The Guilty: The Evidence Of Ronald Cotton

A key factor in the case of Walter McMillian was that he was an African American man who at one point was respected by his community. However, an extramarital affair with a white woman is what crossed the line. Affairs were not out of the norm in the Monroeville community, but given the fact that McMillian was black dramatically changed what was perceived as socially acceptable behavior. The significant questioning of McMillian’s character came into play when a young woman, Ronda Morrison was murdered. The profound change in the community’s view toward McMillian was an incentive to point to him as the mastermind behind the murder. The police were unable to produce any viable suspects which led to pressure from the community to find and convict a killer – even if the person accused was innocent. The interrogation tactics used during the questioning of suspects and witnesses produced false allegations. Tactics such as intimidation and bargaining. These practices encompassed covert operations that allowed the law enforcement – police, district attorneys, judges – to navigate the case. Several people were instrumental in concocting the false story placing McMillian at the center of the crime. After his initial lie, Ralph Myers’s was pushed by police to produce additional information which although false, was used by police to arrest McMillian. As the story gained traction in the town,

During that time Johnson was the general secretary of the NAACP, and knew what impact the case would have on civil rights. Given this the NAACP aided those accused of the murder of Breiner, and a first-rate defense team was in the making. Assistant secretary Walter White was the main assistant of NAACP to find the best attorneys (who were not prejudiced, of course). He later meets Arthur Garfield Hays and Clarence Darrow and urges them to take the case. After agreeing they meet their clients about a month after the accident. Boyle shows how both James Weldon Johnson and Clarence Darrow had interior motives for defending the Sweets. Both men had a love for the spotlight, when speaking about Darrow, Boyle writes "in the glare of a high-profile case he found the perfect opportunity to attack the status quo and proclaim the modernist creed." The trial itself felt more of a civil rights case than a criminal case. The most impressive thing in regards to the actual trial was the performance done by Darrow. One could draw many similarities between him and To Kill A Mockingbird’s Atticus Finch. A common misconception of the courtroom is that the jury goes strictly off of evidence when deliberating. This book clears up that false belief with the attorneys playing off of emotion and targeting pathos. A strong argument presented by Darrow can be summarized by a few statements he made in that courtroom. “You are facing a problem of two races, a problem that will take centuries to solve. If I felt none of you were prejudiced, I'd have no fear. I want you to be as unprejudiced as you can be. Draw upon your imagination and think how you would feel if you fired at some black man in a black community, and then had to be tried by

Considering it is the 1930s. I think the white accusers behaved the way that they did because they might have been raised of influenced to think colored people are bad because,they are colored and they think bad of these colored men with no legitimate reason.And the mob and other white people are yelling at the colored men because they are black and apeerently “raped’ the girls.So since they are white peole from the 1930’s they imidiatly want to kill the colored men because they are colored did certain things to the white people who are going to trial.So the thoughts or ideas did they have about clored people at that time, is that white people hated them because they are influened or eighter raise to think colored people are unsivilized and

There were several trials held throughout the case of the Scottsboro Boys. Most of them were unfair and obviously conducted with the odds stacked against the boys. The testimonies given by the two girls often did not match up. Victoria Price spent the most time on the stand, and on the rare occasion that Ruby Bates testified, most of what she said was disregarded because it contradicted or changed Price’s story. It was concluded that anything Bates said was no good because she was dimwitted and could not keep her story straight.

Cotton Mather is known for his scientific thinking and his beliefs in the Puritan religion. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts on March 19, 1663 and died in Boston, Massachusetts on February 13, 1728. Cotton was married three times and had many children. Cotton did not live up to his father's legacy in politics, however, he left his mark on history with his publications and studies. Throughout his lifetime he wrote over four hundred books and sermons in topics relating to smallpox, witchcraft and many other subjects. Mather was a leading scientist of his time; he promoted the smallpox cure and was elected to the prestigious scientific organization the Royal Society of London. His parents instilled important values in his mind at a young age. His father Increase Mather was a

She was required to identify her attacker again, while only a table stood between her and the men in the line-up. Remembering the face of the person from before and positive feedback from detectives, she chose the same man. That man was Ronald Cotton. From that point on, the name and face of Ronald Cotton was imprinted in Jennifer Thompson's mind. She was certain he was the man who attacked

Another important aspect of this story is the lack of boundaries had by white people in regards to their self-protection. Wright states, “I’ve got it solved. It’s simple. This nigger put on a dress to worm his was into my house to rape my wife! Ha! See?... Any jury’ll free me on that. Anne, that’s our case.” (147). What’s striking in this passage was the fact that instead of trying to blame the shooting on someone else, they automatically try and make Carl responsible by saying that he was trying to rape his wife. This exact situation and many like it exist in modern America and it’s interesting to see that it isn’t such a new occurrence. The fact that people are willing to lie under oath, and that they eventually are proven not guilty shows how corrupt the system is when conflicts occur between the races.

