Our death penalty system treats you better if youre rich and guilty than if youre poor and innocent. I am at least happy to find out that Mr. McMillians made it out of deaths hand due to his lawyer, however this is one of many cases and not all of them end in a happy way. A very public divorce between this woman and her husband pulled Mr. McMillian into the limelight and he soon went from someone having an interracial affair to someone thought to be capable of murder. He became uncharacteristically emotional. "[5] This practice, called judicial override, allows "elected trial judges to override jury verdicts of life and impose death sentences." It was the laughter of liberation. I believe there are other people under sentence of death who like me are not guilty.. "[6] He was held there, pre-trial, for 15 months. Jamie Foxx portrays McMillian and Michael B. Jordan stars as Stevenson. His time spent in prison was torture not only to McMillian but to his family and friends as well. We are all broken by something. He had a large, tight-knit family and several children with his wife Minnie, but, following an affair with a white woman, Walter was falsely accused and convicted of murdering a different white woman. Walter McMillian and Bryan Stevenson Equal Justice Initiative. Walter Lester McMillian, 72, of Fancy Gap, died May 26, 2002, in Beverly Health Care-Blue Ridge. Stevenson, now 60, continues his social justice work in Alabama. His story was a counter narrative to the rhetoric of fairness and reliability offered by politicians and law enforcement officials who wanted more and faster executions. But the overwhelming evidence of innocence ultimately forced the State to agree to drop the charges. The original text plus a side-by-side modern translation of. All That's Interesting is a Brooklyn-based digital publisher that seeks out stories that illuminate the past, present, and future. This web page shows only a small excerpt of our McMillan research. [3] A journalist described him as a "black pulpwood worker". Walter McMillian lived an ordinary life alongside his wife Minnie McMillian and their three children. I have plenty of friends who are sentenced 10 or 20 years in jail and they feel doomed as soon as the judge slams the gavel. Walters case complicated the debate in very graphic ways. Not at all.. Since then, the EJI has made some landmark advances in leveling . As a gregarious guy who owned his own business rare for a black man in the area McMillian was a bit of a local celebrity. McMillian is portrayed by Jamie Foxx and Stevenson is played by Michael B. Jordan, the "Black Panther" star who has used his considerable leverage to bring the story to the screen. According to the Equal Justice Initiative of Montgomery, Alabama, "No capital sentencing procedure in the United States has come under more criticism as unreliable, unpredictable, and arbitrary" than the judge override. "[6] Stevenson disagreed, telling the court that "it was far too easy to convict this wrongly accused man for murder and send him to death row for something he didn't do and much too hard to win his freedom after proving his innocence. His conviction was wrongfully obtained, based on police coercion and perjury. McMillian was completely clueless as to why this was happening to him. About $35 was missing. Walter often sought better work to support his family. The petition also alleged that the state of Alabama "had violated his constitutional rights by withholding exculpatory and impeachment information". On the night Walter McMillian, a black woodcutter in rural Alabama, was . [7][9] Myers pleaded guilty as a conspirator in the murder and received a 30-year prison term.[7]. When Chestnut and Boynton filed the standard motion to have, after Herberts execution, Stevenson visits death row to catch up with several new clients, including, an entire community hidden away in the woods. When Stevenson first enters the trailer of, invested their hopes in him, and he sees a parallel in the anguish felt by, Stevenson describes his growing familiarity with, because they were working together on the morning of Rondas death. McMillian. The story of Walter McMillian in Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson is the one that I found the most intriguing. They had 2 children: Isabella Mae McMillan and one other child. They had three children and lived in a dilapidated house in Repton, about 10 miles south of Monroeville. They knew their statements against a white mans perjured testimony didnt stand a chance.4, McMillians trial lasted two days. They were close their community and church. He then slipped him a note, supposedly written by Karen Kelly, but McMillian looked confused and threw the note away. For the first time in six years, Walter McMillian was a free man. Years later when the case settled, the compensation was much less than had been hoped. Walter McMillian lived an ordinary life alongside his wife Minnie McMillian and their three children. The Registry provides detailed information about every known exoneration in the United States since 1989cases in which a person was wrongly convicted of a crime and later cleared of all the charges based on new evidence of innocence. They