1926 hanging in Tishomingo county, Mississippi: (Jerry Skinner Documentary)

in January 1925 a 16 year old white school girl was walking to school in Tishomingo County Mississippi when she was stopped by a black man with a gun she was ordered to go to the nearby woods where she was raped Robert Milton was pronounced guilty of rape and a one-day trial held behind closed doors and sentenced in one day to be home Robert Milton's last words was that he was innocent before God the public unable to hear the testimony or the trial but only here in Roberts passionate words many people through the years in the county believed that he was innocent of this crime now this is a statement from a lady who is now in her nineties but at the time was an annual girl who came with her mother to witness the hanging of Robert Milton well it was very sad I was only 9 years old and my mother took me to see the hanging and back then they let kids see such things and it was so tragic that it stayed in my mind always when I think about it I almost start crying they had this black man in the window they had a special platform for him to stand on because it would drop down from the window down below and had him in place at the window where we could see him and they asked him if he had any last words and he said yes he said before God I am innocent and then they released a contraption there was a huge crowd there and a lot of angry words with and said the law was trying to keep them calm and not started right out there and so I know a great deal of the people believe the same as I do my mother of course believed he was innocent and later it was proven that he was innocent the girl that he was charged with raping had a white baby and she was trying to put the blame on this black man so that her family and friends would think she was innocent of everything she was trying to save her reputation end of quote now these rumors and stories of this girl causing an innocent man to be put to death have circulated through the Tishomingo County for years now if they are true then a great injustice has been done to Robert Milton by the state of Mississippi and by the county of Tishomingo but if they're not true then this sixteen-year-old schoolgirl has suffered greatly all these years from gossip and idle talk we'll let you decide our information comes from newspaper articles that was written at the time and although the county has long ago and misplaced the actual court transcripts of the trial however we was able to obtain a copy of the trial transcripts from the Mississippi Supreme Court archives in Jackson now according to the local paper Tishomingo County Sheriff Elmer J Bullen arrested Robert Milton from the descriptions given sheriff bull and transferred Robert Milton to the county jail in Iuka now this is I you come now and this is a way it looked in nineteen and twenty five when Robert Milton was arrested now this is where the old county jail was located the sheriff Bullen put on extra deputies on guard expecting trouble from the local white citizens and he was not disappointed because soon an angry crowd gathered outside the jail demanding that the shirt turn over his prisoner only shirt bullen's determination to protect his prisoner save Robert Milton's life well the sheriff finally persuaded the crowd to let the Court decide robert milton's fate now on the 21st of august nineteen and twenty five seven months after the crime trial was held here in the upstairs courtroom of the old Tishomingo County Courthouse they marched Robert Milton under heavy guard through these doors and up these stairs the courtroom was full of spectators the crowd was using angry slurs and threats towards the defendant so much so that the presiding judge the Honourable CP long ordered the sheriff to clear the courtroom of course this meant that the trial would be held behind closed doors and I think that this was probably the reason that there's so much speculation about the or the guilt of the defendant the trial was proceeded over by the Honorable Judge CP young the state was represented by the district attorney just a thinly and the county attorney was JC Jordan jr. the court-appointed attorneys for the defense because he had no money and they appointed attorney er leakin and attorney CB right now over here is where the twelve jury were sitting you and this was the jury deliberation room and the state calls its first witness the prosecuting witness is Nellie Mae McAllister your name is miss Nellie McAllister yes sir ma'am is Nellie I want you to speak out so that the judge up there can hear you and so these twelve men of the jury can hear every word you say do you know the defendant Robert Milton I know him when I see him I never see him I don't know him personally did he attack you sometime last January yes sir when was that Miss Nelly the 22nd day of January where did that take place miss Nene that was on my way to school what state and county did he take placing Tishomingo County in the state of Mississippi now where do you live in Tishomingo County it's about five miles from chissum income from the town of Tishomingo yes sir you live at your father's house yes sir where were you going when this took place I was going to scoot where's the school with reference to your home it's south from my house about how far somewhere about a mile now how did you go there was it around the road or over a path or how I was going and now way through a path on a path miss Nellie were you riding or walking just walking where did you meet this man I didn't meet him well when did you first see him well he was right on me when I first