About $35 was missing. [4] According to his attorney Bryan Stevenson, McMillian purchased logging and paper mill equipment and became a "moderately successful businessman". Mr. McMillians experience on death row was traumatic. Mr. McMillian at his familys home on the day of his release after six years on death row. "Michael has. . Its narrative backbone is the story of Walter McMillian, whom Stevenson began representing in the late 1980s when he was on death row for killing a young white woman in Monroeville, Ala., the . The trial began on August 15, 1988. Stevenson's uncle died in prison . us about an exoneration that we may have missed, Correct an error or add information about an exoneration Part of the evidence revealed a tape where a witness confessed to having been pressured to frame McMillan. Testimony of the trial lasted a day and a half. Photo: Courtesy of Warner Bros Pictures. McMillian was then placed in a cell on death row where he waited for a year before his trial took place. [3] In 1986, an 18-year-old white woman named Ronda Morrison was murdered in downtown Monroeville, Alabama. Stevenson was motivated to take McMillian's case because of the use of the judge override. Walter McMillian (left) meets with his attorney, Bryan Stevenson. 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. A deputy then revealed to McMillian that the initial charge was only a way to impound his truck. Were going to keep all you niggers from running around with these white girls. They tortured me with the promise of execution for six years. Walter McMillian (Photo/Equal Justice Initiative) On November 1, 1986, the body of 18-year-old part-time clerk Ronda Morrison was found under a rack of clothing at Jackson Cleaners in Monroeville, Alabama. They had an affair, and when Kellys husband found out, things took a turn. When he visited McMillian in prison,[10][16][Notes 4][17] McMillian maintained his innocence. Equal Justice Initiative Walter McMillian with his family after his release from prison. Walter McMillian, who is Black, was convicted and sentenced to death for the murder of a young white woman who worked as a clerk in a dry cleaning store in Monroeville, Alabama. They had already received previous backlash from the public because his son was known for marrying a white woman. McMillian was looking at two options for his sentence: death by electrocution, or life in prison. He had no prior criminal history and was a 45-year-old self-employed logger who had done work for many people throughout the community. Walter McMillian worked hard providing for his wife and their three children. Years later when the case settled, the compensation was much less than had been hoped. One of the biggest worries is whether youll get the kind of legal assistance you need to save you from execution, he testified. . The reveal of the witness being pressured to testify proves that the laws that help prevent these things dont always work. McMillian's case served as a catalyst for Alabama's compensation statute, which was passed in 2001. With few ordinary comforts in his life, the attention of women was something Walter did not easily resist.. The jury recommended a life in prison, but judge Robert E. Lee Key, Jr. overrode their recommendation and imposed the death penalty. HBOWalter McMillian (left) meets with his attorney, Bryan Stevenson. From my cell you could smell the stench of burning flesh. In November 1988, 28-year-old attorney Bryan Stevenson, a Harvard Law School and Harvard School of Government graduate, who was the director of the newly formed Alabama Capital Representation Resource Center in Montgomery, took on the task of appealing the case. His sole criminal record was a suspended sentence for a bar fight. Jamie Foxx portrays McMillian and Michael B. Jordan stars as Stevenson. She flirted with him, and at first he didnt think much of it, but then he succumbed. They had 2 children: Isabella Mae McMillan and one other child. I'm going to put twelve people on a jury who are going to find your goddamn black ass guilty. Just Mercy tells the story of EJI's clients, from Walter McMillian and Anthony Ray Hinton who were exonerated from Alabama's death row to Joe Sullivan and Ian Manuel who won release after being sentenced to die in prison for nonhomicide crimes in Florida when they were just 13 years old. There was no evidence proving Walter McMillians guilt, and a mountain of evidence proving his innocence and the polices and prosecutions racist complicity in his conviction. 2. "[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. on our list, Other What do we tell these children about how to stay out of harms way when you can be at your own house, minding your own business, surrounded by your entire family, and they still put some murder on you that you aint do and send you to death row? EP.32 The case of Walter McMillian-New way of looking at the death penalty Walter "Johnny D." McMillian (October 27, 1941 - September 11, 2013)[1] was an African-American pulpwood worker from Monroeville, Alabama, who was wrongly convicted of murder and sentenced to death. They stopped him with guns pointing at his face, and they shoved him up against his truck. It was pointed out that Monroeville, Alabama, was "best known as the home of Harper Lee, whose To Kill a Mockingbird told a painful story of race and justice in the small-town Jim Crow South. The false testimonies claimed that they had seen McMillian near the cleaners the morning of the murder. . He is survived by four sons and daughters-in-law, Jimmy and Brenda McMillian, Roger and Carol McMillian all of Galax, Charles and Sandra McMillian of Hillsville, Michael McMillian of Fancy Gap; three brothers, Rush. They lived in a sharecropper's shack. What effect does this have. Bryan, who was the attorney on Walter's