put me on death row for six years! He wasnt just enraged that his wife was cheating on him she was cheating on him with a black man. In the case Walter McMillian v. State proceedings it was recorded that Myers identified Larry Ikner, and Thomas Tate, as the law enforcement officers. The author named chapter five after W.E.B. They separate after Walter's release, but she remains involved in his life and in his care during his long-term illness. [2] Stevenson featured this early case of his career in a TED talk and in his memoir Just Mercy (2014). Stevenson was in his 20s and eager to take on the case, even though the unfortunately named judge discouraged him from doing so. Police, prosecutors, and judges are immune from judgments that require them to make payments to people victimized by abuse of authority. Aside from having a misdemeanor charge from a barroom fight, he had a clean record and no other charges to his name. Walter " Johnny D. " McMillian (October 27, 1941 - September 11, 2013) [1] was a pulpwood worker from Monroeville, Alabama, who was wrongfully convicted of murder and sentenced to death. McMillian had a business of his own and was an upstanding member of his community. Then, read the harrowing last words of 23 executed criminals. He also filed civil lawsuits for his sentencing to death row. Because the case generated extraordinary publicity in Monroe County, where the white population was 60 percent, the trial was moved to Baldwin County, where whites made up 86 percent of the population. According to Myers, reinstated in 1975, the majority of Alabama death row inmates have been black, although when, that the practice is occurring. Known to his friends and family as Johnny D, Mr. McMillian spent 15 harrowing and tortuous months on Alabamas death row before trial. Stevenson finishes by calling on, of the other witness testimonies. Weeks later, at around 10:45 a.m. on Nov. 1, 1986, 18-year-old Ronda Morrison a white college student who was beloved by the local community was found dead at a Monroeville dry cleaners, where she worked part-time. The case outlines the basic premise of frustrated local law enforcement, the DA of Monroe County, needed to, for lack of a better term, save his ass. During his interrogation, police said that they had witnesses who would testify that he had committed the Morrison murder along with Walter McMillian, a 46-year old African-American man who was notorious in the community because he had a white girlfriend. Suddenly, State Troopers, city cars, sheriffs, and deputies surrounded his car. Another 267 words (19 lines of text) covering the years 1775, 1790, 1452, 1454, 1540, 1555, 1670, 1753, 1670, 1745 and 1745 are included under the topic Early McMillan History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. After, Stevenson agrees to work with the CBS program 60 Minutes to produce a story about, an innocent man in prison until the real murderer is found. This story is just one of the many injustices colored people must experience. According to NYU (where he's an Aronson Family Professor of Criminal Justice), he started representing death row inmates from the Deep South in 1985, and founded the nonprofit law organization Equal Justice Initiative in 1989. The man was Russell Charley. TRIAL: Defense asked for the trial to be moved from Monroe County to Baldwin County in Alabama due to the publicity. He met Karen Kelly, who was 25 and unhappily married, at the Waffle House where he ate breakfast. Sexual or romantic relationships between blacks and whites were still very much taboo, especially out in the land of forests and plantations. As a result, Alabama passed its 2001 compensation statute. No. industry in its place. It is a miracle that Mr. Stevenson reviewed Mr. McMillans case, without his review, an innocent man would been put to death due to racial discrimination. Financial TimesWalter McMillian (left) and Bryan Stevenson after McMillians conviction was overturned in 1993. Subsequently, McMillian settled with other officials for an undisclosed amount. I lost my job. After he had decided to take the appeal, he got a phone call from Judge Key discouraging Stevenson from taking the case. [13][5][Notes 2], The "jury ignored multiple alibi defense witnesses, who were black, who testified under oath that he was at a fish fry at the time of the crime. [emailprotected], Mr. McMillians testimony specifically addressed the failure to provide adequate legal help to people in prison and on death row. He "did not have a history of violence. Walter McMillian lived an ordinary life alongside his wife Minnie McMillian and their three children. "[13][5] There was no physical evidence implicating McMillian. They had three children and lived in a dilapidated house in Repton, about 10 miles south of Monroeville. Before you check out Jamie Foxx in the new film Just Mercy, learn the true story of Walter McMillian, an Alabama man wrongfully convicted for a brutal murder who spent six years on death row. McMillan whose story is depicted in the movie "Just Mercy" premiering Christmas Day 2019 never got the happy ending he deserved after his release from prison in 1993. It was truly heart wrenching that all of the people