Jackson Free Press

Sept. 6, 2011

Family members of the late James Anderson decided not to speak this morning as previously planned at a press conference to announce a wrongful death lawsuit they have filed against Rankin County teens for the beating and murder of Anderson because he was black.

Jackson Attorney Winston Thompson III of Cochran Law Firm and the Southern Poverty Law Center based in Montgomery, Ala., filed a wrongful death suit on behalf of the family, against Deryl Dedmon, 18, John Aaron Rice, 19, and five others. The lawsuit states that on June 26 the group of teens took turns beating Anderson at the parking lot of the Metro Inn motel in Jackson. The teens over the age 18 in the suit are Sarah Graves, Shelbie Richards, William Kirk Montomery, and Dylan Butler.

Thompson said the family is still grieving and decided that they were not ready for public interviews this morning.

The lawsuit accuses the white teenagers of intentionally setting out in two vehicles June 26 to "go f--k with some n----rs" in Jackson. Anderson was in a the Metro Inn motel parking lot in Jackson when he was first beaten. During the attack, one of his attackers shouted, "White power!" according to the lawsuit.

The family is seeking to recover "all damages arising of out the personal injuries sustained by Anderson," including but not limited to funeral costs, loss of career, future earnings, cash value for the life of the decedent and pain and suffering.

The lawsuit is separate from the Hinds County District Attorney's criminal prosecution. A pre-trial hearing for Deryl Dedmon is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. today at the Hinds County Courthouse. Anderson's family will be present at the hearing, Thompson said. Only two of the teens face charges in the county's prosecution.

"On the civil side, all we can get is money damages. On the criminal side, we are looking at potential incarceration," Thompson said.

Thompson added that the investigation is still ongoing and could not answer questions about why Anderson was the parking lot of the Metro Inn at 5 a.m. June 26. He also could not say if the teens had a prior history of violence against blacks.

The lawsuit filed today charges all teens with battery. Five of the teens are charged with negligence by failing to intervene, alert law enforcement, provide medical aid or transport Anderson after the beating.

"In this complaint, it's important to note that the legal liability and responsibility of those involved in this doesn't mean that they even had to have gotten out of their vehicle," Southern Poverty Law Center Chief Trial Counsel Morris Dees said today. "They had the duty once they saw what was taking place to call the police, to get out and aid Mr. Anderson, or prevent him from staggering around helplessly after he had been beaten."

Dees cited other cases outside Mississippi that his organization has represented. In 2008, a group of teenagers in Long Island, N.Y., beat Ecuadorian immigrant Marcelo Lucero, and one teen, Jeffery Convoy, stabbed him to death. A judge sentenced Convoy to 25 years in prison for manslaughter, but acquitted him of the hate crime charge for murder.

This lawsuit only represents one side of this legal argument.

Previous Commentsshow

well i guess they are not letting the Statue of Limitations run out on this case. Isn't this old news, i thought this was already in the works before mr. andersons blood had run dry. HOW do you set a price on someones life? Very convenient that media has stated everythign they can find on Dedmon yet very few details have been released concerning Mr. Anderson, NO, i do not condone this henious crime, but how does suing a bunch of teenagers or Is it really the parents being sued and how does this help solve the hate that exist in Miss,if this was really a hate crime, WOuld be curious to know the criteria for the acquitting of a hate crime on Marcelo Lucero. Sorry but it sounds like a lot of money hungry haters filing this one. WHAT is the percentage these days that the attorney's will collect? JUST MY OPINION.

wataworld

Sep 6 2011

I just tweaked the story, and want to clarify that the judge in the Lucero murder acquitted Convoy of the murder as a hate crime charge. Convoy was convicted of manslaughter as a hate crime.

Lacey McLaughlin

Sep 6 2011

@wataworld~ Your opinion stinks. If they just filed the suit it's not old news is it? I don't know why they had to call a press conference but it's their right if they wanted to. Normally I dislike lawyers and their money grubbing ways but I don't think this is really about the money. How much money could a group of teenagers have? I applaud the suit because those callous, hateful individuals who watched this man be murdered and did nothing should be punished and if the DA isn't going to prosecute them then the only recourse left is in civil court. Their cowardice should haunt them forever and be an example to others who might consider doing something like this in the future. It doesn't matter why Mr. Anderson was at that hotel, he had the right to be anywhere he chose and not be harassed and murdered. It's still a free country.

WMartin

Sep 7 2011

Ok, so someone refresh my memory, Ive fallen behind on the particulars of this storyline. where there others in the parking lot when this was going on? who called 911? where was the Hotel security? why did no one else step in to help Mr. Anderson, IF they didnt' should they not also be named in the civil suit? STILL sounds like a drug Deal that went horrbily horribly wrong and could just have easily went the other way, and one thing i do remember is the civil suit was mentioned the first week, they just did not file till now? ND maybe it doesn't matter WHY Mr. Anderson was there that night, but PEOPLE want to know????

wataworld

Sep 7 2011

if they go after parents house insurance clause they would also have to file within ONE YEAR against the parent. It happened to a good friend of mine, after 2 years of back and forth depositions etc, the judge threw it out. no proof that parent was truly responsible since the kid was over 18. what's a person supposed to do, chain them to their bed at night till they are 21? I"m sure the law would love to hear that. you bet those lawyers are making MONEY somewhere IF THEY WIN!!! YES these teenagers need to be held accountable, but money is not going to bring a loved one back to life. IT's only going to teach more Hate. like i said, THERE must have been someone else in the vincinity watching. JUST LIKE most , people do not want to step up and help their own neighbor hoods!!!

