killing in ferriday, louisiana killing in ferriday, louisiana
According to the Concordia Parish Sheriffs Office, on April 25, 2021, at around 9:30 p.m., they were called to a residence on Lake St. John about a shooting. Check out these great suggestions. He was killed when the shop burned down in 1964. We worked into the night (Sunday). Later that week, officers Frank DeLaughter and Bill Ogden intimidated Kelly and forced him out of town. More:Sons of Klansmen tied to Louisiana murder haunted by sins of their fathers. Once their mission was complete, members quietly returned to their modest lives. Theriots parents, Keith and Elizabeth Theriot, were killed at their home in Ascension Parish and Keith Theriot gave information to investigators before he died that pointed to his son as the suspect, the sheriff of that parish has said. If they held somebody in there that actually hadnt done anything but was falsely accused, we would support them by showing up in court., More:Here are 19 of the most influential civil rights leaders of today. hide caption. Webre said that Theirots wounded father called 911 to report the shootings in Ascension Parish. Nelson, Stanley. DOJ names suspects; closes 1964 case, "Americas | US man in 1964 race attack charge", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Silver_Dollar_Group&oldid=1151221382, Racially motivated violence against African Americans, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 22 April 2023, at 17:09. Louisiana shooting suspect Dakota Theriot captured. Authorities say they have given full confessions and are both charged with murder. [3][4], In 2007, Silver Dollar Group member James Ford Seale was charged and convicted for the May 1964 kidnapping of Henry Hezekiah Dee and Charles Eddie Moore, two African-American young men in Meadville, Mississippi.[5]. [2] After one of the subjects lit a match, the shop caught fire; Morris was still present in the building. They were identified as 65-year-old Mark Clark and 49-year-old Donna R. Clark, both of Ferriday. In February1968, the second investigation was closed when the FBI determined that there was insufficient evidence to charge any of the suspects. CONCORDIA PARISH, La. Nelson published the story Wednesday morning outlining the the allegations against Spencer. Police say the couple was at the woman's mother house at the time. Updated: Aug 18, 2021 / 01:29 PM CDT. The main force that we had was marches, he said. Like many Southern crimes against blacks in the 1960s -- an era of racial strife dominated by criminal activities by the Ku Klux Klan -- the incident went unsolved, despite an FBI investigation at the time. The men broke multiple shop windows and proceeded to "spread a flammable liquid around the outside of the shop, and evidence indicates that the subjects may have spread the flammable liquid inside of the shop". Law officials said deputies responded to a report of a shooting at approximately 9:30 p.m. at the 3000 block of U.S. 569 on Lake Saint John. According to the Concordia Sentinel, the Ferriday Police Department began investigating the deaths of two people who were killed Wednesday afternoon. The FBI later concluded that the local Klan was likely to be involved, but conflicting accounts, no viable subjects, and lack of a motive led to the investigation being closed in May1965. (KTVE/KARD) On Tuesday August 17 shortly after 2:00 a.m., troopers from Louisiana State Police Troop E responded to a fatal crash on . Ferriday Police are investigating a suspected murder-suicide that happened Wednesday afternoon. "We dont know if we will ever have a motive exactly why this happened.". No charges have been brought despite three FBI investigations. James Poissot of Baton Rouge never knew his father, but knew he was a violent man who beat James' mother so severely . The 2020 crime rate in Ferriday, LA is 192 (City-Data.com crime index), which is 1.3 times smaller than the U.S. average. [2] This witness also received death threats, and his home was fired upon on multiple occasions. [according to whom?] Officials had said that Theriot was believed to have been Summers boyfriend, but her family strongly denies that they were dating. The Silver Dollar Group (SDG) was a violent and exceptionally militant Klan offshoot that operated in Adams County between 1964 and 1967. The project reporters have already produced information in high-profile cases that prosecutors have used to build criminal cases against killers and