)

[WriteDown]

28. Can't get around statute of limitations...

About as bad as not reading miranda rights or tainting evidence.

[Igel]

25. Due process wins again.

We shouldn't ignore laws and civil rights, even for those accused of heinous crimes, just because we think "fairness" and "justice" require such ignorance.

[supernova]

27. I think it's the Justice's way of saying

Hey legislature, REVISE THE LAW!

I agree that it's awful that all these old KKK members are just walking away from the terrorist acts they committed back then because of this law, but we do need to uphold due process.

If they change the law to make exceptions for hate crimes or discrimination cases, then we could catch these people when the public is more receptive to the idea.