saw him well now were you at the time on that path well it was somewhere I don't know how far from the schoolhouse but it was down in a thicket was it down in a branch about him yes sir was there any house along the path no sir only the one little house up on the kinder Hill did anybody live in that house no sir the path went by this house yes sir went right through the yard of the old house now where was it with reference to the old house that he attacked you he was right back from me like the house was there I was going down the path and it was right back up there and he came up from behind you yes sir now was there any other paths coming into that path between there and the schoolhouse there was one that Miss Mamie Bickerstaff calm now where did it come from it comes from up there towards mr. Tom Dean's and it came into the path that you were on before it reached the schoolhouse yes sir all right now at the time he attacked you just tell the court and the jury just what he did well he just come up right behind me and put his left arm around my shoulder and that's me if I could show him the way to Booneville and I told him I didn't know the way and he asked me just what he wanted to do and I told him no let's get out of here and he said no right here so I was afraid he would kill me and I was afraid to holler so I did what he commanded me to do now you say you were afraid he would kill you did he have anything to kill you with yes sir he had a pistol what kind of pistol well it was a blue steel what was he doing with this pistol he just had it in his right hand and had his arm around my shoulder then what did he do he didn't do anything only take my left arm around his shoulder and had his pistol in my right in his right hand and he asked me and said and I said no and I want to go to school and he said no right here and I was afraid he would kill me and I just did what he commanded now did he take you out of the path yes sir a piece from the path and what did he do then well he did what he intended to you he had intercourse with you yes sir now what did he do when he turns you loose well I went to school what did you do when you got to scoot well when I got there I was if I went around behind Google house and some of the girls told Ms Mamie I was crying and she came back there and asked me what was the matter and I told her you told miss Mamie Bickerstaff yes sir did you tell her just what you have told this jury here yes sir now is the cross-examination by mr. rad the defendants attorney let's see about what time of the morning was this about thirty five minutes after seven who was going to school with you well there was two of my little brothers how big are they well they're pretty small they they are younger than I am how much younger than you well one of them is two years younger and the other is four years younger than I am well how old are you 16 let's see that would make your brother 14 yes but one of them was 12 where were they at that morning well they was on behind me just stopped up there behind me and I just went on and they come home well did you see them winter when did you see them the next time well I saw them as they passed when he had you down in the bushes yes sir you didn't say anything did you no sir how far were they from the path well it was just it wasn't hardly as far as about his forest from here to that woman sitting there your brother passed along then the court speaks up and says wait a minute which one this one here and then the witness says no sir that one back there and the court says that far winda and mr. Liggins speaks up and says she said the woman and then the judge says oh about 35 25 or 35 feet then the questioning went on what was he doing at the time he was just doing what he intended to do how were you dressed that morning well I had on a gingham dress and a princess and my under clothes have you any bloomers did you have any own yes sir black ones for those closed or open bloomers closed did he tear them off of you no sir he made me undo did you take them off no sir I just undone them and pulled them down pulled him down to you on your legs yes sir I believe you said that he had you down yes sir and on top of you yes sir now how far did he pull those bloomers down he pulled them down around my knees around your knees yes sir and he ravished you with those Bruner's down around your knees yes sir how long were you down there in the bushes about how long well I guess about 10 minutes I reckon when he left you to lose what did you do I went right on straight to scoop now which way did he go I don't know I didn't pay any attention so you live first yes I live first where was his gun when he when he was on top of you he laid it out just a little piece from my feet from your feet yes sir about how far from your feet well about his forest from here to that table about how for from there was it to the schoolhouse well I just don't know how far it was well about how far about a half a mile I guess now about how far was hit to the path that come in from mr. Dean's about a quarter across about a quarter across from one path to the other yes sir did the path come in between you and behind you or in front of you in front of me oh I penned out four in front of you would you say was it hardly a quarter of a mile in front of me you don't know what direction he went from there no sir I don't do you know it was the fellow right sitting right there pointing at the defendant yes sir that's the fellow the very one he had a mustache like he's got now no sir didn't have a mustache only had a little bit right here how many times have you