conspirators who had walked free for more than 40 years. In 1965, Klansmen had bombed the home of Whatleys neighbor, Robert L. Buck Lewis Jr., who had raced outside with a shotgun to defend his family against the perpetrators. The FBI opened a full investigation into his murder due to its civil rights implications, as Jackson was treasurer of the local chapter of the NAACP. Soon, Lewis was back in his Ferriday home and reunited with his wife and children. Justice may finally be served, thanks to the reporting of Stanley Nelson of the weekly Concordia Sentinel. Morris had a shoe repair shop in Ferriday, and died after his shoe repair shop was burned. McCray drove the suspects to a location around Bayou Drive in Ferriday, where the suspects pulled out a gun and shot him. That continues today, and even now.. At approximately 1:00a.m., Morris was awakened in a back room of the shop by the sound of glass breaking. Copyright 2019 WLBT. We would make it known that we were alert and we were awake, and they would flee, Whatley said. Klansmen took advantage of this, throwing a bomb just outside Whatleys bedroom window. Another has been arrested on a second-degree murder charge Tuesday in relation to a fatal shooting that took place Sunday afternoon in broad daylight in Ferriday. "We just know what he did. Frank Morris (in the apron and visor) is seen standing in front of his shoe shop in Ferriday, La., in the 1950s. According to police, the man shot his girlfriend and then shot himself. CPSO officials said the incident is being investigated as a murder-suicide and there are no suspects at large. In Homer, the Deacons defied Willie Rainachs segregation, the 1964 arson murder of Ferriday shoe shop owner Frank Morris, In Bogalusa, the Deacons fought violence with violence, the LSU Manship School of Mass Communication Cold Case Project, Woman works to preserve Bogalusa home turned headquarters of civil rights group, Sons of Klansmen tied to Louisiana murder haunted by sins of their fathers, A half-century ago in Jonesboro, armed black men fought back, Here are 19 of the most influential civil rights leaders of today, George Floyds killing resurrects nightmares for families of civil rights martyrs, the nationwide protests against police abuses today, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. In three interviews conducted by FBI investigators, Morris stated that "he saw a man pouring gasoline around the place [] another man had a shotgun and told him 'to get back in there, nigger'". These men had long been outraged by one horrid memory the 1964 arson murder of Ferriday shoe shop owner Frank Morris.No one was ever arrested for the killing. [5], Following the bombing, the FBI launched operation "WHARBOM"[5] and placed multiple informants within Klan groups surrounding Natchez. The sheriff's office says the incident is being investigated as a murder-suicide and that there . When Theriot arrived at the home, deputies were already there. The Deacons connection to churches inspired the groups name. FERRIDAY, La. There were rumors of Morris being romantically involved with the wife of a white man, and after the arson, the white couple soon left town. -- David Whatley, the first black student to integrate Ferriday High in 1966, returned from tortuous days at school only to face just as many threats outside his home. They were identified as 65-year-old Mark Clark and 49-year-old Donna R. Clark, both of Ferriday. Ferridays population of more than 4,500 residents was roughly half black and half white in the mid-1960s, a time when black citizens quietly celebrated civil rights wins and white supremacists desperately tried to halt legislative and social change. They handed out flyers and leaflets to local congregations and spoke at churches. Until now, the case has gone. Nelson interviewed witnesses to uncover unknown facts and haunting recollections about the racially-motivated murders around Ferriday. ", "We know what happened here. One unique feature of the Ferriday Deacons was that they had what Whatley called the Junior Deacons League, composed of a half dozen teenagers. Two WHARBOM informants also reported information regarding the murder of Morris, and the FBI reopened the Morris investigation in August 1967. That drew the ire of Klansmen, and three months later, some of them snuck up to his house and threw a gasoline bomb at it. As far as why this happened, that motive is still unclear," Ascension Parish Sheriff Bobby Webre said at