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that the children's civil rights have been violated. Further I am charging that the improper and indifferent treatment accorded the children's deaths by law enforcement officials and the inadequate and insensitive response to parents is proof-positive that they were ignored because of color. It is fair to assume that our government leaders would have declared a state of emergency (and conceivably a state of war) had the thirty victims been white, slain en masse, and virtually ignored by law enforcement officials. In my response to the parents to seek justice beyond the state of Georgia, I appeal to you under Title IX of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Section 902 which autborizes the intervention of the United States government in civil rights cases. It states: “Whenever an action has been commenced in any court of the United States seeking relief from the denial of equal protection of the laws under the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution on account of race, color, reli- gion, or national origin, the Attorney General for and in the name of the United States may intervene in such action upon timely applica- tion if the Attorney General certifies that the case is of general public importance. In such action the United States shall be entit- led to the same relief as if it had instituted the action. 63 Stat. 162 Title 28 of the U.S. Code Section 1447(da) Teanarsal Overview ae hd So — Fe + FS TT Puring the summer of 1979, a crisis of unparalled proportions came to light in Atlanta, Georgia that was to continue for the next two years. Black children and young adults were murdered in massive numbers. The murderer(s) of unknown identity stalked the streets of the city snatching and killing our children and dropping their bodies along highways, byways, and in rivers. ~ During the period, a totai of thirty young persons were ideniifie as victims of the mass slaying and placed on an official Task For List for on-going investigation. The group included twenty-five (25) children and five (5) young adults. Children ages ranged from Fen 17; eaAunc adults, 1R.9R = rw me gVvesph Sues ae = a ce On June 21, 1981, a suspect, Wayne B. Williams, was apprehended near the Chattachoochee River--adumping ground for many of the victims. Williams was subsequently charged for the murder of two adults-~ Jimmy Ray Payne, 21 and Nathaniel Cater, 27 and convicted on both counts following a nine-week trial during the first part of 1982. The books have been closed on cases that have indeed not been prose- cuted with an understanding that they ail can be linked to Wayne Williams--without the benefit of trial by jury. There is no prece-