Rep. Lewis Leads House Effort to Create DOJ Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Units

Rep. Lewis Leads House Effort to Create DOJ Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Units

U.S. Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) has joined forces with U.S Senators Chris Dodd (D-CT), Jim Talent (R-MO), and Rep. Kenny Hulsoff (R-MO) to push legislation that would create two new offices in the Department of Justice. They would focus on investigating and prosecuting unsolved Civil Rights-era murders, like the infamous Emmett Till case in Ms., which served as a catalyst for the modern-day Civil Rights Movement.

Other states, like Georgia, also have unsolved murders on the books, such as the 1946 lynching in Monroe, Ga. in which a pregnant African American woman and her husband were forced from their car by a mob. They were dragged 50 yards down a wagon trail and shot while a crowd of 200 people watched. No was ever charged in the murders. Last year the Georgia Association of Black Public Officials urged prosecutors to bring charges in the case.

"There are unsolved cases like these in many states in America." said Rep. Lewis, "If we allow these crimes to go unanswered, we cannot candidly declare we are a nation that believes in justice. By using the resources of the federal government to resolve these crimes, we are saying that historical context is no excuse for brutality in America. And we are reclaiming our integrity as a nation by doing what we can to right these wrongs today."

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http://www.house.gov/johnlewis/06pressreleases/pr42706.html