Sons of Klansmen tied to Louisiana murder haunted by sins of their fathers. Theriots grandmother was worried he would be headed her way and asked Richmond County, Virginia, sheriff's deputies to go to her home, Sheriff Stephan Smith has said. The Deacons connection to churches inspired the groups name. ", Courtesy of the Concordia Sentinel and William Brown, Concorida Sentinel: Rayville Man Implicated In Morris Case, Concordia Sentinel: Feds Vow To Solve Morris Murder, Civil Rights Cold Case Project: Frank Morris Case, Civil Rights Cold Case Project: Frank Morris Case Archives, 2010 Report: Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act of 2007. 2021-09-07. Frank Morris (19141964) 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. Jeff Davis 8: The True Story of the 'Murder in the Bayou' Killings The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) considered the SDG to be a highly-dangerous domestic terror cell, and conducted multiple investigations into its activities. During the 1960s, the area was a strictly segregated society. Webre said that Theirots wounded father called 911 to report the shootings in Ascension Parish. He said anyone who wants to resolve racial injustices and divisions should do so legally, rather than violently. The Natchez-Adams School District said he taught 8th grade at Morgantown Middle School. Nelson is a member of the Civil Rights Cold Case Project, a group of journalists, filmmakers, law schools and other organizations created in 2008 by Paperny Films in Canada and the Center for Investigative Reporting in Berkeley, Calif. With the help of FBI documents Nelson received through Freedom of Information requests and from the Syracuse College of Law Cold Case Justice Initiative, and extensive interviews with those who knew Morris or about the case, he was able to piece together the story, ultimately naming a person suspected of being involved: Arthur Leonard Spencer, 71, of Rayville, La. They were identified as 65-year-old Mark Clark and 49-year-old Donna R. Clark, both of Ferriday. Whatley said it was important for Deacons and activists to demand change in lawful yet effectiveways during the civil rights era, and he said that still holds true for the nationwide protests against police abuses today. Cold Case: James Ford Seale: A sheriff's election, nine deaths and a silver dollar, Cold Case: Who killed Joseph Edwards? CONCORDIA PARISH, La. A black businessman was burned to death in tiny Ferriday, La., in 1964. Updated: Aug 18, 2021 / 01:29 PM CDT. A month after Seale was indicted in January 2007, the FBI announced a new cold case initiative and published a shortlist of about 100 civil rights era cases that it planned to reprobe. So when there was a problem, there was a way of communicating to them what was going on.. In his first year of teaching at Morgantown, Mr. McCray was named the 2018-2019 Teacher of the Year. [6] Ferriday Police officer William Howell Harp Jr. alleged that Morris was a bootlegger and sold narcotics. Copyright 2021 KNOE. These men had long been outraged by one horrid memory the 1964 arson murder of Ferriday shoe shop owner Frank Morris. 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. Davis furnished the bureau a list of Ferriday Deacons, and he identified former Harlem Globetrotter Johnny Lloyd, who was a four-sport coach at the local black school Sevier High, as a Deacon. Dec 16, 2020. In 2007, Ridgen published a documentary for the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. that led to the federal trial and conviction of Seale, for the 43-year-old murder of African-Americans Henry Hezekiah and Charles Eddie Moore, two 19-year-olds from the Meadville, Miss., area. The group killed an African American man, Frank Morris, by arson in Ferriday, Louisiana, and is suspected in two car bombings of NAACP leaders in Natchez, Mississippi, George Metcalfe and Wharlest Jackson. Minutes later, he, not his attackers, was arrested. ranks 6th in nation for best home security, SPD reports low home burglary count, Louisiana Cancer Research center expanding its research opportunities, KNOE Monday Evening Forecast with Chief Meteorologist Marcus Walter. Ferriday police responded to shots fired at approximately noon Sunday and found a man deceased with gunshot wounds upon their arrival. The Livingston Parish Sheriff's Office was called to the home at around 8:47 a.m. that morning, he said. Courtesy of the Concordia Sentinel and William Brown Cops are investigating a double shooting -- including one fatality -- in the now-famous L.A. neighborhood where the movie "Friday" was filmed. So far no charges have been filed. No one was hurt during the arrest, Ard said. A Louisiana man accused of shooting to death five people, including his parents, at two locations last week has confessed to the killings, but the motive is still unknown, authorities said Tuesday. The sheriff's office said the suspect allegedly pointed a gun out the window of his vehicle causing deputies to seek cover, and that he was ordered to drop his weapon and was arrested without incident. The building was burned down in the early morning of December 10, 1964. [2] Morace requested that Klan members from Mississippi "give him a beating". The suspects are identified as Jimmy ONeal Lewis and Cedric Tennessee. Once arrested himself on a false claim and held in the local jail for two weeks, Whatley said a primary function of the Ferriday Deacons was to protest the unlawful arrests of local black men. "We are actively, as we speak involved in this investigation. [1][pageneeded] The shop was also his residence. According to investigators, on the night of the murder Frederick McCray Jr. gave a ride to the two suspects. Part 3:In Homer, the Deacons defied Willie Rainachs segregation. All games are FREE. Later, he was transported to the parish courthouse jail in Vidalia. ", "We know what happened here. 