Since this post was published, the chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee says the U.S. Justice Department is investigating this incident–story pasted at bottom of this post.
Sumner, Mississippi in Tallahatchie County is best known as the town where Emmett Till was lynched for whistling at a white woman. Now Sumner is back in the news (just barely) after County Attorney John Whitten III (the son of the attorney who successfully defended Till’s killers) organized an vigilante posse on August 20th (armed, some say, with guns and two armored tanks allegedly owned by a local survivalist group) to hunt down two young black men accused of robbing a local home. (The courthouse in Sumner is pictured at the left.)
Thus far there are two versions of the story: a brief article in the Jackson Clarion-Ledger (that says little apart from the fact that U.S. Rep. Bennie Sanders is asking the Attorney General to investigate) and a sensational account currently circulating in the blogosphere suggesting that little has changed in Tallahatchie County since the Emmett Till days. An excellent blog dedicated to the Mississippi Sovereignty Commission addresses both sides of the story and suggests that an FBI probe is already underway.
As always, the comments at the end of the various stories are more entertaining than the text and raise serious questions about the current state of race relations in Mississippi.
According to the unauthorized blog version of the story, Mr. Whitten “organized a militia of what could best be described as a lynch mob. Some of these men were actual law enforcement officers while others such as the case of an unidentified white maintenance man from Tutwiler, MS, simply wore a police uniform and was given a police car along with plenty of booze, guns and ammunition. Even the K-9 unit from the Department of Corrections at the notorious Parchman State Penitentiary was alerted for this mission. In addition to the man, fire and canine power, Whitten deployed two military tanks for the purpose of hunting down Mr. Will Pittman as well.”
August 29, 2009
Feds investigating Delta incident
From staff and wire reports
The chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee says the U.S. Justice Department is investigating an incident in the Mississippi Delta in which he was told a mostly white group used weapons and “vigilante” techniques to search for a black burglary suspect.
The suspect, William Pittman, was charged Aug. 20 with breaking and entering a home in Sumner. He was released on bond the same day.
Second District U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, a Democrat who represents Tallahatchie County, on Thursday said he has asked the U.S. attorney general to investigate. He said his staff has received calls from concerned residents.
“Unauthorized people with guns, terrorizing citizens of this area has no place in civilized society,” Thompson said. “The fact that this community still (bears) the stains of racial tensions and is the area that Emmett Till was murdered weighs heavy on the conscience and fears of this community.”
Till, a Chicago teen who was visiting relatives in the area, was lynched in 1955.
Pittman’s father, attorney Ellis Pittman, said his son’s life was threatened by Tallahatchie County Prosecuting Attorney John Whitten.
Whitten, who is white and allegedly among the group, said the allegations are baseless.
The Justice Department says it’s aware of the case and the FBI says it’s reviewing it with other agencies.
The ACLU and the NAACP also are asking for an investigation.
Friends of Justice 
when i would file grievances on my jobs, i was, basically, ignored and little or NO action was taken to off-set the abuse of privilege or of the haunting harassment. i am not glad to see the things occuring on such a massive scale but whatever it takes for the truth to be revealed. let it begin.
I understand that John Whitten’s family owns half of the land in the town…..so that automatically gives him the right to own it. Isn’t that how it goes? He has overstepped his power in a grand way. Just think of the little things he has done and not been exposed. His state of mind took him back a little too far. Bad flashback!!! There are a lot things about to hit the fan in Mississippi.
How can people who spout Christ be so evil?
Heck they use Christ to sell their racism even though he was a dark skinned jew.
When will the hatred and bigotry end???????
White people – Get over it !
everyone who slanders will be judged. to put narrow minded views to be calling out a race people is hypocritical. trail the ones who are to be judged. let the un prevoked man or woman be free
George Vreeland Hill is watching Mississippi.
That place has not changed I see. I had family there when I was younger. We moved there because my dads first cousins were getting old and need our help neither to say at her age she was still working for the same white family from her younger days at the time we moved there she was 89yrs old can I say slavery was still in the town from a child view. I was in the 3rd grade then an and now I’m 41.
seriously the “blacks ” need to get over it a hell of alot sooner as quoted in the article “the U.S. Justice Department is investigating an incident in the Mississippi Delta in which he was told a mostly white group used weapons and “vigilante” techniques to search for a black burglary suspect.” as the article states MOSTLY WHITE group not all white . damn people read for a change and stop taking things for what you want them to be .and if the “black” man did rob someone he should have been hunted down like a animal as should all criminals