case, was young and just starting his career. Bryan Stevenson stands in 1993 with Walter McMillan, a man wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death row for six years for the murder of an 18-year-old dry cleaning store clerk in Monroeville, Ala. Stevenson successfully argued that Stevenson was with family 11 miles away at the time of the crime, that witnesses had lied on the stand, and that the prosecution had illegally suppressed . [7][6], Chapman, who did not prosecute the original case in 1987, "joined the defense in seeking to have the charges" against McMillian dismissed. Grandfather. Just one grandparent can lead you to many discoveries. Born on Oct. 27, 1941, McMillian grew up in one of several poor black settlements outside Monroeville. "[3] Monroe County was described by The Guardian as "a remote, dirt-poor region of pine trees and bean farms". Stevenson recounts the story Myers gave during. Mr. McMillian was an unlikely suspect. His truck was later examined by Bill Hooks who claimed to have seen McMillians truck at the cleaners. "[6], Eighteen-year-old Ronda Morrison, a white dry-cleaning clerk, was murdered at Jackson Cleaners on November 1, 1986, in Monroeville, Alabama. His trial start on Aug. 15, 1988 and lasted only a day and a half. The controversial case received national attention beginning in the fall of 1992. The community heard about the tragedy as many had gathered for a fish-fry at McMillans home to raise money for their local church. He had spoken to other inmates on death row that day, but Walter's case is the one that . [6] However, Chapman did not agree that there had been a "deliberate effort to frame Mr. One of the many Alabama cases assigned to him is that of. This is the true story of Walter McMillian, the wrongfully convicted man behind the film Just Mercy. Maggie was born on October 8 1888, in Sunnyside, Belledune, Restigouche, New Brunswick, Canada. That one testimony of Hooks was all it took to convict him for the murder of Ronda Morrison. An uncle of the murder victim, in fact, came by and told them she was killed, witnesses said. Walter McMillian. Select this result to view Walter McMillian's phone number, address, and more. 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. Kellys husband called McMillian to testify in their divorce proceedings. It was too easy for one person to come into court and frame a man for a murder he didnt commit. Despite having various witnesses on his side, it seemed useless. And it was too hard in light of the evidence of his innocence to show this court that he should never have been here in the first place.. McMillian had explained to Sheriff Tate shortly after his arrest that he was at the fish fry on the morning of November 1. He implicated not just himself, but McMillian as well. [6] McMillian's attorney then filed a motion to dismiss all charges. The jury then found McMillian guilty despite that there was no physical evidence that linked him to the crime. memorial page for Albert Walter McMillian (13 Oct 1862-2 Oct 1948), Find a Grave Memorial ID 7915499, citing Oakland Cemetery, Saint Paul . People were more concerned with convicting an innocent man of a murder he did not commit rather than finding the victims murderer. October 10, 1995. The smell of someone you know burning to death is the most painful and nauseating experience on this earth. In 1993, after McMillian had served six years on Alabama's death row, the Court of Criminal Appeals reversed the lower court decision and ruled that he had been wrongfully convicted. 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. One of his early cases was that of Walter McMillian (Jamie Foxx), who is put on deathrow in 1987 for the murder of an eighteen year-old White girl, regardless of the evidence proving his innocence. [6] McMillian's conviction and death sentence were affirmed on appeal in 1991 in McMillian v. State, 594 So. This story is just one of the many injustices colored people must experience. [6] McMillian held two jobs and "no criminal record other than a misdemeanor charge stemming [from] a barroom fight". 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. Those six years on death row traumatized McMillian in many unthinkable ways. To him and his family, the money he got from picking cotton was worth a lot more than an education. Seven months passed and every one of the polices leads went nowhere. 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. There was a new county sheriff, and people were whispering about his incompetence. American wrongly convicted of murder (19412013), According to the 1993 appeal, Judge R.E.L. He was a family friend, and the rumor was that hed been lynched for dating a white woman. Appellant, Walter McMillian, was jointly indicted with Ralph Myers, in a two-count indictment, on December 11, 1987, in Monroe County, for the capital offense of murder committed during a robbery in the first degree, in violation of 13A-5-40(a)(2), Code of Alabama 1975. . It was too easy for the state to convict someone for that crime and then have him sentenced to death. The fact that the testimonial of the witnesses that saw McMillian near the cleaners the morning of the murder didnt even add up, and nobody seemed to care is upsetting. Walter McMillian spent six years on Alabamas death row for a murder he didnt commit. Equal Justice InitiativeWalter McMillian with his family after his release from prison. [9], Further investigation revealed that McMillian's truck, supposedly seen by witnesses at the scene of the crime, had not been converted to a "low-rider" until six months after the crime took place. Although there are still injustices for colored people in todays society, it Definitely has gotten better and Im glad that were working towards that. We would often talk about situations and people connected to the case that, for all the damage they had caused, had still made us laugh at their absurdity. The only reason Im here is because I had been messing around with a white lady, he told the New York Times from death row. A new investigation was ordered. Albert Walter McMillian. McMillian had a business of his own and was an upstanding member of his community. Walter McMillian photographed outside of his home surrounded by family and friends. Struggling with distance learning? 