After confessing, Newman said, George led officers to the spot in the woods where he had hidden the spike. Stinney shook when the switch was flipped, and roughly 40 witnesses saw his face. Then, his body, arms, and legs bound him to the chair. He was laid to rest in an unmarked grave in Crowley. Re-opening of the Case after Seven Decades https://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/22/opinion/charles-blow-pursuing-justice-for-all.html%3Fmcubz=3&_r=0

Keys rattled then. A gate creaked open. Heavy footsteps plodded up the stairs. George grew quiet. It was their last day together. George grabbed Hunter, and Hunter flung his arms around the boy. Texas Monthly – Texas Executed Carlos DeLuna for Murder in 1989. A New Documentary Says He Was Innocent. It is my professional opinion, to a reasonable degree of medical certainty, that the confession given by George Stinney Jr. on or about March 24, 1944, is best characterized as a coerced, compliant, false confession," she said. "It is not reliable." Frankie Dyches, right, and her sister, Carolyn Geddings, during an interview with NBC News earlier this week. Erika Angulo/NBC News James Arcene, ten-year old boy believed to be the youngest person to be given a death sentence in the United States

Trail

The girls were last seen riding their bicycles looking for flowers. As they passed the Stinneys' property, they had asked Stinney and his sister, Aimé, [6] if they knew where to find "maypops", a local name for passionflowers. [14] According to Aimé, she was with Stinney at the time the police later established the murders occurred. [6] According to an article reported by the wire services on March 24, 1944, the sheriff announced the arrest of "George Junius" and stated that the boy had confessed and led officers to "a hidden piece of iron." [15] [14] Investigation [ edit ] With so little evidence, there was no way to get a conviction, until bite mark specialist Homer Campbell testified that the marks left on the bodies could have been made by none other than David Wayne Spence. He said that he used enhanced pictures of the bodies and molds of Spence’s teeth to conclude without a doubt that Spence had made the bite marks. The stories we hear are that he was a shy bashful boy, but he was a bully and he was mean," she said, citing allegations by Duke and others. She questions the memories of the Stinney family, the motivation of the attorneys and the timing of the appeal. "Why now? What about in the 1960s, when the civil rights movement was starting? What about in the 1970s or 80s? One was a school teacher. It's not as though they weren't educated."

Janice Richburg, president of the Alcolu Preservation Society, shows off a preserved old mill house full of local residents' mementos, including old photographs. Richburg has encouraged people to share items that might be worth preserving in the old house. Andrew J. Whitaker/ Staff By Andrew Whitaker [email protected] Banner, Stuart (March 5, 2005). "When Killing a Juvenile Was Routine". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 12, 2016.George Stinney's case has been frequently referred to in debate over the use of the death penalty in the United States, especially in arguments against the death penalty, due to common belief that Stinney was innocent and wrongfully executed. [37] Current and former residents of Alcolu gather inside of Clarendon Baptist Church for a biennial reunion of current and former residents who enjoy sharing their memories of the farming community, once centered around a thriving lumber mill. John A. Carlos II / Special to The Post and Courier John A. Carlos II The 14-year-old had not seen or spoken to his parents for weeks, and they were too terrified of the white mob to show up at the trial. Instead, strangers surrounded him. Fifteen hundred people swelled into the courtroom, too many to fit. They flowed out of every door.

Stinney spent 81 days in jail before being put to death, and his parents were seldom ever permitted to visit him during that time. He was led to the Columbian Penitentiary’s adult-sized electric chair, where he was put to death 90 days after the murder. But on cross examination, Ms Ruffner struggled to remember details of sworn statement she gave in 2009.

South Carolina Deaths, 1915–1965," database with images, FamilySearch ( https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FGBH-P91: 18 July 2017), Betty June Binniker, 24 Mar 1944; citing , Binniker, Betty June, 1944, Department of Archives and History, State Records Center, Columbia; FHL microfilm 1,943,933. She insists that George's confession was forced out of him. "They made him confess. They never found the statement. Why would my brother confess to something he didn't do?" The confession, if it was ever written down or signed, has not survived, along with the transcript of the trial. The following description of the basic facts of the case is taken from the ruling of Carmen Tevis Mullen, the 14th Judicial District judge in South Carolina who vacated Stinney's conviction in 2014. It contains descriptions of violence against children that some readers might find upsetting:

South Carolina Department of Archives and History George Stinney Jr.’s fingerprints are pictured on this certificate.

People from across the country wrote letters to Governor Olin D. Johnston regarding George Stinney Jr.'s death sentence in 1944. Most of them sought mercy on the child's behalf. Courtesy the South Carolina Department of Archives and History. Michael Pronzato/Staff By Michael Pronzato [email protected] *** Hannah Ocuish, twelve-year-old girl believed to be the youngest person to be executed in the United States The couple had a relationship that was fraught with arguments and violence. They struggled to make ends meet, and in 1949, Beryl became pregnant again. Without enough money to support themselves, much less another child, they believed that their only option was an abortion. On November 30, 1949, Evans showed up at the police station and said that he had given Beryl a mixture to abort the baby and had accidentally killed her. He said that he placed her body in a drainage ditch. Police never found the body, which prompted Evans to change his story. He said that a man named John Christie had agreed to perform the abortion and that Beryl had died during the procedure. Even though there were rumours that the girls had a stopover at a prominent white family’s house, the police never investigated them nor did they search for a white killer. After receiving reports that the girls had stopped at Stinney’s house, the law enforcement officers arrested George Stinney Jr. and his older brother Johnny. Although they released Johnny, they kept 14-year-old George in custody.