the news conference. According to FBI documents, Ferriday Deacons included David Whatley, Leo Graham, Victor Graham, Herman Brown, Levado Brown, Richard Thompson, Samuel White, Frank Fleming, James Fleming, Fred Brown, Shine Calhoun, Stafford Redvine, FNU Jones, Anthony Lucky McCraney, Simon Smith, Antonne Duncan, Lionel Hooper, Vernon Smith, Anthony White, Joe Davis, Jeffrey Scott, Mack Moore and Johnny Lloyd. "1970 Census: Population & Housing, Procedural History", "Cold Case: Silver Dollar Group linked to attacks Edwards, Morris, Jackson, Metcalfe", "Wharlest Jackson - Notice to Close File", "Cold Case: Silver Dollar Group Linked to Attacks Edwards, Morris, Jackson, Metcalfe, List of lynching victims in the United States, William "Froggie" James and Henry Salzner, Elijah Frost, Abijah Gibson, Tom McCracken, Thomas Moss, Henry Stewart, Calvin McDowell (TN), Thomas Harold Thurmond and John M. Holmes, Henry Hezekiah Dee and Charles Eddie Moore, Association of Southern Women for the Prevention of Lynching, Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act, The National Memorial for Peace and Justice, National Museum of African American History and Culture, "The United States of Lyncherdom" (Twain), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Murder_of_Frank_Morris&oldid=1147937870, December 1964 events in the United States, Racially motivated violence against African Americans, Short description is different from Wikidata, Wikipedia articles needing page number citations from February 2019, Articles with unsourced statements from July 2019, All articles with specifically marked weasel-worded phrases, Articles with specifically marked weasel-worded phrases from July 2019, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0. Stanley Nelson is editor of the Concordia Sentinel in Ferriday, Louisiana. He was convicted at that time of killing his parents and a teenage friend of his. Born in Jonesboro before spreading most notably to Bogalusa, Homer and Ferriday, the Deacons main purpose was to fight fire with fire and to protect their communities. This went on month after month while I was in this school system.. After a false KKK rumor that he had flirted with. Although both the Deacons and its younger subgroup were secretive, they let members of the black community know they would protect them from the Klan and law enforcement. He said the bureau concluded that if the bombs two sticks of blasting powder would have ignited, the house might have been destroyed. Investigators say the people involved were 19 and 20-years . "Weve got a better picture on how this happened," the sheriff said of the five killings. In the last 5 years Ferriday has seen decreasing violent crime and decreasing property crime. (WLBT) - According to Gray station KNOE, authorities in Concordia Parish, Louisiana are investigating the murder of a man recently named Teacher of the Year. Preliminary autopsy results show the three members of the Ernest family were each shot one time in the head with the handgun that was recovered, Ard said. King said the investigation is still ongoing and more arrests are anticipated. Frank Morris (1914-1964) was an American businessman who died as a result of arson to his shoe shop in Ferriday, Louisiana, a city with a history of racial violence. Ridgen, a filmmaker from Toronto who reported this story for NPR, helped to spearhead the project with Vancouver-based Paperny Films, and the Berkeley, Calif.-based Center for Investigative Reporting. FERRIDAY Concordia Parish Sheriffs Office deputies investigated two shooting deaths in the area of Lake St. John Sunday night. The group is also suspected in the disappearance and murder of an African American employee of the Shamrock Motel, Joseph Edwards. All rights reserved. Battered and ostracized while he attended Ferriday High, Whatley would go on to serve in Vietnam. ( KTVE/KARD) According to the Concordia Parish Sheriff's Office, on Monday, May 16, 2022, deputies received information from Monroe Police Department detectives about a person. Still inside at the time, Morris was severely injured; he died four days later at a nearby hospital in Ferriday, La. The suspects then drove the body to an old food plant, where they hid it under plywood and garbage. Their assistance was invaluable and their response in working this case with us, he said. It was higher than in 73.6% U.S. cities. An extradition hearing is scheduled for Friday morning. His daily tasks included