By the Arkansas Delta Peace And Justice Center
It may be so according to the legal interpretation of former Mississippi District Attorney, Commissioner of Public Safety, Assistant Attorney General, and Chancery Judge W.O. Dillard.
Judge Dillard states in his book Clearburning (1993) on page 280:
There is one other legal principle that should be kept in mind under the law in Mississippi. That is, as explained in the Bill Smith decision, one of the Dahmer cases, a conspirator in Mississippi becomes an accessory before the fact and is tried and punished the same as the principal...
Under this legal principle as described by Judge Dillard, every person who knew a decision had been made and/or a plan had been developed to murder Michael Schwerner is as criminally complicit as the one(s) who actually fired the shot(s). It has been documented that at least scores of individuals had knowledge of the decision to murder Michael Schwerner prior to the act being committed. It may have been many more than scores of individuals, perhaps hundreds, had knowledge.
BLOG POSTS
COMMENTS
PODCASTS
