In an exclusive interview with NBC Chicago, new information about what led to the verdict in the decades-old murder of Emmett Till, a Black teenager from Chicago, may change what the world knows about the acquittal of two white men that marked a pivotal moment in American history.
Till’s death in 1955 sparked the modern-day Civil Rights Movement, his face no longer forgotten, along with the words, courage and tenacity of his mother, Mamie Till-Mobley, who did not rest in her pursuit of justice for her son.
Decades after the trial, the world has always thought the jury had reached a quick “not guilty” decision, based on deliberations reportedly lasting less than an hour, and by the added boasting of some jury members, who told the press at the time,"If we hadn’t stopped to drink pop, it wouldn’t have taken that long."In fact, three members of the jury required convincing by other jurors after first voting to convict Till’s killers, according to Stephen Whitaker, Ph.D.
“The verdict was unjust,” Till’s cousin Simeon Wright recalled. “But because of that verdict, Emmett Till’s memory and legacy is still alive.”Stephen Whitaker, Ph.D. - Author,"A Case Study of Southern Justice: The Emmett Till Case" Stephen Whitaker, age 22 in this photo, began his extensive investigation into Till's murder and the trial that followed, in 1963.
In his research, Whitaker found when the all-white jury was seated for the trial, one of Bryant and Milam’s defense attorneys, John Whitten, had already handpicked every person in the jury pool, looking for a distinct quality. At the time of the trial, Special Prosecutor Smith remarked that his team was trying to identify and locate additional witnesses, in order to have them sworn in and testify.
In researching his thesis, Whitaker discovered the truth from his stepfather and the head of security for the Till trial, N.Z. Trout.“He [Trout] confirmed it to me, many times,” Whitaker said. “My stepfather knew [that] they were in the jail. They were in the jail under assumed names so they could not testify, and they couldn’t be forced to testify or allowed to testify.”
Singapore Latest News, Singapore Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Lala Kent sobs over Randall Emmett accusations amid alleged pedophilia probe“I wanna know why people are accusing him of the things they’re accusing him of,” Kent says to Lisa Vanderpump in the “Vanderpump Rules” Season 10 trailer.
Read more »
Lala Kent sobs over Randall Emmett accusations in ‘Vanderpump Rules’ trailer“I wanna know why people are accusing him of the things they’re accusing him of,” Kent says to Lisa Vanderpump in the “Vanderpump Rules” Season 10 trailer.
Read more »
NBC 5 Forecast: Warming Trend AheadA breezy southerly and southwesterly wind will allow temperatures to warm significantly for the first half of the week. Also with this wind direction, mountain cedar pollen will surge into North Texas. Expect temperatures to soar to near 80 on Tuesday and Wednesday. Another Pacific cold front will move across the area, Wednesday night into Thursday morning. This frontal passage…
Read more »
Johnny Depp’s Attorney Camille Vasquez Joins NBC News As Legal AnalystCamille Vasquez, who gained notoriety as one of Johnny Depp’s lawyers in his defamation case against ex-wife Amber Heard, has joined NBC News as a legal analyst. Vasquez made her first appear…
Read more »
Camille Vasquez, Attorney for Johnny Depp in Defamation Trial, Lands TV Gig With NBC NewsVasquez will be a legal analyst for NBC News, and made her debut Monday.
Read more »