repairing shoes and saddles, selling jewellery, hats, and clothing, and dyeing purses. We spent all those years hating each other for reasons we dont know, Whatley said. According to Ferriday Police Investigator Sean Sublett, Wilbert Henderson, 42, arrived at his home on Fifth Street and Tennessee at 12:44 a.m. Saturday when a man approached him from the side of . (KNOE) - Authorities are investigating what they believe to be a murder-suicide in Concordia Parish. Not far from Lewis home lived Antonne Duncan, who days later ran through a Klan roadblock when he and other African American men transported Lewis home after his release from jail. "[2] The FBI collected evidence at the crime scene and conducted interviews with local law enforcement, local Klan leaders, and witnesses. Harp's new information regarding Morris shed doubt on the story concerning DeLaughter. Our effort here, as it is everywhere, is to try and uncover the truth. Police say the bodies were found just before 2:30 p.m. at a home on Johnson Street. The building was burned down in the early morning of December 10, 1964. Morris was interviewed three times; however, he was heavily medicated. The Deacons came to life solely to protect their communities and others victimized by Klansmen and police. Two others from Ferriday Dantreze Scott, 24, and Deandra Griggs, who will be 23 in April are each charged with accessory after the fact to second-degree murder. The late Sammy Davis Jr. no relation to the famous entertainer was elected Ferridays first black mayor in 1984. The group is believed to have had only some twenty members. CPSO says upon arrival, they found two bodies with fatal gunshot wounds. He was killed when the shop burned down in 1964. Duncan and a few other young, armed Deacons piled into his brothers canary yellow Pontiac to rescue Lewis, who also received help from a white bondsman from New Orleans. The Deacons believed that arming themselves was the only way to hold off the Klan and protect their homes, neighborhoods and the white and black civil rights workers who came from across the country to help achieve equality. David Whatley was among the men inspired by Morris life and angered by his murder, and he would become the youngest member of the group that took on Klansmen and bad cops when they organized the Ferriday chapter of the Deacons for Defense and Justice. Wed walk nights with rifles on our shoulders like you would see in some foreign countries, Whatley said. The FBI concluded the investigation in 2016 when investigators determined there was insufficient evidence to charge any individual with any federal crimes; furthermore, important witnesses, suspects, and informants were dead. Looking for something special to get your mom for Mothers Day? King thanked Concordia Parish Sheriffs Office and its deputies who worked jointly with Ferriday Police in this investigation, he said. A black businessman was burned to death in tiny Ferriday, La., in 1964. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. We will continue to update this article as more information becomes available. The suspects are identified as Jimmy ONeal Lewis and Cedric Tennessee. To date, every civil rights murder case that has been reopened and successfully prosecuted was the direct result of an investigation initiated by a journalist. Morris told the FBI that the men were from Natchez, Mississippi, were between the ages of 30 and 35, and that "one [man] was young with gray hair and the other was very white". "He gave up," and authorities were able to place him under arrest, he said. Later, he was transported to the parish courthouse jail in Vidalia. 2023 www.theadvertiser.com. During the 1960s, the area was a strictly segregated society. Police investigating Labor Day homicide in Ferriday. 2021-09-07. McGorty reported that the Deacons membership in Ferriday totaled 23. In an interview with Nelson, Spencer denies those allegations. The Livingston Parish Sheriff's Office was called to the home at around 8:47 a.m. that morning, he said. With five children at home, Lewis kept the weapon unloaded. Later on, Anthony Lucky McCraneys gas station was firebombed, marking the sixth act of racial violence in Ferriday within a two-month period, according to CORE documents. Both were pronounced dead at the scene. "Cold Case: Morris' Granddaughter Says FBI $10,000 Reward Gives Her New Hope". He told the FBI in 1965 that though he was not a member, Deacons had sought his advice and counsel.