Reading between the lines on juror’s remarks

Re “Mississippi Turning: Inside the Killen Jury,” Commentary, July 6

With all due respect to juror Warren Paprocki, his article appears to contradict his enlightened outlook of today’s Mississippi. He takes exception that no one reported that the 12 men and women of the jury did not “fit” the stereotypes of people from Mississippi. So that’s a step forward?

In the next paragraph he states, “In order to convict [Edgar Ray] Killen on murder charges ... it had to be proved that he had pulled the trigger or that others had been acting under his specific direction to kill the three men.”

Next he writes, “What we heard in court was that Killen told some people in Meridian that the three civil rights workers ‘needed their asses tore up’ and then showed these people where to sit and wait....”

He claims that it was not proved that Killen gave any specific instructions to perform a specific act.

I guess telling people to “tear up some asses” is Mississippi-speak for “these boys need a timeout.”

Gene E. Schwartz

San Diego

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In the article on the Killen jury, Paprocki defends why KKK member Killen was not convicted of murdering three civil rights workers.

Killen admittedly instructed other segregationists how to find the civil rights workers and suggested that “they needed their asses tore up.”

The men were killed because of Killen’s directions. Paprocki claims it was not established that Killen “gave them [the mob] any instructions to perform a specific act.” Did Killen think the mob was going to spank the activists?

Imagine the jury verdict if a mob of blacks “tore up” three white men in Mississippi under the same circumstances.

Paprocki claims his adherence to the Golden Rule at the end of his article. The 1st Commandment would be more applicable.

John Holmstrom

Hollywood