Southern Rites Page #5

- (applause)

will make a way.

I could have lost my mind.

But my mama,

we prayed without ceasing.

People just kept calling me.

When I see the love, you know,

that these people bring to my life,

I thank you, all of you.

February the 20th and the 21st,

this man goes on trial

for murdering my son.

It's already done.

It's already done. Thank you.

Dedee:
The day that we thought

the jury would be picked,

they told us that the DA

and Norman Neesmith's lawyers

had worked out a plea bargain.

Something we didn't know nothing about,

wasn't informed about.

If so, I would of never went with that.

I would of went to trial.

I would of fought for justice

for my son.

We received the offer the Friday

before we were supposed to

go to the trial on Monday.

At that point, we went

through the possibilities.

For example, if he had been found

guilty of only an aggravated assault,

he would have been looking at 20 years.

I think the judge would have probably

given him 10 to 20

just for one aggravated assault,

which would have put him

in prison for the rest of his life.

Dedee:
I'm very glad that my youngest son

doesn't have to go through a trial,

because I don't know if he

could of made it through it.

But if this man doesn't

get what he deserves,

what kind of message are we sending?

You know, what... how... I

mean, how do I explain that

to my 19-year-old son?

You know, I can't tell him that

it's okay to shoot somebody.

Keyke:
I have a little

girl, she's 17 months today,

and she's spoiled rotten.

Who on your shirt? Who's this? Who's that?

- Who's that? Papa?

- Papa.

Put my hat on.

Laub:
So who do you think

it's going to be between?

- I really don't know. Republican, I don't know.

- I think it's gonna be Braddy.

I don't think it's going

to be Braddy. I don't know.

It ain't going to be Braddy.

It's going to be either him

and Braddy or him and Taylor.

It's not gonna be Braddy.

If we can get Calvin voted in,

-

- this will be our first African-American sheriff.

Tristan...

you close that door back?

Yes, ma'am.

This too much?

No, ma'am.

Bell:
'Cause he's been in office, what,

25, 30... ever since we

got out of high school.

(laughs) He's always been

involved in law enforcement,

and he's very well liked.

And he's... he's the type

of person you can talk to,

and he's not going to show favoritism.

Got to have my glasses

so I can see the ballot.

You ready?

Come on, let's go to the car.

For Calvin Burns to be elected sheriff,

it means changes are coming,

the same way it did with

us having the president.

- Hi, Calvin.

- That's Mr. Calvin.

Bell:
So for Calvin, that

would be very historical.

- How you doing?

- How are you?

(laughing)

We voted, like, at 7:04

and been here ever since.

Just like a working day,

just not getting paid for it.

(laughs)

I'm tired, too.

Those are the... yeah, those

are the rest of the votes.

When I was in Fuzzy's ordering her food,

a lady showed me a text

message that someone sent her

that said that Daddy had

251 votes in Mount Vernon

more than anybody else

in Mount Vernon combined.

So looking pretty good.

830 to 106.

Found out my dad won the

primary round 830 to 106.

And the Republican is going

to be Ladson and Taylor,

not Braddy.

I can go home and rest

for round one, y'all.

- Keyke:
I just told you, Daddy won.

-

- He will be in the running in November.

-

- I don't know, against Ladson or Taylor.

-

- Daddy, Ladson or Taylor.

-

(train whistle blowing)

-

- Dedee:
I am very nervous

about the sentencing on April 26th,

because the judge could either

honor the one-year plea bargain

that the DA has made

or she could give him probation

or she could give him more time.

So, one of the three could happen.

-

- Who's that?

- Who's that?

- My dad.

Yep, him.

Who's that?

That ain't me.

That's your daddy.

Dedee:
This thing just keeps happening.

I mean, it's been, so far,

five different murders

of young black men

killed by an older white guy,

and it's... it's just hard to...

to continue to see this thing happen

in this rural area. It's just...

it's just unfortunate.

I am hoping that the judge

can be held accountable and

say, "I can't let this happen"

and stand up for what's right.

Sneed:
This shirt right here

is in memory of Justin Patterson.

We got this to show our

support for the trial.

Try to show that we want justice.

Keyke:
The day it happened,

I just knew that they would find a way

that would make it okay

for him to kill him.

I just knew it. I mean,

it's something you know.

If you live here, it's something

you know that's not gonna happen.

Okay.

Okay.

Okay. I'm ready.

Keyke:
We not in church,

baby. We're in a courthouse.

As good as can be expected.

(bangs gavel)

Dedee:
On January the 29th, 2011,

my 22-year-old son

was taken from me and it

has changed my life forever.

The pain that seems to be

growing more and more inside of me

is unbearable at times.

This man will never know what

he has done to my family.

No one would ever

get me to understand why it

was necessary to kill my son.

This was a senseless death to me,

and it just didn't have to happen.

Now a year later, it's all

been reduced to two charges:

a plea bargain

that we have been told

that will hold a one-year

sentence in a detention center.

How can my family live with that?

How can you live with

it if it was your son?

That is just not what I consider justice.

A person is dead,

and it may not mean

anything to some of you,

but it was my son

and it means everything to me.

Justin was in college,

he had a three-year-old daughter

that is left without a father.

He had a mother, a brother,

and a father and even more

family than he can count.

The truth of the matter is

my son was held hostage and then murdered.

And now a year later,

this man could go free

and it's unfair.

Me and my family will have

to visit my son's grave

the rest of our lives.

Thank you.

-

-

-

-

Yes, ma'am.

Yes, ma'am.

- (crying)

-

(speaking indistinctly)

I know.

(Dedee crying)

Please, Lord. My baby's gone.

My baby's just gone.

(crying)

- Oh, Lord Jesus.

- Come on.

You've done well.

No, you can't.

(woman speaking indistinctly)

You cannot.

It's not... my baby is gone.

This is it. Just gonna get...

Julius:
In court, the DA never

mentioned anything that

Norman Neesmith had done

to our boys.

Everything was about our boys,

Justin and Shavon,

like he was trying to convict them.

Justin is gone, you cannot convict Justin.

So a bunch of stuff he said

about Justin was irrelevant.

You could have left that alone.

He could have left that alone.

He didn't have to bring up none of that.

He... well, maybe, I don't know,

but it was... it was irrelevant.

Not one time did he say

how long he kept our boys in the house,

how many times he shot at them,

that he shouldn't have shot at them,

he should have called the police.

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