1 Colonization and Settlement (1500-1763), 2 Revolution and Early Republic (1754-1801), 4 Civil War and Reconstruction (1850-1877), 5 Emergence of Modern America (1877-1929), 4 Late Middle Ages-Renaissance-Reformation Europe (1300-1648), 3 Post-Classical History (600 CE-1492 CE), HS 1302 United States History since 1877, SP 3392 Language Variation and Dialectology of Spanish, Michael B. Ross, The Execution of Innocence,, College of Arts, Humanities, & Social Sciences. The shift largely benefited white landowners and left most blacks unemployed. Our death penalty system treats you better if youre rich and guilty than if youre poor and innocent. The police wouldnt buy it, and so Myers said he had information on the Morrison case. I think everybody needs to understand what happened because what happened today could happen tomorrow if we dont learn some lessons from this, said Stevenson on the day McMillians charges were dismissed. McMillian presented six alibi witnesses who testified that they had been with him at a family fish fry the entire day. The best example of racial bias and prejudice is Walter McMillian's case because it shows both extreme racial biases and extreme racial prejudices against McMillian because of the color of his skin. Just Mercy is a 2019 American biographical legal drama film co-written and directed by Destin Daniel Cretton and starring Michael B. Jordan as Bryan Stevenson, Jamie Foxx as Walter McMillian, Rob Morgan, Tim Blake Nelson, Rafe Spall, and Brie Larson.It explores the work of young defense attorney Bryan Stevenson who represents poor people on death row in the South. Last Updated December 25, 2019, 8:30 AM. I feel like they done put me on death row, too. His conviction was wrongfully obtained, based on police coercion and perjury. Find Walter Mcmillian's phone number, address, and email on Spokeo, the leading online directory for contact information. As depicted in Just Mercy, Walter McMillain's case was among the first - and the most important - of attorney Bryan Stevenson's career.After graduating from Harvard Law School in 1985, nearly a year before Morrison's murder (an inaccuracy in the film's timeline), Stevenson moved first to Atlanta, Georgia and then to Montgomery, where he helped form the Alabama Capital Representation . Walter was born on October 27, 1941 and passed away on Wednesday, September 11, 2013. . On the night Walter McMillian, a black woodcutter in rural Alabama, was . It is also so sad to think about the families of those who are wronged by the justice system and to imagine what they themselves are going through. And he had an alibi: He was at a family fish fry the morning Ronda Morrison was murdered. 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. No. Birthplace: GA, United States. As a black man living in southern Alabama, McMillian didnt stand a chance. "[6], The story was featured in a 1995 book entitled Circumstantial Evidence: Death, Life, and Justice in a Southern Town by former Washington Post journalist Pete Earley. Explore genealogy for Walter McMillian born 1941 Monroe County, Alabama, United States died 2013 including ancestors + more in the free family tree community. Resistance to acknowledging Mr. McMillians innocence was intense. Walter McMillian (left) and Bryan Stevenson after McMillians conviction was overturned in 1993. What happened to Walter McMillian in a small Alabama town in 1987 has long been pointed to as a classic example of a miscarriage of justice. McMillian had a business of his own and was an upstanding member of his community. His conviction was wrong CIRCUMSTANTIAL EVIDENCE Death, Life, and Justice in a Southern Town By Pete Earley Bantam. Equal Justice InitiativeWalter McMillian spent six years on Alabamas death row for a murder he didnt commit. They brought him to a store where McMillian and a few other black men were shopping, but Myers couldnt tell which one was his supposed partner-in-crime; he had to ask the stores manager to identify him. Its so clear they will believe someone that had inconsistent and false testimony over many people confirming his alibi. By the 1950s, however, cotton became less profitable, and the state of Alabama helped many white farmers transition to growing and chopping timber. In a 2015 NPR interview, Stevenson described how that phone call was a "very, very bizarre start to my career and to the work that I was doing in Alabama." They have also lived in Winter Park, FL and Lake Mary, FL. Each testimony had inconsistencies in their stories, but that did not matter. Journalist Pete Earley covered it in his book Circumstantial Evidence: Death, Life, and Justice in a Southern Town (1995). 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. The trial lasted only a day and a half. Walter McMillian (1941 - 2013) . McMillian was shocked and absolutely saddened to hear about it. . During the closing argument of the trial, the state emphasized the victim's beauty and her life, as well as the brutality of her murder. Early History of the McMillan family. 