Salone v USA Petitioners Reply Brief
Public Court Documents
October 1, 1975

6 pages
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Press Releases, Loose Pages. December 10th Hearing in Mississippi "Chicken Feed" Case, 1962. 6ec4fa17-bd92-ee11-be37-6045bddb811f. LDF Archives, Thurgood Marshall Institute. https://ldfrecollection.org/archives/archives-search/archives-item/5ce2e655-213c-40e3-954a-b5ee79feb6ed/december-10th-hearing-in-mississippi-chicken-feed-case. Accessed August 19, 2025.
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PRESS RELEASE NAACP LEGAL DEFENSE AND EDUCATIONAL FUND O COLUMBUS CIRCLE + NEW YORK19,N.Y. © JUdson 6-8397 oe KNIGHT CHALMERS JACK GREENBERG CONSTANCE BAKER MOTLEY resident Director-Counsel Associate Counsel Ss DECEMBER 10TH HEARING IN MISSISSIPPI "CHICKEN FEED" CASE December 6, 1962 NEW YORK -- On Monday, December 10th, Mississippi District Judge Alan Cox is scheduled to begin hearings at Aberdeen, Miss. in the infamous Kennard "chicken feed" case. Clyde Kennard is the Hattiesburg, Miss. Negro student who two years ago was sentenced to a seven year jail term for allegedly helping to plan the burglary of five bags of chicken feed. Kennard's arrest followed his attempt to become the first Negro to enter all- white Mississippi Southern College in September 1959. Monday's hearing will be on a new Federal District Court suit filed last month by NAACP Legal Defense Fund attorneys which aims to secure a new jury trial for Kennard on the "chicken feed" charge. The suit maintains that Kennard was convicted by a jury from which Negroes were arbitrarily and systematically excluded. Since 1961, Legal Defense Fund attogyneys have attempted many legal actions to win Kennard's freedom, all to no avail. An appeal to the U. S. Supreme Court from Mississippi courts was turned down by the high Court in August 1961. Kennard is now sickly, and has never been able to receive bail from Parchman Penitentiary in Forrest County, where he is currently jailed. Defense Fund attorney Derrick Bell, who prepared the federal court complaint, pointed out that jury panels are selected from county voter registration rolls. The complaint cites evidence that Forrest County, where Kennard was convicted, has barred Negroes from registering to vote. Bell said that in 1959 the U. S. Commission on Civil Rights reported that only 16 Negroes were registered as of 1955, though Forrest County has 7,406 Negroes of voting age. He also pointed out that there is a contempt action pending in the Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans against Therron C, Lynd, the EQS Circuit Clerk and Registrar of Forrest County, because of his continued refusal to register qualified Negroes. The Kennard case has received considerable publicity because of similar efforts of Mississippi officials to bring criminal charges against James Meredith last summer, The case was brought to national attention by a November 8th article of the Reporter Magazine entitled "One Negro Who Didn't Go To College.” NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund attorneys for Kennard are George N. Leighton of Chicago, I1l., who has been retained as a special attorney in this case, R. Jess Brown of Vicksburg, Miss., and Derrick A. Bell, Jr. and Jack Greenberg of New York City.