Ghosts of Mississippi Page #4

...or that guy Pierson

for shooting Donny Brown.

That's why we're only gonna work

on this case in our spare time.

Holy sh*t.

Will you look at this?

You could buy a whole damn General

Electric refrigerator for $185.

T alk about your good old days.

That's my daddy.

I didn't know he was on the force too.

Sure. Detective L.C. Bennett.

He was there when they found Beckwith's

rifle, but I've never seen this.

John Goza is dead.

Herbert Speight is dead.

B.L. Pittman is dead.

Is anybody alive?

This is pointless.

It's Jerry Mitchell.

Jerry.

I don't have the gun yet.

I don't have anything. If I find

the gun, you'll be the first to know.

-Pain in my ass.

-It's funny.

I came by to see if you could

use some help on this case...

...and you've got a picture of my daddy.

We sure could use some help.

Can you bring people

back from the dead?

You're joking, but that's

exactly what we have to do.

We have to make the past

start living again.

This whole case is one big resurrection.

I want you to go through

all the literature...

...from every organization

Beckwith was part of:

White Citizens Council,

Sons of the American Revolution, KKK.

Good, I always loved homework.

We'll start by paying

these boys a little visit.

-Who's that?

-Two cops.

They saw Beckwith 90 miles away

at the time of the murder.

You think Holley and Cresswell

will admit they lied under oath?

Time has a way of cleaning up

people's memories.

I love the Delta.

It's the best place on earth.

If you're a mosquito.

-T ake care now.

-Thank you, Mr. Holley.

Sometimes you can't win for losing.

I asked you boys

to meet me out here...

...so as to avoid running

into any of my constituents.

How long have you been

an alderman up here, Mr. Holley?

Must be going on about five years.

I'll tell you this:

If word got out that I testified

on behalf of Byron De La Beckwith....

I suppose, in a way, your boss

and me got the same problem.

Sir?

If we want to keep our jobs...

...we'll have to kiss

an awful lot of black behind.

Mr. Holley...

...Evers was killed shortly after

midnight, 90 miles away in Jackson.

There's no way the killer

could have been here...

...at 1 a.m. pumping gas.

No, sir, that'd be impossible.

It was a long while ago, but I'd like

you to think back and tell me...

...are you sure about the time...

...you saw Mr. Beckwith

at that gas station?

This old memory of mine...

...gets worse and worse

with each passing year...

...but there's two things

I am pretty sure about:

It was approximately 1:03

in the morning...

...and old Delay was gassing up

that Valiant of his.

Lying son of a b*tch.

You thought you'd hear

something different?

Maybe we'll have better luck

with his partner.

Y'all wanna subpoena me...

...then you go right ahead and do it.

But if I see you,

Byron De La Beckwith...

...or the blackest n*gger

in this country...

...putting gas in his car

at the time of a murder...

...then that's what I'll say.

I'd say he's in our camp.

I wish I had better news

for her today.

Who's that?

Mrs. Evers.

Fill it up for me, would you, buddy?

I call her every Friday and let her

know how the case is progressing.

Got a flash for you.

This case ain't progressing.

I think about her keeping

this thing alive all this time.

Imagine a woman loving a man so much.

I can't even get a woman

to love me while I'm still alive.

Know what I did after my last divorce?

I took up golf.

Man needs a hobby to occupy his mind,

or he'll start doing crazy things...

...Iike drinking too much...

...or chasing 26-year-old murder cases

across the Mississippi Delta.

I told you I'd call you every Friday.

And it's Friday, Mrs. Evers,

so I'm calling.

This really isn't necessary.

It's important to me you know

we're doing what we can.

I wish I had better news

for you today...

...but we still haven't been able

to locate the autopsy report.

Most of the physical evidence

is still missing.

A number of the witnesses have died,

which really hurts us...

...and we've had no luck finding

the original trial transcript.

I've just spoke with

both Holley and Cresswell...

...and they're sticking

by their stories.

I'm sure as the assistant

district attorney of Hinds County...

...you're doing everything

in your power...

...to see that justice is done.

I'll call you next Friday.

I'll be on pins and needles till then.

I waited for you to come home.

I'm not taking the children with me.

I just need to be

on my own for a while.

I was just wondering

when we stopped loving each other.

I don't know.

What happened, Bobby?

People change.

You saying I've changed?

I'm saying you haven't.

-It's a beautiful area, Mr. Beckwith.

-It's heaven on earth.

Of course, like everywhere else...

... we do get the occasional

stray n*gger moving in.

But their houses always

seem to burn down.

You know how careless n*ggers are

with their cigarettes.

A real beauty.

-Where'd you get this?

-Ed Bryson at Channel 3.

They're running a piece on Beckwith.

Do you think...

...it's a crime for a white man

to kill a black man?

God put the white man here

to rule over all the dusky races.

It says so in the Bible.

Is there a chance...

... you'd be indicted again

for the murder of Medgar Evers?

Why would I be?

Do you know of any new evidence?

-Are you a Jew?

-Catholic.

I told you, I won't talk to no Jew.

Anybody who knows anything

about Jews and n*ggers...

...knows that Jews put the n*ggers

up to all this foolishness.

This CORE and SNCC and NAACP.

If you were indicted again?

Well, I'm just gonna

tend to my business...

...Iike I always have.

I'm gonna look out

for my God, my family...

...and the whole state

of Christ's church.

That don't encompass anybody

but white Christians.

All these other...

...races and colors

and creeds and sissies...

... they are anti-Christs.

See, many of them...

...believe in human sacrifices

and voodoo and such.

According to your way

of thinking...

...how could justice be done

in the Medgar Evers murder?

First, find out

who killed the n*gger.

Then you just...

...do whatever the law says

that you can do...

...if you're big enough to do it.

He's daring us to get him.

-We still ain't got nothing.

-I know what you'll say.

-Did I kill Medgar Evers?

-Did you?

I did not kill him.

But he sure is dead.

And he ain't coming back.

What did you think when

you heard he'd been killed?

I didn't shed a tear.

No, sir.

Here. The latest literary efforts

from the "Hate Group of the Month" Club.

For people who got one thing

on their minds...

...they got a lot of ways

to tell you about it.

I wonder what old Judge Moore

would think about all this.

Dixie still living with her mom?

Sh*t, I'm late!

Hot off the presses. Armed robbery.

A guy named Spratlin held up

Crechelle's, got away with $3800...

-...and an order of onion rings.

-I'll take care of it.

Where you going?

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