Our sincere condolences are offered to his family, friends, and coworkers.. According to investigators, on the night of the murder Frederick McCray Jr. gave a ride to the two suspects. Duncan and a few other young, armed Deacons piled into his brothers canary yellow Pontiac to rescue Lewis, who also received help from a white bondsman from New Orleans. FERRIDAY, La. Webre has said that shooting was reported at around 8:45 a.m. Investigators believe Theriot was staying with the Ernest family because he had been kicked out of his parents' home, Ard said. In 1965, Klansmen had bombed the home of Whatleys neighbor, Robert L. Buck Lewis Jr., who had raced outside with a shotgun to defend his family against the perpetrators. Investigators say the people involved were 19 and 20-years . Two charged with murder after Natchez Teacher of the Year killed in La. A month after Seale was indicted in January 2007, the FBI announced a new cold case initiative and published a shortlist of about 100 civil rights era cases that it planned to reprobe. Dakota Theriot was taken into custody in Virginia after killing five people in Louisiana on Jan. 27, 2019. All rights reserved. Frank Morris Historical Marker According to the sheriff's office, it happened on June 23, 2019, in the. [2] The informant, fearing for his life, did not share this information with the FBI until two years after the arson. [4] Multiple disappearances and murders in the Natchez, Mississippi, area were connected to both the KKK and the SDG. Louisiana family seeks answers in cold case disappearance, murder [5], Following the bombing, the FBI launched operation "WHARBOM"[5] and placed multiple informants within Klan groups surrounding Natchez. They were identified as 65-year-old Mark Clark and 49-year-old Donna R. Clark, both of Ferriday. A preliminary FBI investigation began immediately after the arson; its goal was to "determine if any federal laws had been violated, specifically whether Morris had been involved in voter registration or other civil rights activities and whether any subjects had connections to any racist organizations. Luckily, only the detonator exploded, not the bomb itself, sparing the family from tragedy. Concordia Parish had 14 recorded racially-motivated murders between 1964 and 1967.[4]. "[2] The FBI collected evidence at the crime scene and conducted interviews with local law enforcement, local Klan leaders, and witnesses. Another has been arrested on a second-degree murder charge Tuesday in relation to a fatal shooting that took place Sunday afternoon in broad daylight in Ferriday. CONCORDIA PARISH, La. The sheriff said Theriot is cooperating with the investigation. Whatley contacted COREs central office after the attack, sparking an FBI investigation. In the last 5 years Ferriday has seen decreasing violent crime and decreasing property crime. In a report from the Concordi Now, 46 years later, Stanley Nelson, the editor of the Concordia Sentinel newspaper, says he has found information that may implicate a man as a member of a Klan "wrecking crew," which is said by sources Nelson has interviewed to be responsible for burning down the shop. Blacks also became deputies and police officers. Harp described Morris as an alcoholic and had two confrontations with him during 19631965, as well as a small argument outside of the courthouse. McCray drove the suspects to a location around Bayou Drive in Ferriday, where the suspects pulled out a gun and shot him. Sons of Klansmen tied to Louisiana murder haunted by sins of their fathers. King thanked Concordia Parish Sheriffs Office and its deputies who worked jointly with Ferriday Police in this investigation, he said. Until now, the case has gone unsolved. Morris was taken to the hospital by two Ferriday police officers and was able to speak to FBI investigators. It was higher than in 73.6% U.S. cities. Morris, a black man who had . In 2007, Ridgen published a documentary for the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. that led to the federal trial and conviction of Seale, for the 43-year-old murder of African-Americans Henry Hezekiah and Charles Eddie Moore, two 19-year-olds from the Meadville, Miss., area. We will continue to update this story with more information as it develops. There were rumors of Morris being romantically involved with the wife of a white man, and after the arson, the white couple soon left town. Whatley said Deacons held meetings at Mercy Seat Baptist Church, where shoe shop owner Frank Morris had served as an usher, as well as Mount Olive Baptist Church and St. Charles Catholic Church. Sons of KKK members haunted by sins of their fathers - The Daily Advertiser The sheriffs office said the incident happened on June 23 in the Ferriday area in northeast