were apart of the crime were not criminally charged nor punished, yet the only person who was punished was the innocent man. Resistance to acknowledging Mr. McMillians innocence was intense. Husband of Libbie Wood. "[9] Myers confessed that "he knew nothing about the crime, that he was not present when the crime was committed, that he had been told what to say by certain law enforcement officers, and that he had testified falsely against McMillian because of pressure from the officers. App.1991). Walter McMillian worked hard providing for his wife and their three children. He had spoken to other inmates on death row that day, but Walter's case is the one that . Eventually, Myers gave a taped confession in which he said that he drove McMillian to the scene of the crime and that McMillian went into the building alone. McMillian, was charged with first degree murder, the murder of a very well known white girl in the community. Walter McMillian. "[5] It emerged that Sheriff Tate and investigators with the Monroe County D.A. Bryan Stevenson took on Mr. McMillians case in postconviction. No fingerprints, no fibers not a single piece of physical evidence connecting McMillian to the crime scene. McMillian and his wife, Minnie, met when when they were teenagers and married after she became pregnant in 1962. 2. The upcoming film, Just Mercy, focuses on a petition for a new trial led by Walter McMillians lawyer, Bryan Stevenson of the Equal Justice Initiative. Walter McMillian with his family after his release from prison. Its so clear they will believe someone that had inconsistent and false testimony over many people confirming his alibi. He came to attention because he had an affair with a married white woman. A deputy then revealed to McMillian that the initial charge was only a way to impound his truck. They tortured me with the promise of execution for six years. 96-542 WALTER McMILLIAN, PETITIONER v. MONROE COUNTY, ALABAMA on writ of certiorari to the united states court of appeals for the eleventh circuit [ June 2, 1997 ] Chief Justice Rehnquist delivered the opinion of the Court. . Walter McMillian (1941 - 2013) . We have a choice. WRONGFUL CONVICTION 2 In Monroeville, Alabama November 1, 1986, a white woman by the name of Ronda Morrison was murdered. [9][5] She had been shot numerous times from behind. He was a family friend, and the rumor was that hed been lynched for dating a white woman. "[9][Notes 6][3][12] In pursuing those claims, the attorneys obtained the original recording of Myers' confession. Death: Immediate Family: Son of Laban Parks McMillian and Ada Kirk. Mr. McMillian was sent back to his cell on death row, where he ultimately spent six years. Walter McMillian was among the first exonerees from death row in the modern era. Equal Justice InitiativeWalter McMillian with his family after his release from prison. (334) 269-1803 I lost my life. Walter married Maggie Ella McMillan (born Miller) on month day 1908, at age 24 at marriage place. The officials involved in prosecuting McMillian received no punishment or removal from their positions. Skip Ancestry main menu Main . Grandfather. Walter Miles McMillian's Geni Profile. Stevenson's uncle died in prison . When a mostly-white jury convicted Walter McMillian in 1988 for the murder of a white woman in Monroeville, Alabama and recommended life in prison, a local judge overruled them and imposed the death penalty instead. Mr. McMillian was arrested, and in an extraordinary move, was immediately . on our list, Other He knew it, his family knew it, and his friends knew it. Today, more than 160 people who were on death row have been proved innocent and released. How Racism, Police Incompetence, And Lying Witnesses Put Walter McMillian On Death Row For Six Years. [9], On February 23, 1993, in Walter McMillian v. State in the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals, all judges concurred that "the state suppressed exculpatory and impeachment evidence that had been requested by the defense, thus denying the appellant due process of law, requiring the reversal of his conviction and death sentence, and the remand of the case for a new trial. This article illuminates how unfair and biased the justice system is to the minorities but also people of color. Until his dying wish he did not receive justice for his wrongful conviction. [19] Subsequently, McMillian settled out of court with other officials for an undisclosed amount. Walter McMillian died in 2013: he was 71-years-old. McMillian recalls his time there as a terrible experience. The trial began on August 15, 1988. But then police arrested Ralph Myers, a white man with a drug problem and a lengthy criminal record who was also a new friend of Karen Kellys, McMillians ex. Appellant told him that "I had a lovely family to be destroyed if I . In the 1988 trial, under a controversial Alabama doctrine called "judicial override", the judge imposed the death penalty, although the jury had voted for a sentence of life imprisonment. Sentimentality about Lees story grew even as the harder truths of the book took no roots. McMillian was accused of murdering an 18-year-old girl and was put on death row. Karen confirms that Myers never met, Stevenson