The Michigan chronicle. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1936-current, 1945-09-22
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WHITE JUSTICE IN DALLAS

held the decision OF the Texas
Criminal Courts, but the Chief
Justice and Justices Black and
Murphy dissented. Murphy Ming Q
written opinion. The general set
ting OF the case-that the slain man
was white. that he was q white
policeman (there are no Negro
policemen in Dallas, that the al
legged jostling was OF q white
woman by q Negro, the white wit
nesses. the exclusively white Jury.
the white judge and court ofYfcials,
the white prosecution-all this
frame OF racial inequality was be.
fore the court only a. incidental
10 one narrow point. H
Under the Texas law the grand
jury is selected by three commits
sioners appointed by the judge;
they pick out Is men as q panel.
OF whom twelve are finally chosen
as grand jurors and become the
lndicting body.
The first conviction OF Atkins.
resulting in a life sentence. was
reversed by the Texas Court OF
Criminal Appeals in an opinion
based on the United States SUI
preme Courts decision In Hill w
State ts6 Law Ed. 1880. which the
Texas court followed with sullen
reluctance. In the Hill case no
Negro was on the grand jury. and
II was shown that none ever had
been selected, though there were
numerous Negroes in Dallas county
qualified to serve After the re.
versal, the judge who had presided
in the trial court told the commits
sloners who were 10 select Q new
grand jury that in view Of the
appellate courts decision il would
be well TO include a Negro. The
general public and the commits
sioners knew from the judges re-
marks that Atkins was TO be in.
dicted again The commissioners
followed the judges suggestion anG
chose barely literate Negro farm
er from a remote part Of the
county.
When motion was made 70
quaxh the indictment because OF
the discrimination alleged,
hearing was held 1t which the
commissioners expressed them
selves frankly. w II. Wells said.
We had no intention Of placing
more than one Negro on the
panel. When We did that we had
finished with the Negro" Ernest
n. Tenant testified. II did not
have any intention Of putting
more than one on the list" Roy
z. Douglas, the third commits
sioner, agreed. I'VE liked this
one" he said. and cur irten-
tons were 10 Get just one Negro
on the grand jury
There is, OF course. nothing COM
plicated or dificult in the idea of
discrimination. II means simply
dealing unequally with" And If
the statements Of the commission
ers have any meaning whatever,
they show very clearly that the
commissioners did deal unequRlly
with the Negro race. From their
own testimony il seems impossible
10 deny that they allowed one Ne
gro only on the grand jury. Yet
Justice Reed. on page 1912 OF the
Atkins decision. could say that the
evidence leaves us unconvinced
that the commissioners deliberately
and Intentionally limited the num-
Der 81 Negroes on the grand jury
list" And the majority voted with
him ~ affirm the death sentence
To the average citizen in this
state, where discrimination sssins,
Negroes is commonplace, the judi
cIsl killing OF Atkins comes as nc
surprise. The average policeman
prosecutor. or juror says simply,
When a niger kills white man,
death TO him" Atkins never had
"hsnce in Texas. But II is shocking
that the United States Supreme
Court should have consented to
this death sentence, should have
tolerated the evasion OF its own
previous decisions by the DELHI
crate subterfuge Of putting one
e!ghty-year-old Negro on the grand
jury as evidence Of no discrimi-
nation"
] repeat that I know, and the