Louisiana. This went on month after month while I was in this school system.. "We dont know if we will ever have a motive exactly why this happened.". On 50th anniversary of Ferriday civil rights killing - Louisiana Voice [3] Much like the other Mississippi counties, law enforcement and the courts were run by whites. No subscription required to play. [6] Ferriday Police officer William Howell Harp Jr. alleged that Morris was a bootlegger and sold narcotics. Had Duncan and the others not rescued Lewis, the police might have dropped him off at the railroad crossing in Vidalia, where Klansmen often waited when black people were released from the jail. So when there was a problem, there was a way of communicating to them what was going on.. Dec 16, 2020. The state of Mississippi in the Jim Crow era was infamous for racially-fueled lynchings. 4/23/2021 7:14 AM PT. COREs main task was to test whether the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 were being implemented, and for this their workers suffered in Ferriday. The Department of Justice and the FBI say they are conducting ongoing investigations into the Morris case. At approximately 1:00a.m., Morris was awakened in a back room of the shop by the sound of glass breaking. Morris opened the front door of the shop, where he was met by two men in their thirties, one of whom was armed with a shotgun. Nelson, Stanley. Two killed in Ferriday . Their only protection came from the Deacons, he said. Copyright 2019 WLBT. Frank Morris fathered one child, and had two grandchildren. Looking for something special to get your mom for Mothers Day? Morris was interviewed three times; however, he was heavily medicated. [citation needed], Ferriday is located in Concordia Parish, Louisiana, across the Mississippi River from Adams County, Mississippi. Webre said that Theirots wounded father called 911 to report the shootings in Ascension Parish. In Homer, the Deacons defied Willie Rainachs segregation, the 1964 arson murder of Ferriday shoe shop owner Frank Morris, In Bogalusa, the Deacons fought violence with violence, the LSU Manship School of Mass Communication Cold Case Project, Woman works to preserve Bogalusa home turned headquarters of civil rights group, Sons of Klansmen tied to Louisiana murder haunted by sins of their fathers, A half-century ago in Jonesboro, armed black men fought back, Here are 19 of the most influential civil rights leaders of today, George Floyds killing resurrects nightmares for families of civil rights martyrs, the nationwide protests against police abuses today, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. (WLBT) - According to Gray station KNOE, authorities in Concordia Parish, Louisiana are investigating the murder of a man recently named Teacher of the Year. Lewis later told the Concordia Sentinel that it was a dreaded thing for a black man to be placed into a police car and taken to jail. He told the FBI in 1965 that though he was not a member, Deacons had sought his advice and counsel. 2 People Shot in L.A. Neighborhood Where 'Friday' Was Filmed - TMZ LSP investigating officer-involved shooting in Concordia Parish 2023 www.theadvertiser.com. hide caption. At the time of his death, Morris owned the land his shop was on, and he was seen as an honest man who paid his bills on time. That continues today, and even now.. We spent all those years hating each other for reasons we dont know, Whatley said. . One such informant, known as Orvin C. "Coonie" Poissot, was a Klansman from Texas who had a relationship with a local sheriff's deputy named Frank Delaughter, whom Poissot implicated as a conspirator in the murder of Frank Morris. Young pilot killed in small-plane crash in Catahoula Parish - The News-Star The population of Adams County was split roughly in half between blacks and whites. The SDG regularly committed arson, bombings, and murder. Investigators say the people involved were 19 and 20-years-old. Nelson investigated rumors that police officers possibly committed the arson; according to Della Mae Smith, "Deputy Frank DeLaughter had organized the arson" and local police had set the home ablaze. Authorities say they have given full confessions and are both charged with murder. They knew Klansmen would await Lewis release and that deputies would notify the Klan that a black activist was being released from jail. Carl Ray Thompson, then 26, spotted his cousin's two-toned. Theriot said he used a handgun stolen from his father, Keith Theriot, and that it was the weapon recovered after he was arrested, Livingston Parish Sheriff Jason Ard said at a news conference Tuesday. David Whatley, the first black student to integrate Ferriday High in 1966, returned from tortuous days at school only to face just as many threats outside his