New trial sought for George Stinney, executed at 14
http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/21/us/george-stinney-hearing/index.html?hpt=hp_bn1
70 years ago a child in South Carolina was executed at the age of 14, the youngest in American history since the 1800s for being accused of the murder for two little white girls. The trial lasted all but 10 minutes and then 14 year old George Stinney was sentenced to the electric chair. There were no witnesses or evidence, only the word of the police stating he was the one who killed the girls. He was so small during the time of the execution he had to sit on books and his face ended up being exposed to all the witnessing watching.
Although, 70 years later, his family and attorneys are demanding a new case for the main purpose of clearing George's name and proving his innocence. Family members claimed he was used as a scapegoat and that he had an alibi when the girls were killed. The victims family and the state of South Carolina are still saying he was a murdered and that there should be no reasoning to be exonerated, despite no evidence or witnesses for the boy.
I feel even though it has been 70 years, the boy lives on through his family and if they feel as though justice was not served that they have the right to a re-trial to try and clear George's name as well as help to make awareness of the wrong doing's of the court and the state of South Caroline. Do you think a re-trial is possible and is worth going through for the family of this boy? As well as, do you feel that racism is still a big issue in the world, especially in the South?
I found this to be a very interesting article. I feel the world has come a long way since then but still has a lot further to go in terms of being fair and just. I sympathize with the family as it does not sound as though it was a fair trial but in terms of a re-trial I would think someone would need to come fourth with some new evidence to support a re-trial otherwise it is just wasting tax payers money and the family might still not get the closure they are seeking.
ReplyDeleteBased on this article and the video presentation, I am wondering if there could be a case for a mistrial. The article questions whether George Stinney received due process according to the law. His lawyer did not appear to represent his client in defense. The lawyer did not call George's sister to as a defense witness to substantiate his alibi. George Stinney did not have anyone present during his interrogation: no parents or lawyer. I think that the family has a case for procedural justice, calling into question the fairness of the process utilized to determine their brother's outcome. I do believe that cases such as this one should be heard. George Stinney cannot be the only African American youth to have had this experience of being "rushed into judgement." George Stinney will not be laid to rest until this case is laid to rest. He deserves a hearing. He deserves to be represented.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree w/ Bonnie on this one. I believe this should be looked into to make a case for mistrial. It's interesting the way that the Neice of the victim stated, "I think that justice was served according to the laws of 1944 which is when this happened." There is the distinction, at this time Black individuals, unjustly, were not held up to the same value as White individuals. It's important to note that just because this was done in the past does not mean that some kind of justice can't be done. I fear that this is only a he said/she said case but if you look at all of the violation of rights that occurred during investigation the ruling should be thrown out. The article did say that George did point out a piece of iron that was the alleged weapon so the question is was this kept & maintained as evidence and can we do additional tests for evidence that was not available in 1944? This story also brings into question the utilization of capital punishment when there is the possibility that someone was wrongly charged. Restitution, even though it hardly makes up for the fact of being falsely charged, is challenging when the person was killed.
ReplyDeleteIt was not uncommon for African Americans to be accused of crimes they did not comment during this time. Moreover, I feel that the family is well within their rights to bring this back to court! I would encourage people to think about how this story is a result, indirect or direct, of the stereotype that black men are aggressive and violent. it is not recognized enough that black man were raped by white women during slavery times. However, it was typically spun that black man raped white women. Therefore, that stereotype continues to perpetuate throughout our societal belief system.
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