describes the situation preceding, The hearing begins. . Alabama Releases Man Held on Death Row for Six Years, Walter McMillian's Statement to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, Wrongfully Convicted Man Recalls Death Row, 122 Commerce Street Montgomery, AL 36104 Chestnut and Bruce Boynton, later testified that the state withheld evidence that proved his innocence. After listening to it, they flipped the tape over and discovered a recorded conversation in which Myers complained bitterly that he was being forced to implicate McMillian, whom he did not know, for a crime neither of them had any role in. He picked cotton with his family, went to the local colored school for a couple of years, and then went back to picking cotton at around age eight or nine. The fact that this man was innocent, and everyone knew, he was still guilty. Police could not solve the crime. Support The National Registry of Exonerations , The Contribution of Forensic and Expert Evidence to DNA Exoneration Cases, Race and Wrongful Convictions in the United States, 2022, Government Misconduct and Convicting the Innocent, Witness Recantations: Preliminary Findings, May 2013, Exonerations in the United States: 1989 - 2012, Tell us about an Exoneration that we missed. Struggling with distance learning? North America, Family Histories, 1500-2000. McMillian, freed from death row in 1993, died September 11, 2013, at age 71. Myers was picked up for a different murder, that of a poor white woman named Vickie Pittman. Walter was an unlikely suspect in Ronda's murder. Stevenson came across McMillians case and met with him and began working on appealing his case. Walter McMillian passed away on September 11, 2013.7. With his conviction overturned, Walter McMillian was released from death row in 1993. harrowing last words of 23 executed criminals. Detailed explanations, analysis, and citation info for every important quote on LitCharts. 53 records for Walter Mcmillian. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled against McMillian, holding that a county sheriff could not be sued for money damages. Aside from having a misdemeanor charge from a barroom fight, he had a clean record and no other charges to his name. Enter a grandparent's name. The 45-year-old self-employed logger had worked for several people in the community and had no criminal history. based on a true story, just mercy(2019) follows civil rights defense attorney bryan stevenson (michael b. jordan) as he recounts his experiences and details the case of a condemned death row prisoner, walter mcmillian (jamie foxx), whom he fought to free, as he becomes embroiled in a labyrinth of legal and political maneuverings and overt and All he could do was sit there and listen as three witnesses for the prosecution lied in their testimonies. Research the McMillian family Start your family tree now. During their first year together, they almost starved, with Walter working as a field hand for $14 per week. Myers already pleaded guilty as an accomplice in Morrisons murder and received a 30-year prison sentence avoiding a possible death sentence for the Pittman murder. The real-life Walter McMillian (left) and lawyer Bryan Stevenson. [6][7][8] Both McMillian and the attorney he had in 1987, J. L. Chestnut, "contended that Mr. McMillian's relationships alone had made him a suspect. We encourage you to research and examine these . But McMillian always proclaimed his innocence. McMillian lost an appeal in 1991 and his conviction and death sentence were affirmed. memorial page for Albert Walter McMillian (13 Oct 1862-2 Oct 1948), Find a Grave Memorial ID 7915499, citing Oakland Cemetery, Saint Paul . The National Registry of Exonerations is a project of the Newkirk Center for Science & Society at University of California Irvine, the University of Michigan Law School and Michigan State University College of Law. [7], Upon discovery of this evidence, District Attorney Thomas Chapman, who had represented the state in McMillian's previous appeals, told Stevenson, "I want to do everything I can so that your client will not have to spend a single day more than he already has on death row. Several months later, police arrested 30-year-old Ralph Myers, a career criminal, on suspicion of murdering a woman in nearby Escambia County. From 1990 to 1993, the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals turned down four appeals. In 1988, Walter McMillian, a black man, was wrongly convicted and sentenced to death for murdering an 18-year-old white woman in Monroeville, Alabama. And thats how his affair with a white woman 18 years his junior became the talk of the town. She was shot three times in the back, and it looked like money had been taken from the cash register. Despite having various witnesses on his side, it seemed useless. Hooks later testified at McMillians trial. Photo: Courtesy of Warner Bros Pictures. When he asked for an explanation, they loudly and angrily said that he was being charged with sodomy for assaulting a man. EJI proved the States witnesses had lied on the stand. The visits from his family were the only thing getting him by in his time there. 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