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. Their only protection came from the Deacons, he said. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. 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. Cynthia Deitle, the chief of the FBI's civil rights unit, sent the Concordia Sentinel newspaper an e-mail with this response: "I am convinced that there are individuals alive today who know who killed Mr. Morris. 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. FERRIDAY Concordia Parish Sheriff's Office deputies investigated two shooting deaths in the area of Lake St. John Sunday night. Morris, a black man who had operated a business with a devoted interracial clientele for 30 years, had become a role model for young black men, many of whom got their first jobs as children helping Morris around his shop. "Cold Case: Morris' Granddaughter Says FBI $10,000 Reward Gives Her New Hope". Two killed in Ferriday | KTVE - myarklamiss.com It was higher than in 73.6% U.S. cities. Police say the bodies were found just before 2:30 p.m. at a home on Johnson Street. Concordia Parish had 14 recorded racially-motivated murders between 1964 and 1967.[4]. The suspect had been living with the Ernest family for a couple of weeks before the killings, Ard has said. "We've got a better picture on how this happened. 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. We will continue to update this article as more information becomes available. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. On February 27, 1967, Wharlest Jackson, an employee at Armstrong Tire & Rubber Company in Natchez, Mississippi, was killed when a bomb exploded under the hood of his car while he was driving home. Ferriday police chief: Two arrests made in Sunday afternoon killing in We were able to get a dying declaration from the dad before he expired, Webre said. Police investigating Labor Day homicide in Ferriday. [2] The informant, fearing for his life, did not share this information with the FBI until two years after the arson. They quickly gave chase, pursuing the yellow Pontiac for several miles before Duncan watched their headlights start fading away. "So, this is a monster.". No charges have been brought despite three FBI investigations. Donnie Sanders III, 24, is charged with second-degree murder. CPSO investigates two shooting deaths on Lake St. John 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. The group is also suspected in the disappearance and murder of an African American employee of the Shamrock Motel, Joseph Edwards. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. 0. Frank Morris (in the apron and visor) is seen standing in front of his shoe shop in Ferriday, La., in the 1950s. If they can summon the moral fortitude and courage to contact the FBI and tell us what they know, they will be heroes who will change history. We believe there had been some type of verbal altercation from maybe an ongoing dispute. In December 1964, Frank Morris' shoe shop was set ablaze in the middle of the night. Nelson interviewed witnesses to uncover unknown facts and haunting recollections about the racially-motivated murders around Ferriday. (KTVE/KARD) On Wednesday September 15, officers with the Ferriday Police Department arrested 19-year-old Denzel Washington for 2nd Degree Murder. Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Natchez pastry chef Molly Manning Robertson in bake off for last spot in Spring Baking Championship finale, VIDEO: Funeral procession for long-time sheriff Tommy Ferrell passes by Adams County Sheriffs Office, Calm, focused and ready: The role of an ER nurse, A Team Sport: Emergency medicine, first-responders share common goal of saving lives, 2023, Mississippi's Best Community Newspaper. Frank Morris's mother, Charlotte, died shortly after his birth. The Concordia Parish Sheriff's Office (CPSO) is leading the investigation into the shooting at 106 Gremillion Street. Carl Ray Thompson, then 26, spotted his cousin's two-toned. [2] During this investigation, the FBI re-interviewed the living witnesses who had first-hand information about the arson, as well as "family members, business owners and neighbors in the vicinity of the shoe shop, law enforcement officers, community members, and former KKK members". This page was last edited on 3 April 2023, at 04:13. More history:Woman works to preserve Bogalusa home turned headquarters of civil rights group. [3] Much like the other Mississippi counties, law enforcement and the courts were run by whites. Justice may finally be served, thanks to the reporting of Stanley Nelson of the weekly Concordia Sentinel. He said the bureau concluded that if the bombs two sticks of blasting powder would have ignited, the house might have been destroyed.

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