Summary Of The Stinney Case

George Stinney was a 14 yr old, African American who was accused of murdering two young girls, Betty June Binnicker, age 11, and Mary Emma Thames, age 7. The Stinney case occurred in Clarendon County, South Carolina in 1944. This period of time was part of the Jim Crow era, a period of serious racial discrimination in the deep South. This case has been brought to the public’s attention, and it is believed that George Stinney did not get the justice he deserved. The people think that Stinney’s rights were violated, and the court of Appellate should review his case. The guilty verdict should be overturned, and George Stinney should be exonerated from the crime of murdering the two girls. The arresting of Stinney was a violation of Stinney’s 5th, 6th, 8th Amendment rights.

George Stinney’s 5th Amendment rights were violated in many ways.

There was no arrest warrant issued, there was no and jury and indictment. In the trial there was no witnesses to call to testify, nor was there physical evidence of Stinney beating the girls to death. There also was no prosecution witnesses were not crossed examine. The due process was not followed, which lead to a short trial, and a quick verdict. This was the violation of the 5th Amendment because the right to due process.

Stinney was electrocuted in the electric chair. This was legal at that time to execute minors like Stinney. Death of electrocution is now determined to be “cruel and unusual punishment .” Stinney was only 14 years old and weighed 95 lbs which made him the youngest to ever be executed in the 20th century. The straps to the execution chair were too big for Stinney’s gaunt arms. When Stinney sat in the electrocution chair, his legs did not even touch the ground. This chair was only made for adult use and not intended for children like George