seen him before I never did see him before how many times have you seen him since just here they brought him there that night and I knew him as quick as they brought him and you haven't seen him till this court since then no sir you told them when the shirt brought him down there that you look you look like that he looked like the [ __ ] I told them it was him I didn't tell them it looked like him are you positive you told them that was the same [ __ ] yes sir I am positive I told them it was the very one and you're certain you didn't say it looked like the [ __ ] I am certain I know it was him about how long were you going over to the schoolhouse well I run ever hop of the way after I got away from him I run now who was there when you got there well just some of the school kids some of the girls about my about your age and sighs yes sir you didn't tell them about it did you no sir they they didn't any of them asked me and I didn't tell him and when Miss Mamie breakin Steph come they told her I was crying and she come around to see and asked me what was the matter now your little brothers were there yes sir they were there you didn't tell them about it no sir I didn't how long was it before miss Mamie came I just got there when she come to the front I just had walked around to the back of the house you didn't tell her about it until she asked you about it she come around and asked me what was the matter and I told her now this is the re direct examination now you say you identified him how was he dressed when he attacked you yet on a khaki short khaki shirt and overalls and jumper and leggings and a pair of yellow trousers under his overalls under his overalls yes sir now when the officer brought him up to the house that evening or night did you have all the same that he have on the same clothes he had on that morning yes sir now this is the recross examination did he fasten his clothes did he unfasten his clothes when he was down there in the thicket that is did he let his clothes down yes sir he let his britches down his overalls now yes sir when they brought him up there who were how he did you how did you know he had that same pair of trousers under his overalls well he had them on how did you know I didn't see them that night but I know that he had them on that day and he had them he had on the same shirt did you know what had what he had on that night he had on that khaki shirt and he had on his overalls had on a cap and had on the very same cap he had on and he had on the very same leggings couldn't some other negro have had on the same colored shirt yes but I know it was the same now please answer my question and then the district attorney mr. Finley says she's answered your question and then the court says yes that's for the jury to pay its own anyway go ahead okay who was it brought him down there that night mr. Omar Buland that man said and right there all right this is the redirect examination now ms nelly you stated a moment ago that he had intercourse with you state to the jury with whether he penetrated your private parts with his private parts he did that's all and then this defense called Louis Duke now mr. Duke testified that he had seen Robert Milton that morning however under cross-examination the exact time could not be established that he seen Robert and that was basically his testimony the next witness to be called by the state was Miss Mamie burr curse death now Miss Mamie was the schoolteacher at Mount Pleasant school and she stated that she was walking to school that morning when she met Robert Milton on her way she stated that the path that she traveled intersected with the same path that Nellie McCallister's traveled only her path was closer to the school she described his clothing the same as Nellie had described and she stated that when they brought him for her to dinner Phi that he had his head down and turned to the left so she said I couldn't see him so well so I said that doesn't look like him and then he jumped up and said thank you and his wife was howling too when he jumped up I could see him better and I knew he was the one that I admit that morning she also stated that when she got to school Nellie's little brother came to her asking her to see about Nettie that she was behind the school crying she would not tell anyone what was wrong she testified that she knew it was something serious if Nellie was crying she took Nellie off to herself and Nellie told her what had happened she also said that she did see a gun on Robert when he passed but she wasn't looking for one that was basically her testimony the next witness to be called by the state was dr. WC Walden now basically the doctor testified that he examined Nellie that morning sometime around 10:00 a.m. he said that her face was swollen and red but he didn't believe it was from a physical altercation but from the fact that she had been crying and rubbing her eyes but he said that she was in a stupor and in a paranoid state she seemed to be in shock and he could barely get her to talk he said physically there were no cuts or bruises except around her private parts now he found the present presence of male semen which seemed to prove that she had had had intercourse now some bloodstains and also he described tearing of the membranes he also stated that her private parts had definitely been penetrated then they asked him if he knew the defendant Robert Milton and he said that he had seen him and he knew him and that he had seen him at very afternoon in Tishomingo he described what he saw him wearing and it was the same description as many had given including the doctor said