An Editorial to Agree With

At times, I disagree with the Washington Post. But I have to agree with today's editorial on Edgar Killen. Mississippi finally prosecuted and convicted Killen of mansluaghter for the brutal murders of James Chaney, Michael Schwerner and Andrew Goodman, civil rights activists murdered in Mississippi in 1964. However, Judge Gordon has released Killen on bail pending an appeal.

Judge Gordon justified the release on the grounds that granting such an appeals bond is generally required by law in manslaughter cases in which the convict is not a danger. But Mississippi law is not as flip as all that. The judge has discretion, and in any event, the burden is on the convict to show "by clear and convincing evidence that [he] would not constitute a special danger to any other person or to the community." And as prosecutors argued Monday in an emergency petition to the state Supreme Court, Mr. Killen simply cannot show this. This is somebody, after all, who orchestrated the deaths of three people. In 1975 he was convicted of felony telephone harassment for threatening to kill someone. On the date of his much-belated arraignment in the civil rights killings, a bomb threat caused the evacuation of the courthouse, and the state attorney general alleges that a relative of Mr. Killen's threatened to kill the trial judge. After his conviction, Mr. Killen made threatening comments to one of his jailers. This simply isn't a man who ought to be on the streets while he challenges his conviction. Washington Post

No, this isn't a man who should be released on bail. He is a terrorist who organized a hateful group of people to kill three innocent men. He is still attempting to intimidate people through threats of violence. He makes a mockery out of the word preacher. I do not understand Judge Gordon's reasoning. Killen already has had 41 years of freedom. That is too many. He should remain in jail during the appeals process.