James Ford Seale Gets 3 Life Terms

A former member of the Ku Klux Klan in Mississippi was sentenced in federal court to three life terms in prison for his role in the 1964 abductions and murders of two black teenagers, Henry Hezekiah Dee and Charlie Eddie Moore. James Ford Seale, 71, will undoubtedly spend the rest of his days in a federal prison.

In June, a jury found Seale guilty of the 1964 Civil Rights Era murders, based mostly on the testimony of fellow Klansman Charles Marcus Edwards, who testified against Seale in return for immunity.

"Though we can never replace loved ones or erase the terrible pain caused by crimes like this one, the deliverance of justice can offer comfort. Today's sentencing of James Ford Seale brings long-awaited resolution to the families of Henry Dee and Charlie Moore," said Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, in a press release. "This case is an outstanding example of our ongoing, vigilant efforts to prosecute racially-motivated crimes to the fullest extent of the law, regardless of how many years have passed."

Bringing Closure to the Families

"For his role in these terrible crimes, James Ford Seale will spend the remainder of his life in prison," said Wan J. Kim, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. "While this sentence can never repair the suffering and loss brought by these heinous acts of racial violence, it will hopefully bring some closure to the families of Henry Dee and Charlie Moore who have waited decades for justice.

"Today's sentence will further send the message that the Justice Department will pursue criminals as long as it takes and as long as the law allows to bring them to justice."

"It's easy to say that Mississippi has changed, but it's another thing to actually put that statement to the test. I think this conviction shows that Mississippi no longer tolerates those kinds of past wrongs without redress. I want to express my appreciation to the local, state, and federal agencies whose hard work and perseverance made this conviction possible," said U.S. Attorney Dunn Lampton.

Drowned in the Mississippi River

According to trial records, on May 2, 1964, Seale and other Klan members abducted Dee and Moore and drove them into the Homochitto National Forest in Franklin County, MS, where they beat them, interrogated them at gunpoint, and bound the two with duct tape.

The Klansmen then drove the victims to Parker's Landing in Warren County, Miss., passing through the state of Louisiana, where the Klansmen secured Dee and Moore to heavy objects and threw them into the Old Mississippi River, drowning them. Seale is the only person to be convicted for the crimes.

Background:
The Trial of James Ford Seale

See Also:
Former Mississippi Klansman Sentenced to Three Life Terms