Supreme Court Orders New Trial for Reeves

    PRESS RELEASE 

NAACP LEGAL DEFENSE AND EDUCATIONAL FUND 
107 WEST 43 STREET 

ARTHUR B. SPINGARN 
President 

WALTER WHITE 

NEW YORK 36, JUdson 6-8397 

THURGOOD MARSHALL 
Director and Counsel 

ROBERT L. CARTER 
Secretary Assistant Counsel 

ALLAN KNIGHT CHALMERS ARNOLD DE MILLE 
Treowwrer Press Relations 

SUPREME COURT ORDERS Ni TRIAL 
FOR REEVES December 10, 195), 

WASHINGTON, D.C., Dec. 7.--The U. S. Supreme Court today unani- 

mously set aside the conviction and death sentence of Jeremiah Reeves, 

Jr., a 19 year old Alabama Negro youth charged with rape, and sent the 

case back to the trial court for a new trial. A 

The conviction of Reeves was reversed by the high Court on the 

ground that Reeves was convicted on forced confessions, — 

The swift action of the Supreme Court in deciding the fate of 

Reeves was very unusual in the history of the high Court, The decision 

came down just three weeks after attorneys for NAACP Legal Defense and 

Educational Fund pleaded for a reversal of the lower court's decision 

and asked for a new trial. 

The case reached the U. S. Supreme Court on March 12, 195, #@fter 

the Alabama Supreme Court had denied a request made by Reeves! attor- 

neys for a rehearing in November 1953. The Supreme Court agreed to 

hear argument on June 7. Jack Greenberg, Legal Defense Assistant 

Counsel argued the case on November 15. 

Reeves was arrested on November 10, 1952, four months after a 

white woman claimed she was attacked by an unknown assailant, and held 

ina state penitentiary for 3 days without being permitted to see or 

consult with anyone, He was questioned constantly in a room with the 

electric chair and told by police officials that if he did not confess 

to the crime he would be executed, 

At the trial held in Montgomery the courtroom was cleared by the 

judge of all persons except witnesses and court officials, A motion 

by Reeves! attorney to have the trial open to the public was denied, 

A motion by the attorney to have his private stenographer and members 

of the press admitted to the courtroom was also denied. 

A number of witnesses testified in Reeves! behalf as to his where- 

abouts on the date and time of the alleged crime. Near the close of 



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the trial it was discovered that one of the jurors was the chief of 

the Montgomery Reserve Police Force, organized to track down "alleged 

Negro rapists" and had been active in the case. Reeves! attorney's 

motion for a mistrial was denied, 

NAACP Legal Defense Errasnars hac asked the U. S. Supreme Court to 

set aside the conviction and send the case back to the lower court on 

the ground that Reeves was denied a fair and impartial trial, that the 

confession used to convict him was obtained by force, and that Negroes 

were systematically excluded from the jury which convicted him, 

This ruling marked another important victory for Legal Defense in 

its long fight to obtain justice and full citizenship for Negro 

Americans, 

Legal Defense attorneys representing Reeves were Thurgood Marshall 

Director-Counsel, Robert L. Carter, Assistant, Jack Greenberg and 

Elwood H. Chisolm of Legal Defense staff, Louis H, Pollak of New York 

and Peter A, Hall of Birmingham. 

BENTON HARBOR ADMITS HOUSING SEGREGATION 

GRAND RAPIDS, MICH.--Segregation of Negro and white tenants in low 

rent housing projects was admitted last week by the Benton Harbor Hous- 

ing Commission. 

The admission was made in a reply te a suit filed by NAACP Legal 

Defense and Iiducational Fund, Inc. attorneys in the federal District 

Court on behalf of 5 Negro families seeking admission to one of the 

eity's all-white projects, 

The Benton Harbor Coimission said its segregation policy is the 

result of "custom anc usage." It admits requiring applicants for 

apartments to state their race on the application blank ad admits 

maintaining separate projects for Negro and white families, 

The suit was instituted by NAACP Legal Defense attorneys on 

October 18, 1954 and seeks an injunction enjoining racial segregation 

in federally-aided low rent housing in the city of Benton Harbor. 

The 5 families involved in the case are: Toscanelli Askew, Thomas 

Lee Perkins, Pearlie Kellie, Albert Porter Lucille Fleming. 

Attorneys representing the Negro families are John Roxborough II, 

Detroit, Alfonse Lewis of Grand Rapids and Constance Baker Motley of 

legal Defense staff, Mr, Roxborough is Chairman of Legal Defense Re- 

dress Committee of Detroit and Mr. Lewis is Presicent of the Grand 

Rapids NAACP Branch, 

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