NAACP Legal Defense Will Appeal Americus, GA. Cases
Press Release
October 3, 1963

Cite this item
-
Press Releases, Loose Pages. NAACP Legal Defense Will Appeal Americus, GA. Cases, 1963. 709ff16d-bd92-ee11-be37-6045bddb811f. LDF Archives, Thurgood Marshall Institute. https://ldfrecollection.org/archives/archives-search/archives-item/5a2bffb8-1a8a-4a2a-85d3-9bb62757deb6/naacp-legal-defense-will-appeal-americus-ga-cases. Accessed April 27, 2025.
Copied!
PRESS RELEASE NAACP LEGAL DEFENSE AND EDUCATIONAL FUND TOCOLUMBUS CIRCLE + NEW YORK19,N.Y. © JUdson 6-8397 DR. ALLAN KNIGHT CHALMERS JACK GREENBERG CONSTANCE BAKER MOTLEY President Director-Counsel Associate Counsel October 3, 1963, NAACP LEGAL DEFENSE WILL APPEAL AMERICUS, GA.CASES AMERICUS, Ga.--- Attorneys of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund will carry the cases of five student demonstrators, jailed here since August 8th, to the Georgia State Supreme Court. Jack Greenberg, director-counsel of the Fund, announced that the attorneys wouid be ready to move during the early part of the week of October 6th, This means that the students, all affiliated with the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee, will have spent nearly two months beh nd Georgia bars on a series of unprecedented charges, They were arrested while marching and singing of freedom songs, For this "subversive" plotting, they are charged with “attempting to incite insurrection" against the State of Georgia (a capital offense), riot, unlawful assembly, assault with intent to kill, and resisting arrest, Little progress was made here this week despite vigorous efforts of Legal Defense Fund attorneys arguing before the local Superior Court, Sumter County, of which Americus is the seat. An array of white witnesses testified that they had sworn out warrants for the arrests of the five students because, as one man stated, "I was told they were the leaders," C.B. King, arguing for the Legal Defense Fund, termed such testimony as "hearsay", The solicitor, representing the segregationists interests, argued that windows of stores were broken as a result of the climate created by the five students, even though they were in jail when the property was damaged, None of white witnesses were able to identify the students, One witness went so far as to confuse their identities when asked cont'd, to p@int them out by Mr. King. A.P. Bailey, ex officio justice of the peace, admitted setting peace bonds at $2,000 to $5,000. However, he was called back to the stand by the solicitor and submitted to a line of questioning which attempted to "correct the error", The prosecution maintained that no amount was set forkthe peace bonds sworn out against the students, thus making them unable to secure release, Mr. King was joined by Constance Baker Motley, associate- counsel of the Legal Defense Fund and Thomas Jackson of Macon, Ga. The students, Donald Harris, John Perdew, Ralph Allen, Thomas McDaniel and Sallie Mae Durham, appeared to be in excellent spirits, Mrs, Mary Harris of New Yerk City, mother of young Harris, attended the hearing as did the Rev. Bradford S, Abernethy, chaplain, Rutgers University, from which Harris graduated last year, Miss Durham was bound over to juvenile court when Mr, King pointed out that she is only 14 years of age, The hearing was held on a petition for a writ of habeas corpus filed by NAACP Legal Defense Fund attorneys. - 30° = Editor's Note: For further information contact:- Jesse DeVore, Jr. Director of Public Information, NAACP Lehal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc., 10 Columbus Circle, New York 19, N.Y. JUdson 6-8397,