Emmett’s mother was also called to the witness stand. She was asked if the photo of the brutally beaten and tortured boy that was pulled out of the river was her son, and she confirms with, “ A mother knows her child, has known him since he was born. I looked at the face very carefully...I just looked at it very carefully, and I was able to find out that it was my son, Emmett Louis Till.” Even with all the evidence that Bryant and Milam had done this awful murder of this young boy, at the end of the trial the jury and judge had acquitted both men. These two men had committed such a sick and disturbing crime, feel no remorse, and get away with it. This also shows racism, and the effects it had, If the trial had not took place in the south, with

The novel Picking Cotton: our memoir of injustice and redemption, is based on a true event that occurred between the mid-1980’s to the mid-1990’s. During this event, Jennifer Thompson was raped and she mistakenly identified Ronald Cotton as her rapist. Due to mistakes from both sides, Ronald Cotton forcibly served time for a crime he did not commit. The actual rapist, Bobby Poole, eventually confessed that he was the true culprit and Cotton was released. Cotton could have continued his life without Thompson, but due to the fact that they lived in the same town and attended interviews on the same show, they happen to meet each other on various occasions.

One of the biggest pushes for this change in the judicial system, was the Thompson Vs. Cotton case. Ronald Cotton was accused of raping twenty two year old college student, Jennifer Thompson. During a lecture at Ferris State University, Thompson recalled thinking over and over again that “once I [survive] and live, I will make sure that I know everything about you […] to help the police find you”. Little did she know, the man that she chose in both picture and physical lineup was an innocent man.

the prisoners were lucky enough to escape the being lynched when they were moved into Scottsboro. In this trial, nine young, black boys were charged with the rape of two white girls while on a train. This case was a major source of controversy in the 1930’s. “Despite testimony by doctors who had examined the women that no rape had occurred, the all- white jury convicted the nine, and all but the youngest, who was 12 years old were sentenced to death” (“Scottsboro”). The boys’ lawyer, Samuel Leibowitz, did not even get assigned to the case until the first day of the trial. “If he could show a jury that these nine boys were innocent, as the record indicated, the jury would surely free them. To Leibowitz, that was simple!” (Chalmers 35). However, it was not that simple. Many white citizens would not change their minds about

The Baltovich case shares many similarities to the Cotton case. Both accused males were only convicted because of an eyewitness testimony. Jennifer was certain that Cotton was her attacker and in the Baltovich case all the witnesses were sure that he killed his girlfriend. Another similarity between both of the cases was that the judge did not warn the jury about the problems with eyewitnesses. Rather, the judge allowed both juries to base their conclusion off of a faulty eyewitness.

They viewed Steve guilty as soon as they saw him. As Steve asked his lawyer, Miss O’Brien, about her thoughts on whether or not she thinks he would be found guilty he response was “You’re young, you’re black and you’re on trial. What else do they need to know?” She who has had experienced court cases before knew that people of color had a more likely chance of being found guilty.

Racism came into this trail because everything went into the white girl way because the jury would believe anything they said. “ Ruby Bates and several white boys were in the car with me. The car had chert in it, what I heard called chert. It laced about a foot and half or 3 feet of being full. ...All these twelve men jumped into the gondola over mine and Ruby bates’ head. … Some one of them, I don’t know which one it was, he said, All you white sons of bi****es unload.’ Two of them had a pistol”.(Pg149) That is one story but the other one is different. “ We are not going to hurt you; and when I started to make my jump he hit me, he hit me, and one of them pulled off my clothes, my overall- They have taken my overalls off and then they have

There was only one body and it was male.” The man behind the desk was getting visibly agitated. “Me-Messer said her name was Jenny and that is all, he’s helping us work up a composite photo as we speak.” Correa’s composure was beginning to waver under the tension in the room. The man stood up and put his hands on the desk which was Correa’s one barrier between them. “Are you telling me the first solid clue we have in the largest serial killer case in the history of the United States is a kid who got date raped and a bullshit picture of a girl who we don’t even know is real?” he roared. “Well sir we have witness accounts of him with the girl but no clear details on her appearance, nothing solid on camera either. Also forensics doesn’t think he had intercourse last night.” Correa said as calmly as possible. The man slammed his hands on the table as he sat back