GEORGE JUNIUS STINNEY JR: WHEN JUSTICE FAILED, A 14 YEAR OLD BOY WAS ILLEGALLY EXECUTED

“George Junius Stinney Jr., we find you guilty on the charge of first degree murder and you are sentenced to death. You shall ‘be electrocuted, until your body be dead in accordance with law. And may God have mercy on your soul.’”  The judge read the judgment to the accused.

On the 16^th day of June 1944, Stinney, a 14 year old boy was removed from his cell by the prison officer; he placed his bible under his armpits, and walked slowly with tears running down his cheeks as he was escorted to the execution chamber to meet his death.

At the electrocution chamber, Stinney was placed on the electric seat where many have met their death, and today was his date. He was so small to fit and so short for the electrode head piece apparatus to be placed on his head, so they took the bible under his armpits, placed it on the seat to act as a booster. Then they strained his legs, arms and body on the electric chair. He was asked if he had last words to say and His father moved closer to listen but Stinney couldn’t talk he just shook his head and his small legs, though strained, daggled as if trembling with fear.  The prisoner officer covered his face with a large death mask and walked backwards placing his back on the wall and faced the accused. 

After a few seconds, he signaled a person who was on the other side of a glassed wall and the executioner flipped the lethal 2400V electric switch, the lights in the room dimmed and brightened momentary, maybe to allow the angel of death do his job. Stinney body convulsed as electricity pumped into his body, two more jolts of electricity were
added totaling to about 5,300V. The death mask covering his body flipped off his face exposing his burning scalp, his eyes were wide open, tears running down his cheeks and saliva foam around his mouth and saliva dripping to his chest.

Three Minutes and 45 seconds later the switch was flipped off. The execution chamber was filled with smoke and reeked with burnt flesh. The body of Stinney sat on the chair lifeless. The prison physician approached the body, placed the stethoscope on the left side of his chest and declared Stinney as dead. “Justice” had been served.

In 2014, about 60 years after the execution, the blood of Stinney still continued to cry for justice from the grave and the court would pass a judgment that “a violation of the Defendant procedural due process rights tainted his prosecution … and that the courts [had] failed in a capital case to discharge their proper functions with due regard to the constitutional safeguards in the administration of justice. Based on the forgoing I hereby vacate the defendant’s conviction” the judgment read. In short, George Junius Stinney Jr was ILLEGALLY EXECUTED!

What had led to the overturning of this illegal execution was that, in 2004, a historian, George Frierson would come across a newspaper article on this case and did a research on it. Some Lawyers got an interest on his research. They filed a motion for a new trial and a petition for writ of Coram Nobis in 2013, because they knew “there wasn’t any reason to convict the child and this is an injustice that needs to be righted” and this is an “opportunity to make a difference and correct a wrong that’s been there for 70 years” and that the “the conviction was based on numerous and serious errors and omissions denying Stinney fundamental due process.”

Stinney had been accused of the Murder of two girls, Betty June Binnaker, 11 yrs and Mary Emma Thames, 7 years. The two  girls had passed around their property looking for Maypop Flowers and had asked Stinney and his sister  where they could find some of the flowers and they told them they did not know.  The bodies of the two girls would later be found in a ditch with head injuries.

The police would arrest George Stinney on the suspicion of the murder based on the account that he was the last person to have had information on them and took him to custody.  He stayed in custody for about 81 days. He was not allowed to see his parents until his trial and conviction and had no support from anyone during the whole trial process. In custody the police interrogated him alone without his parents or a lawyer. The police would later give evidence in court that the boy had confessed yet no confession statement signed by Stinney would be produced in court and Stinney would later say that the arresting police “starved him and then bribed him with food” and due to fear, exhaustion, hunger and intimidation he relinquished his innocence and gave a confession.

During the trial, the Court appointed a defense counsel for Stinney, who was a tax commissioner campaigning for election to a local office. And due to the popularity of the incidence and trial, may have just taken the case to gain him popularity and influence more votes from the locals.

During the Proceedings, the defense counsel did not challenge the production of the police offices confession statement as evidence or cross-examine them, which was the only evidence they had against Stinney. There was no other evidence whatsoever linking Stinney to the murder. On the accusation that Stinney might have attempted to rape them before or after murdering them, the medical report indicated there were no indications of sexual assault and both girl’s hymen were intact.

Stinney defense counsel on the other hand did not call any witness or even the sister who had been with Stinney  on the said day and would give an alibi evidence, he did not bring in the doubt of how practical and logical a 14 year old of only 5.1 feet(1.6M) and 95 pound(43Kg) would overpower and  murder a 11 year old and 7 year old girl and carry them to a ditch because there  was no sign that the bodies were dragged to the ditch and even if he had carried the bodies, due to the bloody nature of the murder,  then blood or any physical evidence would have been left on him. But the defense attorney offered no defense.

Stinney who was a black American was convicted to death by an all-white jury within 10 minutes of discussion. The court did not hesitate to give the Judgment. On his conviction the defense counsel did not even bother to file for an appeal and request for stay of execution.  Therefore, Stinney was executed.

George Stinney case is an illustration of what happens when the whole system of justice fails. When the community uses Race to determine who is a suspect. When the police arrest anyone without compelling evidence, subject the arrested person to psychological torture and denying him right to counsel or guidance, obtaining a confession through duress, torture and deception. When the prosecution is more interested in obtaining a verdict of guilt other than guiding the court to reach a legally and fact supported judgment. When the defense lawyer undertakes his works for selfish purpose of publicity and totally dereliction of duty to ensure evidence and the legal process is followed and the rights entitled to the accused have been followed. When the jury does not represent a fair cross section of the community and unable to speak the truth and give an impartial verdict and base their judgment on racial basis. When a judge does not guide the jury on the legal aspects and ensure the matter has been proved beyond reasonable doubt, when the judge does not appreciate the uniqueness of a case and weight and balance the offense and punishment and ends up giving a punishment that is unproportional to the offence. And ‘innocent Blood’ was shed on an electric chair to warn future generations of the dangers of having a broken down system of justice.

Around the world, many people languish in jail because of a broken down system. This is a system all of us are in or can find themselves in as a suspect, public, Police, Defense counsel,  prosecutor or judge and we all have a duty to play to ensure no innocent person goes to jail. As members of the public let’s view each other as humans; Issues such as wealth, race or religion should not be used to single out a suspect. As Police let’s do our job, ensure everyone arrested enjoys his right and law is followed. As prosecutor as much as the demand to proof the case beyond reasonable doubt is on us lets bear the burden with integrity and fairness not just to aim at reaching a conviction of Guilty. As defense counsel do your job, the law and evidence presented should be followed and the rights of an arrested person jealously protected. The question of “what if a guilty person is released because of your brilliant defense?” should be converted to “is justice being delivered after the law and evidence has been followed?” for the judge the scale of justice should always balance.

This case may have happened thousands of kilometers away but in one way or another it part of the humanity history and as Martin Luther would say while at Birmingham jail that “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”  And this case gives us an opportunity to learn from history and  to correct an injustice where possible and to look our current status and see if there is any eminent threat to justice in any form in our system and to look forward with a constant reminder of the dangers of having a biased system of governance.

(Photos credited to:Global Exchange, Findagrave.com, Washington Post, Movie:83 Days)