Tabor City tribune. (Tabor City, N.C.) 1946-1991, 1952-05-07
Seven Enter No Contest Plea
In Ku Klux Khan Floggings

Khan flogging case Tuesday threw
themselves on the mercy of the
court by entering pleas of no con-
test to charges that they kidnapped
and flogged WhiteviHe mechanic.
But the other six defendants In
the same case pleaded not guilty
to the charges and Is Columbus
County men went on trial in a
sweltering courtroom in White
vile.
On Monday Judge Clawson Will
liams had rendered the verdict
that the Grand Jury which indict-
ed the ex-Klansmen was illegally
constituted and dropped the pred.
GUS charges monentarily. How
ever, he Immediately summoned q
new Grand Jury and within five
hours all men who formerly faced
charges were back under identical
indictments.
AS court reconvened Wednesday
morning, the job of choosing the
two more jurors needed was start
ed again with so new men from
New Hanover county.
When court recessed at $40 p.
m, Tuesday only ten jurors out OF
70 examined from special New
Hanover County venire had been
selected. Judge Clawson L. VIII
liams ordered another special We
nire of so summoned from New
Hanover County tomorrow morn
ing, when efforts to select the
18th and 18th jurors will be re-
summed.
Entering the no contest (nolo
contendere) pleas were Frank
Lewis, ex-police chief of Fair
Bluff; Leroy Honeycutt, and John
Honeycutt, Jr., both of Chadbourn;
Ray Kelly, Whiteville; George
and Steve Edmund of Columbus
County, and Rex Conner of Cerro
Gordo, Route /. ;
Judge Williams, deferred SEN
tence on the seven, who by their
pleas risk possible life sentences
since that is the maximum penalty
under State law for kidnapping. 1t
was considered certain, however,
that charge will be reduced before
sentence is passed after the YER
dict has been returned in the other
six cases.
The mechanic who contends he
was flosged on the night of De-
cember 8, 1851, is Woodrow john
son, the only resident Of White
vile molested during the series OF
floggings attributed to the Kan
in this county late last year.
Among the jurors excused to:
day was Richard Holland, the only
Negro Of the 10 who appeared on
the special venire. George T.
Swain, a Wilmington bank en-
ploye who said he was a KlanS-
man in 1922, also excused was
John B. Allen, wholesale grocer
who said he was member OF the
Catholic Church.
w. T. Mars, another prospec-
tive juror, escaped jury duty when
he indicted he was in sympathy
with the Khan. Most If tho other
members of the special venire who
were excused said they had al
.eady fromed definite opinions
about the case and could not be
impartial.
While the cases of the six men
who deny their guilt have been
consolidated, the trial expected to
consume the remainder Of this
week.
Wilmington attorney Aaron
Goldberg, whose race has been the
chief target Of Khan hate speeches,
was cast in the role Of Khan de-
fender today. He did most Of the
questioning of prospective jurors
for the defense, and was helped by
David Sinclair, also a Whining
ton attorney.
State Senator Alton A. Lennon
Of New Hanover was at Solicitor
Clifton Moore's elbow as the State
examined the jurors. Both State
and the defense each excused Is
Jurors and Judge Williams at his
discretion excused 81.
Each juror was asked if he were
a Klansman, or ever had been, b
the solicitor, who also carefully
sought to trace any kinship exist
ing in Columbus county.
"Has anyone contacted you, In
person or on the telephone about
this case since you were sum-
moned for jury duty" was anoth-
er question put to each juror. AL
answsesd n - nsOn6va
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