that he had seen the yellow trousers under his overhauls and that was basically all that the doctor testified to the next witness called by the prosecution was mr. Alan McRae now mr. McCray his basic testimony was that he had been out real early the morning of the crime and he come out to run his hunting traps when sometime around sunup he stated that he met Robert Milton up close to the old Ronald house he also gave a description of the clothes that Robert Milton was wearing which coincided with the description of the rest of the witnesses now this was basically his testimony then the defense called Scherff emerge a bully now the sheriff was asked to tell about Nellie's reaction when he first brought Robert for her to identify the Scherff said that miss McNally mcanally said it looks very much like him I can't stand to look at him and she fell over on the bed crying now this was it NAT underlap lied and he stated it was daytime when he took Robert to see the teacher mrs. burger staff at the school now she was on a wagon and first said it was not the man or it was the wrong man or something to that effect but later on she said it looked very much like him the sure stated that he asked Robert if he had a pistol and he said no and later someone told him that Robert had a pistol at his home which the sir found and it was denta fied as a blue steel the next witness for the defense was mr. Munroe Kegel now mr. Cagle test testimony was that he had gone over to sell a cow to rhesus flag and also to bird hunt that morning when he stopped back by the new ground where Robert Milton was clinic clearing ground and that he had talked with Robert somewhere around nine or ten o'clock now the point of his testimony was that Robert seemed his normal self and that there was nothing unusual about his demeanor or his attitude and that he did didn't seem bothered or worried about anything not like someone might that had just raped somebody that was basically his testimony the last and final witness was the defendant Robert Milton he was questioned by his attorney mr. llegan which testified as follows this is the direct examination is your name Robert Milton yes sir you're the defendant in this case yes sir Robert you remember the day of which it is alleged that you committed this crime down there yes sir did you spend the night at home before that before that day yes sir sure did about what time did your rise in the morning about seven o'clock just about sunrise about sunrise yes sir all right now what did you do after you got up that morning well I got up that morning and I went to the woodpile and cut some wood and carried it in the house to the stove to cook breakfast with and my wife got breakfast and after I got breakfast I went over there to uncle Louis's and taking my ex up there with me and got his file to sharpen my axe with and then I went over there to the new ground and remained in the new ground til they come up there and arrested me now you heard these witnesses what they had to say about where this crime was committed over there that you are accused of committing now state whether or not you were over there at that time mr. judge says to you all I wasn't there at that time because that place where this crime was committed it I don't know not anything about this place I'm a stranger in this country anyway and there they say this crime was committed I had never been there in my life in this schoolhouse that place I haven't even been in that country know nothing about this country at all I know nothing about you at all I'm a stranger here and know nothing about the country at all now you heard this young lady that was on the witness stand this morning stayed to the court and to the jury that you ravished her now state whether you did or not is that true well I says mr. jurors that she's mistaken in the man I'm not the man I don't say it wasn't done at the same time I can't say and be justified as to who it was but I can say this and be justified by our Heavenly Father and that is that I am NOT the man did you ravish that girl no sir I did not did you ever see that girl before never did before in my life now you heard them talking about the old house over there they called it the rural house were you ever over there in your life those are never in my life do you know how far it was from where you were no sir I do not now you heard this witness say he met you over there somewhere in the morning between daylight and sunup were you over there then in that vicinity where he was talking about no sir calls between daylight and sunup I hadn't got it did you see anyone else that morning no sir no one but Uncle Lewis and mr. Cagle and this Watson boy and you've been away from your house to any other place that morning until you went to Uncle Lucy's no sir went to slop the Hogs then was the last time you saw Uncle Lewis when was that until you saw him this morning it's been the 22nd day of January before I've seen him here on Friday have you ever talked to or discuss this case with Louis Duke since you have been arrested no sir I have not I haven't had an opportunity to sin now you heard this young lady say understand this morning that was teaching school down there that she met you on the path between the place where she was boarding and the school building state to the jury whether or not you're on that path that morning are down there mr. jurors I say I was not on that path because I don't know where that path was at the end and if I had to go there in the broad daylight time that ever was even midday the Sun shinin bright down there I could not make my way down there were you