home. When the group began to phase out in Ferriday and the other towns by 1966, the FBI stopped keeping close tabs on the Deacons. Courtesy of the Concordia Sentinel and William Brown These men had long been outraged by one horrid memory the 1964 arson murder of Ferriday shoe shop owner Frank Morris. Law officials said deputies responded to a report of a shooting at approximately 9:30 p.m. at the 3000 block of U.S. 569 on Lake Saint John. The 2020 crime rate in Ferriday, LA is 192 (City-Data.com crime index), which is 1.3 times smaller than the U.S. average. Cops are investigating a double shooting -- including one fatality -- in the now-famous L.A. neighborhood where the movie "Friday" was filmed. The Deacons came to life solely to protect their communities and others victimized by Klansmen and police. Two charged with murder after Natchez teacher killed in - KNOE Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Natchez pastry chef Molly Manning Robertson in bake off for last spot in Spring Baking Championship finale, VIDEO: Funeral procession for long-time sheriff Tommy Ferrell passes by Adams County Sheriffs Office, Calm, focused and ready: The role of an ER nurse, A Team Sport: Emergency medicine, first-responders share common goal of saving lives, 2023, Mississippi's Best Community Newspaper. The group is also suspected in the disappearance and murder of an African American employee of the Shamrock Motel, Joseph Edwards. David Whatley, who was a CORE member himself while a student at Ferriday High School, confirmed in a recent interview that the Ferriday Deacons were armed. Like many Southern crimes against blacks in the 1960s -- an era of racial strife dominated by criminal activities by the Ku Klux Klan -- the incident went unsolved, despite an FBI investigation at the time. Representatives of the non-violent Congress of Racial Equality flocked to Ferriday, deemed an outlaw town by the U.S. Justice Departments head civil rights attorney, John Doar. His father, Sullivan, operated a shoe shop in Natchez, Mississippi. Theriot then allegedly went to Ascension Parish were he killed his parents, and then fled. 21-year-old Louisiana man confesses to killing his parents and three in Morris had a shoe repair shop in Ferriday, and died after his shoe repair shop was burned. Frank Morris (in the apron and visor) is seen standing in front of his shoe shop in Ferriday, La., in the 1950s. Atcheson, who was familiar with the Deacons for Defense and Justice, later told FBI agent Don McGorty that Ferriday resident Victor Graham had contacted the Jonesboro Deacons and that a month later, in August 1965, the Ferriday chapter was formed. Police say it happened on Johnson Street around 5 p.m. [2] This witness also received death threats, and his home was fired upon on multiple occasions. In his first year of teaching at Morgantown, Mr. McCray was named the 2018-2019 Teacher of the Year. Officials had said that Theriot was believed to have been Summers boyfriend, but her family strongly denies that they were dating. Wed walk nights with rifles on our shoulders like you would see in some foreign countries, Whatley said. [2] According to these informants, Morace was the primary conspirator in the murder of Morris; however, the FBI could not find any physical evidence corroborating their witnesses. FERRIDAY, La. One unique feature of the Ferriday Deacons was that they had what Whatley called the Junior Deacons League, composed of a half dozen teenagers. The men broke multiple shop windows and proceeded to "spread a flammable liquid around the outside of the shop, and evidence indicates that the subjects may have spread the flammable liquid inside of the shop". The main force that we had was marches, he said. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. We know that [Morris] was the victim of a brutal murder and we want to figure out who did it and we want to figure out why they did it," Tom Perez, assistant attorney general who runs the civil rights division of the Department of Justice, said in an interview last week. Two killed in Ferriday | KTVE - myarklamiss.com [2] Morace requested that Klan members from Mississippi "give him a beating". If they can summon the moral fortitude and courage to contact the FBI and tell us what they know, they will be heroes who will change history. On December 10, 1964, two unidentified white men set fire to the shoe repair shop owned by Frank Morris. The sheriffs office says the incident is being investigated as a murder-suicide and that there are no suspects at large. Cynthia Deitle, the chief of the FBI's civil rights unit, sent the Concordia Sentinel newspaper an e-mail with this response: "I am convinced that there are individuals alive today who know who killed Mr. Morris.