Natchez Democrat clipping

Jones, Cornelius J., 1858-1931; Supreme Court decisions; Mississippi. Constitution (1890); Civil rights; Capital punishment; African American lawyers

The supreme court of the United States has sustained the Mississippi supreme court in the case of Henry Williams vs. State of Mississippi. This case has figured prominently in the courts and in the Legislature for two years. Williams was indicted in May, 1896, in Washington county for the murder of a woman named Eliza Brown. Both are colored. C. J. Jones, a colored lawyer who has been before the country as a contestant for the seat of Congressman Catchings, defended Williams. He contended that his client had been denied his rights under the Federal constitution because the constitution of Mississippi, which required jurors to be qualified electors was a scheme to abridge the suffrage rights of colored electors, because of their previous condition of servitude. The constitution prevented negroes from becoming qualified electors and a negro citizen on trial for his life could not, therefore, secure a jury of white and colored men.

Furthermore, Jones contended that the laws governing the selection and organizing of the grand and petty juries which had indicted and convicted Williams had been made by an illegally chosen legislature and were consequently unconstitutional. The legislature which passed the laws was elected under the suffrage plan of the Mississippi constitution and negroes had been unlawfully denied the right to vote for members of the legislature.

The supreme court overruled his motion and set a day for Williams to be executed. Jones then appealed to the supreme court of the United States and the case has been pending there for nearly two years. Last week the United States supreme court sustained the judgment of the State courts and remanded the cause back for judgment against the defendant.

The clerk of the supreme court will now send the record back to the Washington county circuit court and as the day of execution has long since been passed another sentence will have to be imposed. This will make the third sentence of death pronounced against the negro Williams.