ever in your life never in my life did you see this young lady there that morning no sir did not now this is the cross-examination by Mr Clarke now Robert you know mr. Allan McCrae don't you know sir don't you know that white fellow that testified here this morning no sir I don't know him didn't you hear him say that he knew you before this morning yes sir I heard him say that I heard him say he seen me someplace but if I see him I can't remember and didn't you hear him say that he had been to his trout's down there in the bottom and just about sunup he met you near this old house that they had all testified about yes sir I heard him say that but not saying it to deny his word but he's sadly mistaken in the man he didn't meet you there then no sir he's mistaken yes sir and measures Merkers staff is mistaken about seeing you down there yes sir and this little McAllister girl if she mistaken about it too yes sir now then how far is this new ground from your house my house is as near as I can get it added i say about 140 yards I guess it's across two acres of the new ground and I was up in the new ground I reckon about 15 to 20 yards now then what time did you go to work in the new ground that morning about 8 o'clock about 8 o'clock yes sir about 8 o'clock about 8:15 and about 8:30 when the officers came down there no sir they didn't come down there then well didn't you hear uncle Luis stayed a minute ago that you had been down there about thirty minutes when they came yes sir I heard him state that is he mistaken about that mister attorney you all go just got the wrong man uncle Luis was mistaken about how long you had been down there when the officers came was he no sir I don't suppose he knows exactly no and I don't know exactly how long you had been down there when the officers came do you yes sir I do did you look at the clock at the house yes sir I left about eight about eight o'clock I looked at the clock and I went over to Uncle Louis's and then went back to the new ground so that would have been about 8:30 wouldn't it what time was it when the officers came down there I don't know sir exactly what time it was anyway I was in a new ground and I guess a little bit when mr. Cagle came down there and after mr. Cagle left the officers came now mr. Cagle got there between 8:00 in between 9 and 10 o'clock did he yes sir and how long had he been going before the officers came I don't know sir about 30 or 35 minutes about 30 or 35 minutes yes sir now how were you dressed that morning Robert how was I dressed yes well I had on overalls and leggings and a cap what else did you have on Willa head on a shirt a khaki shirt he had on a khaki shirt yes sir what else did you have on that's all what I had on under which well I had on a suit of underwear under nothing else under the overalls well yes sir I had on a pair of pants what kind of trousers white white now was it the yellow they had been yellow but they were washed white they were still yelling look in though wasn't they you had on the very same description of clothes that morning that this McAllister girl and Miss Brecon staff and the Allan McRae and the doctor and doctor Waltrip and mr. Bullen all described in you yes sir same identical description wouldn't it yes that's all I'll wait oh wait a minute what kind of mustache did you have well I had them shaved along about right here didn't you just have a little wisp along there here no sir came way around here no sir cause they don't do that that way no mower but they didn't come around there as far as they do now right no sir you had a little whist in there yes sir I had a pretty good little whisk in there no more questions the trial was completed by five o'clock that afternoon the judge then turned it over to the jury for a verdict the jury filed into the deliberation room to make their decision within 30 minutes by 5:30 the jury had reached the verdict guilty by six o'clock the judge had decided on a sentence and handed down that Robert Milton was to be home the date was set for the 21st of September which was only one month away however appeals delayed the execution for another seven months I'll try to show some of the local news articles here that's pertaining to this case you and on the 7th of May 1926 some 15 months after the rape occurred Robert Milton was brought back up these terrors again under heavy guard the courthouse was once again cleared of all spectators which forced the public to gather outside these windows on the sidewalk to observe the proceedings through these open windows a high platform had been built at the top of the stairs with a trapdoor and steps leading up to the platform Robert Milton was asked if he wanted to say any last words and he said yes he made a passionate plea to his innocence stating before God I am innocent he said some even said that he said the guilty party although he didn't know who it was was out there someplace in the crowd this plea caused many to believe in his innocence for years nevertheless at 12:40 p.m. on 7 May 1926 sheriff Homer J bullet sprung the trap door that took the life of Robert Milton people say that the sheriff said that for years this has bothered you after the trapdoor was sprung ten minutes later Robert Milton was pronounced dead his body was taken down and placed in a coffin and they took his coffin down the stairs and laid it in the courthouse hallway for viewing by a curious public you

Channel: Jerry Skinner

Views: 618,786

Rating: 4.6094723 out of 5

Keywords: Tishomingo County (US County), Iuka, Mississippi

Id: 0xvzdmuLwdM

Length: 50min 24sec (3024 seconds)

Published: Mon Jun 16 2014