wataworld

Sep 7 2011

My God, give this family a break! This is the first time I have read such commentary about a victim. He, Mr. Anderson, had every right to be where he was. Why would anyone assume that it was "a drug deal gone bad"? This is sooooo insensitive and most of the comments here have the appearance of hate-filled thinking. Nothing can bring Mr. Anderson back; however, the family should, in my opinion, file a civil suit. Where were those of you who view this family's loss as gold digging, when the Brown and Goldman families filed civil suits against O.J. Simpson? This feels so wrong and I can't help but think that the opinions differ here along racial lines with racist assessments. Will we ever move beyond this??? Mr. Anderson's life was as special to his family as yours is to your family. The color of a person's skin should have nothing to do with his worth and value as a human being. Sometimes I do forget that, IT DOES!

justjess

Sep 7 2011

Can someone tell me when the SPLC press conference on the lawsuit against the family of Bennie Beal is supposed to be?

RobbieR

Sep 7 2011

WMartin, fantastic comments.

Walt

Sep 8 2011

Wow, WMartin. I second Walt. Powerful comments.

DonnaLadd

Sep 9 2011

And to extend RobbieR's question, when will the SPLC announce the case for Mr. Patel's family? Are we really going to file a civil suit on every interracial homicide? Is that the necessary criteria for filing a civil suit for murder? If not, then there are a whole lot of families just this year who might need the SPLC's bully pulpit to announce their lawsuits. WMartin, yes, great comment...but it is hopefully beneath you to tell another adult that their opinion stinks. I know that the majority of JFP cyber-readers and myself disagree on practically everything under the sun, but we are entitled to our opinions nonetheless. Wataworld, great and thought-provoking comments as well.

Darryl

Sep 10 2011

@Darryl~ Why shouldn't I comment on another's opinion during a conversation? I kind of look at it like telling someone they have spinach between their teeth or that their halitosis is burning my eyes. Wouldn't you tell someone they are making a fool of themselves in public when it's obvious to everyone but them? a.)when will the SPLC announce the case for Mr. Patel's family? b.) Are we really going to file a civil suit on every interracial homicide? c.)Is that the necessary criteria for filing a civil suit for murder? Again, I'm not an attorney but the way I understand our system I think the answers to your and RobbieR's questions are: a.)When and if the SPLC decide to lend assistance to Mr. Patel I suppose they would announce it. b.) "We" haven't filed any civil suit as in the government hasn't. It's the family of Mr. Anderson who filed the suit with the help of the SPLC and the family's lawyers. And it's certainly the right of anyone to file a civil suit for wrongful death if they are victims of it whether the act was interracial or not. Just as the family of Heather Spencer filed a wrongful death action against George Bell, III and his mother, Robbie Bell. And also as the families of the Doctors killed in that horrible drunk driving case filed wrongful death actions against the Irby's. c.) You can't file a civil suit for murder. Murder is a criminal offense. That is when "we" as in the government gets involved. Civil suits are for torts like wrongful death. That's why they said "On the civil side, all we can get is money damages. On the criminal side, we are looking at potential incarceration,". They split it like that because they are two different actions. For example, O.J. Simpson was acquitted of murder but lost the wrongful death case. Maybe an attorney will correct me if I am wrong.

WMartin

Sep 11 2011

To my knowledge, there hasn't been evidence that the tragic killing of Mr. Patel was a hate crime, which has a specific definition and is not just about a person of one ethnicity killing one of another, which can be coincidental. (No, not all crimes are "hate crimes"; that is an absurd and naive argument.) The Southern Poverty Law Center has a defined purpose; it's not going to sue for every violent crime, nor should it. That doesn't mean that victims of other murders can't bring wrongful-death suits. Of course they can. But drawing this kind of inaccurate parallel doesn't do anyone any good -- other than those people who oddly don't want society to draw any kind of distinctions between types of crimes, which is exactly how you work to prevent different types of crimes. Lumping them all together and pretending, despite all evidence and common sense to the contrary, that every crime is a hate crime is just plain dumb, folks. And it makes your motives a tad suspicious.

DonnaLadd

Sep 12 2011

Can someone tell me when the SPLC press conference on the lawsuit against the family of Bennie Beal is supposed to be? Robbie... SPLC focuses on hate crimes, so they may be less likely to participate in the Beal case which, while heinous, didn't seem specifically to involve targeting of the victim because of his race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, etc. http://www.splcenter.org/who-we-are http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hate_crime

Todd Stauffer

Sep 12 2011

(Todd and I cross-posted again, but his links should help add some clarity to this discussion.)

DonnaLadd

Sep 12 2011

Also, Darryl, for the record, just because someone tells you that your opinion stinks doesn't mean you're not entitled to it. You are entitled to have an opinion; others are entitled to agree or disagree with it. You'll get further by arguing your opinion's merits than by being offended that someone disagreed with it. (Although, admittedly, WMartin could have chosen a better way to say it than "stink," but wataworld rather set the tone with his original post about "money hungry haters." You use that language, and it's hard not to get a reaction.)

DonnaLadd

Sep 12 2011

Cmon, y'all. I was being sarcastic; i thought it was pretty obvious.

RobbieR

Sep 12 2011

Cmon, y'all. I was being sarcastic; i thought it was pretty obvious. Yes, that was obvious.

Todd Stauffer

Sep 12 2011