How would you feel if you were falsely accused of a terrible crime? That’s right, Ozie Powell and the Scottsboro Boys were accused of rape and sent to jail for many years, a crime of which they didn't even commit. In the case of Scottsboro, Ozie Powell was clearly innocent of rape. Ozie wasn’t on the same car as the woman who accused the boys of raping them, and Ozie didn't even know the other men on the train until the day of the accusations. The woman who accused the boys of the crime were prostitutes, and had had intercourse only a little while before entering the train, explaining why the sperm found in their system was dead. Admittedly, Ozie was guilty of hoboing on the infamous train he and other men were accused of raping two woman
Roger Brooke Taney made history in the 1857 Dred Scott Case by ruling that black slaves were not citizens of the United States. This controversial historical figure died on October 12, 1864, in Washington, D.C. One of Robert’s most famous quotes was "What Dred Scott's master might lawfully do with Dred Scott, in the free state of Illinois, every other master may lawfully do with any other one, or 1,000 slaves, in Illinois, or in any other free state. "What Robert is saying is that a master of a slave can do whatever he/she wants with that slave. By the time Roger B Taney became Chief Justice, Taney had become a staunch supporter of slavery, even though he had manumitted eleven slaves he inherited as a young man and made anti-slavery statements when serving as defense
One thing that stands out to me is the Emmett Till case that occurred in Mississippi, 1955. Emmett Till was fourteen year old when two white men murdered him. He was going to a candy store to buy some candy and said "Bye Baby" to a white woman. Three days later Emmett Till was kidnapped by two white men and never returned. His dead body was discovered in Tallahatchie River.
Andrew Davis September 27, 2016 Forensics Mr. Malgeri Ronald Cotton Case Ronald Cotton was sentenced to jail in 1995, after serving ten years for a crime he didn’t even commit. Eye witnesses are considered to be the best form of evidence in an unsolved case. Mr. Cotton was convicted primarily by an eyewitness named Jennifer Thomson-Cannino, who was sure she identified the right male. Years go by and the case was re-ruled and the jury ruled Jennifer 's description as a misidentification.
Emmett Till was a 14-year-old African-American boy who lived in Chicago with his grandmother. When Emmett visited his family in Mississippi, Emmett was a foreigner. He and his cousins went to a nearby grocery store called Bryant's Grocery for a snack, and some refreshments after picking cotton in the hot sun. On August 28, 1955, Emmett Till was visiting family in Mississippi.
Andrew Wright was accused of raping a thirteen-year-old girl in New York, which turned out to be false. Ozie Powell was shot in the head, became mentally challenged. Clarence Norris said that he was never the same again. Olen Montgomery wanted to be a musician, but, it just never happened. He got really drunk, and ended up living in Georgia.
In the south back in the 1930’s there were many Americans who did not know the meaning of equality for all. With this being the case, many black people faced discrimination daily and it followed through to the legal systems especially in the south where both being compared took place. The evidence provided in both trials proved to be weak. Despite this, both defendants had determined lawyers who believed in justice.
The unfortunate events leading up to Emmett Louis Till’s death and unfair trial were for one reason only- he was black. “The word is some nigra boy from Chicago made ugly remarks and then whistled to Miz Bryant.’ The deputy chuckled. ‘Fool boy forgot where he was, and it’s a fact somebody’s sure to give that boy a talking to.
In the early 1930s, a group of African American boys were accused of raping two women aboard a train in southern Alabama being called the “Scottsboro Boys.” The boys were not given a fair trial because of the racial injustice in the south during this time. The trial was even brought to the supreme court which would help overturn the verdicts in favor of the boys. This trial was extremely significant because it really brought to light the racial injustice and inequality present during this time, especially in the legal system, as well as being a kind of spark for the civil rights movement in America.
Antislavery farmers from the mid-west moved to Kansas to keep slavery from spreading, while slaveholders from the neighboring state of Missouri took up settlements in Kansas to ensure the control of the territory for the South New England Emigrant Aid Company: Was set up by Northern abolitionists and Free-Soilers who paid for the transportation of antislavery settlers to Kansas Fighting soon broke out when each side made their own legislature(pro vs. anti) and proslavery forces attacked the free-soil town of Lawrence A couple days later, John Brown, a stern abolitionist, retaliated for the Lawrence incident by attacking a proslavery farm settlement, brutally killing five settlers. The government did nothing to stop this chaos and soon the
People can learn lessons through others, books, school, and everyday life experiences. Lessons allow people to learn about life. For example, the novel Mississippi Trial, 1955, by Chris Crowe, tells the story of young Emmett Till in the south and has multiple themes. Still, the three most evident are racism is a learned behavior, the dangers of ignorance, and the consequences of choices. Crowe could show these different themes by telling different stories from different viewpoints.
Inspired by the 1931 Scottsboro trial, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee dives deep into justice and courage. The strength portrayed here vary in size and intensity so it shows one a wide range of application of the two concepts. From smaller battles expressing self control to saving two lives and the trial of a doomed innocent man, To Kill a Mockingbird gets readers to truly think about the applications of justice and courage in life. Harper Lee opened our minds to the idea of a deeper story behind the actions of an individual with Ms. Dubose. She constructed the character of the old woman using words tailored to make us dislike her.
During the 1930’s, racism and prejudice against black people was very prevalent in everyday life. They were segregated from white people in almost all aspects of society; bathrooms, public transportation, schools, housing and even jails were segregated. Black people were treated as second class citizens, beneath even the poorest of white people. Black people were not the only victims; women were limited in everything they did. Women were meant to sit around, look pretty, and do domestic work around the house.
Innocence is is a lack of guilt, with respect to any kind of crime, or wrongdoing. In a legal context, innocence refers to the lack of legal guilt of an individual, with respect to a crime. Being convicted of a crime and found not guilty later on can frustrate the convict and the convict’s family as the time spent behind bars, is time they will never get back. James Richardson was convicted and charged for murder and rape in Cross Lanes, West Virginia on May 18, 1989. First, Richardson noticed the neighbor’s house burning.
On April 22, 1992, three guilty criminals walked away innocent after committing heinous acts of aggression and assault. They were not punished after brutally beating an African American citizen after a meer traffic stop. This brutal act of racial profiling was forgiven in the name of systemic bias and societal attitudes towards racism and similar issues. The date in question is the day that the verdict of the Rodney King trial was released by the jury. The trial involved Rodney G. King a taxi driver who was pulled over for a traffic violation.
Injustice The Scottsboro Case shed light on the racial practices expressed in law that made a great impact on the legal system today. The actual victims of the Case did not receive a fair trial due to the color of their skin. The ones who played the victims planned the crime, and their stories made no sense. But like many of the trials during the time it wasn’t based on the actual evidence that was found,or even the defendants ' stories.