The Northwest enterprise. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1931-1952, 1934-08-02


bond. The new trial was set for
October g, 1925, but was finally
snolle pressed and Mr.. Durant was
freed.
The Strange Case of Ben Bess
In 1915 Ben Bess, a well-to-do
farmer of Florence County, South
Carolina, was accused by a white
woman of raping her. He narrow
ly escaped lynching and was SEN
fenced to thirty years imprison-
ment. In May 1928, thirteen
years later, his sentence was COM
muted by Gov. John Richards after
the white woman, believing her
self about. to die, executed an af-
fidavit denying and refuting her
testimony against Bess. This brot
full and unconditional pardon
for Ben Bess.
When there was talk of bring
ing perjury proceedings against
the white woman, she promptly
executed a second affidavit, repu-
dating the first one, declaring
that she had thereby merely meant
to forgive" him. Governor Rich
ards immediatel undertook to re-
woke the pardon he had issued.
Habeas corpus proceedings were
promptly instituted by N, ]. Fred
erick of Columbia, S. c., the N. A.
A. C. P. attorney representing
Bess, and the case was referred
by court to a Master, who found
there had been no fraud in the
execution of the woman's first af-
fidavit as she had declared in her
second one. The court neverthe-
less ignored the Masters findings,
dismissed the writ of habeas cor
pus and Bess was returned to pri-
son.
The Associations attorney then
appealed to the Supreme Court of
the State of South Carolina which
deliberated for eleven months. On
October IL, 1929, in En- Banc Ses-
sion, with all Circuit Judges sit
ting on the Supreme Court, that
court, by a vote of 10 to z ruled
the Governor had no authority to
revoke the pardon. Ben Bess was
thereupon freed and is now living
in the North The Association ex-
pended $500 on the case.
When "Rapists" Go Free in South
Even bigger news than a man
biting a dog, is a Negro, accused
of raping a white woman, going
free below the Mason-Dixon line,
and yet, believe it or not, it has
happened.
Centreville, Tenn. is certainly
in the South and Turley Wright is
Enthusiastically Negro. In 1929
he was sentenced to 10 years inn
prisonment on charge of GRIM
inally assaulting an aged white
woman. The woman's grand
daughters, who testified against
Wright, later admitted having been
away from the scene of the at
tack. Thereupon, two of the pro-
scouting attorneys, in open court,
withdrew from the case. Two tri-
al jurors made affidavit that they
had voted against Wright in de-
ference to prevalent mob sentiment
and to prevent his lynching. w.
L. Pinkerton, white defense coun-
sci, moved for new trial The
judge granted the motion. At the
second trial Attorney General E.
w. Eggleston declared in open
court that the State had no addi-
tional evidence to present. Judge
]. G. Hobbs thereupon instructed
the jury to bring in verdict of
mot Guilty" Turley Wright was
freed.
The public is generally familiar
with most of the details of the
Scottsboro Cases, but it is not so
well known that for the appeal to
the Alabama Supreme Court the
! N.A.A.C.P. retained Fort, Beddow
and Ray, foremost criminal law
firm of Alabama, Clarence barrow
of Chicago and Arthur Garfield
Hays of New York; that the bill
of exceptions, 100 pages long, one
of the most elaborate ever present
ed to an Alabama court, was pre-
pared by N. A. A. c. P. attorneys,
signed by the trial judge and GER
titled to the supreme court.
The Communists, through the
international Labor Defense enter
ed the case by persuading the de-
PENDANTS to sign a written request
that the LID. alone represent
them. The N.A.A.C.P. thus had
no alternative but to withdraw. AL
together the Association has spent
a grand total of $11, 945.70. OF
this sum $4,6S7.O7 has been paid
out in legal bills through the LID.
since the Associations withdrawal
from the case. The money was
raised by the Association through
it's 400 branches which held spe-