NAACP Legal Defense Fund Asks Supreme Court to Insure Courtesy for Negroes in Southern Courtrooms

    PRESS RELEASE 

NAACP LEGAL DEFENSE AND EDUCATIONAL FUND 
10 COLUMBUS CIRCLE * NEW YORK, N. Y. 10019 © JUdson 6-8397 

DR. ALLAN KNIGHT CHALMERS JACK GREENBERG CONSTANCE BAKER MOTLEY 
President Director-Counsel Associate Counsel 

Sse 

FOR RELEASE WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29th, 196 

NAACP LEGAL DEFENSE FUND ESKS 
SUPREME COURT TO INSURE COURTESY 
FOR NEGROES IN SOUTHERN COURTROOMS 

Works of Baldwin, Myrdal and Wright Cited 

WASHINGTON---The U.S, Supreme Court was asked to strike down an his- 
toric southern tradition today: the practice of addressing Negroes by 
their first names during court proceedings. 

A favorable ruling would have far reaching effects toward better 
treatment and respect for Negroes in pursuit of justice through 
southern courts, 

Attorneys for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund asked the high court 
to overrule an Alabama court decision holding a Negro woman in con- 
tempt for objecting to being called by her first name by an Etowah 
County Circuit Solicitor. 

Miss Mary Hamilton, a field secretary for the Congress of Racial 
Equality, was included in a large number of Negroes tried in an Ala- 
bama court last June 25th, on charges growing out of anti segregation 
demonstrations, 

The southern white solicitor, William Rayburn, addressed all 
Negro petitioners by their first names, Courtesy titles, such as 
"Miss", "Mrs.", "Mr." were used for white persons. 

The incident erupted when the solicitor began cross-examining 
Miss Hamilton and asked her name, 

"Miss Mary Hamilton", she replied. 

The solicitor then addressed her as "Mary", 

"Please address me correctly", Miss Hamilton answered. 

The white lawyer ignored this request, and pressed his questicn, 
ending with "Mary", Miss Hamilton repeated her refusal to answer 
‘until I am addressed correctly". 

At this point, Norman Amaker, NAACP Legal Defense Fund assistant 
counsel raised objections, pointing out that "her name is Miss Hamil-. 
ton", 

The judge overruled Mr, Amaker saying, "I'm not going to tell a 
lawyer how to address a witness", He then held Miss Hamilton in 
contempt of court, 

She was instantly sentenced to five days in jail plus a fifty 
dollar fine. Legal Defense Fund attorneys appealed the decision to 
the Alabama Supreme Court which upheld the lower court. 

In their petition for writ of certiorari to the high court, 
Legal Defense attorneys point out that "failure to afford petitioner 
(Miss Hamilton) notice and a hearing before punishing her for con- 
tempt, was a denial of due process of law", 

They also stress that the prosecutor, or solicitor, "has a re- 
sponsibility not to detract from the impartiality of the courtroom 
atmosphere", 

(more) 



January 29th, 1964 

-2-e. 

NAACP Legal Defense Fund Asks 
Supreme Court to Insure Courtesy 
for Negroes in Southern Courtrooms 

Authors James Baldwin, Gunnar Myrdal, John Dollard, Richard 
Wright, Ralph Ellison, Charles S$. Johnson and Lillian Smith are 
among those cited in the petition for their interpretations of what 
this practice means to Negro citizens, 

The attorneys added that Alabama courts have no legitimate 
business "to maintain tne racial caste system by using the contempt 
power in support of racially demeaning forms of addressing 
Negroes....". 

Mr. Amaker was joined in preparation of the petition to the 
Supreme Court by Jack Greenberg, director counsel, James M. 
Nabrit,III and Charles H, Jones, all of the Fund's New York City 
headquarters, 

Oscar Adams, Defense Fund cooperating attorney of Birmingham, also represented Miss Hamilton in the state courts, 

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