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Thurgood Marshall — Part 12

254 pages · May 12, 2026 · Document date: Feb 26, 1987 · Broad topic: Civil Rights · Topic: Thurgood Marshall · 254 pages OCR'd
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: Menorandum for the Attorney General Later on in his letter, Marshall points out that you have called for a strengthening of the Federal Civil Rights Statutes, but. guesttions the effectiveness of any such statutes when prosecu=- tions and convictions do not result from the investigations under the statutes already in force. I believe itt can be pointed out to . Marshall that the two cases referred. to above tend to show the need _ for specific civil rights statutes with clearly defined violations, rather than the fatlure of th¢ Bureau or the Department which are "operating under the present Atghly controversial Statutes Marshall makes the further. statement that the MeAvAeCoPe has used inexpertenced tnvestigators who have been able to produce. the names of the members Of mobs and refers spect fically to the . recent Minden, Louisiana, lynching. Reports of investigation in that case have been forwarded to the Criminal Diviston under the caption "Deputy Sher tiff Oscar Henry aynes, Jre,y et Gle3 John Cecil Jones and Albertiiarris, Ure - Victinss Civil Rights and Domestic Violence". You will recall that that. case involved the release of two negroes by Deputy Sheriff Haynes to a mob of men who took them out and severely beat them, as a result of which Jones died but — Harris survtved. Indictments have already been handed down agatnst Deputy Sheriff Haynes, Deputy Sheriff Edwards, and three private individuals who were members of the mobe A number of eye witnesses, some of whom were negroes, have identified some of the members of the mob and one negro informant reported what he believed to be a list of the individuals involved but had no evidence to substantiate hts beltef. I belteve it should be pointed out to Marshall that although information. as to suspects in some cases has been furnished by the NeAs&e CoP. or some of its representatives, the furnishing Of such names of suspects does not constitute a solution to a parti= cular case although tt does lend invaluable assistance. Actually, the real problem in these cases ts to obtain definite and concrete evidence admissible tn court to prove the identity Of the individuals responsible. . in referring to the Isaac Woodard case which, you will recall, involved the beating of Woodard by Chief of Police Shull at Batesburg, South, Caroling, which resulted in Woodard's subsequent blindness, Marshall states that the Ne&eAsCePs was able to produce eye witnesses and the name of the police officer. In this connection, © tt ts to be noted that the original complaint received from the “a NebeheCePe and from victim Woodard stated that the beating occurred at Aiken, South Carolina, and it was not until the investigation by this: Bureau had been instituted that it wos learned that the offense had actuaily occurred at Batesburge Marshall's statement that eye witnesses were produced is misleading but the Bureau-.agents inter=_
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