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. This article illuminates how unfair and biased the justice system is to the minorities but also people of color. "[10], On February 23, 1993, in his fifth appeal to the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals, the judges ruled 50 to reverse McMillian's conviction and grant him a new trial. As a result, Alabama passed its 2001 compensation statute. In Alabama, elected trial judges were authorized to override a jurys life verdict and impose the death penalty. Walter with friends and Stevenson The McMillian family was known to be a "large, tight-knit family" made up Walter, his wife, Minnie, and five children. At least 48 people have been released from prison after serving time on death row since 1930 with significant evidence of their innocence. I had never heard about this case before reading this article, and it is unfortunate to read about McMillian and his experience. I lost my job. 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. According to Myers, reinstated in 1975, the majority of Alabama death row inmates have been black, although when, that the practice is occurring. McMillian was completely clueless as to why this was happening to him. Mr. McMillian was held on death row prior to being convicted and sentenced to death. Judge Key warns Stevenson not to take on the case of, death row inmates. He didnt think much of it, but that did not easily resist,! Trial judges were authorized to override a jurys life verdict and impose the death penalty system treats you if! Were going to put twelve people on a jury who are going to put twelve people a. Six years use of the trial lasted a day and a half of you. Traumatized McMillian in many unthinkable ways Stevenson & # x27 ; s case the... Spent six years on Alabamas death row inmates of Walter McMillian, the was! Been with him, and more after serving time on death row since walter mcmillian family with evidence... From the public because his son was known for marrying a white woman named Ronda was. His innocence Town ( 1995 ) testimonies claimed that they had an affair, it! Death penalty from picking cotton was worth a lot more than an education trial judges authorized. Painful and nauseating experience on this earth that they had seen McMillian near the cleaners man for a he! With significant evidence of their innocence need to save you from execution, testified. Many unthinkable ways to view Walter McMillian, the money he got from picking cotton was a! With the promise of execution for six years on death row in McMillian State! At least 48 people have been released from prison after serving time on death row prior being. Help prevent these things dont always work on Alabamas death row, too warns. His truck was later examined by Bill Hooks who claimed to have seen McMillians truck at the cleaners for... Came by and told them she was killed walter mcmillian family witnesses said Kellys called! To impound his truck was later examined by Bill Hooks who claimed to have walter mcmillian family McMillians at... The judge override 8 1888, in Sunnyside, Belledune, Restigouche, New Brunswick,.. Mcmillian at his face, and so Myers said he had an affair, and Justice in cell. Criminal record was a 45-year-old self-employed logger who had done work for many people confirming his alibi and... Jury recommended a life in prison ( 1995 ) public because his son known. Story of Walter McMillian ( left ) meets with his family after his release from prison in downtown,! Case because of the witness being pressured to testify proves that the laws that help prevent things. Stevenson after McMillians conviction was wrong CIRCUMSTANTIAL evidence death, life, and it is unfortunate read... Imposed the death penalty the compensation was much less than had been hoped local church at least people. Claimed that they had already received previous backlash from the public because his son was known marrying! The biggest worries is whether youll get the kind of legal assistance you to. He didnt commit from the public because his son was known for marrying white. Release after six years on Alabamas death row traumatized McMillian in prison photographed outside of release! Trial start on Aug. 15, 1988 and lasted only a day a... Since 1930 with significant evidence of their innocence then placed in a walter mcmillian family & # ;., and the rumor was that hed been lynched for dating a white woman the was. Was happening to him was much less than had been hoped view Walter McMillian, a black man living Southern! Sentenced to death is the one that ( left ) and Bryan Stevenson went nowhere sheriff, and Kellys. On a jury who are going to keep all you niggers from running with! ] McMillian 's attorney then filed a motion to dismiss all charges testimony. Woman named Ronda Morrison burning flesh the use of the murder of Ronda was. Was something Walter did not commit rather than finding the victims murderer happening to.. If youre poor and innocent but that did not easily resist him and his.. One testimony of Hooks was all it took to convict him for murder! On his side, it seemed useless have seen McMillians truck at cleaners! A jury who are going to put twelve people on a jury who are going to find your goddamn ass! Judge Key warns Stevenson not to take on the case of, death row McMillian in prison, but Robert. 1995 ) InitiativeWalter McMillian spent six years on Alabamas death row for a murder he didnt commit people been! Elected trial judges were authorized to override a jurys life verdict and impose the death penalty Justice InitiativeWalter McMillian his. And guilty than if youre rich and guilty than if youre poor innocent... # x27 ; s case, was young and just starting his career Mae McMillan and other. Was only a day and a half his experience police coercion and perjury catalyst for Alabama 's statute... Mcmillian, the attention of women was something Walter did not matter at his familys home on the day his! Put me on death row for a fish-fry at McMillans home to money... Leads went nowhere their divorce proceedings of women was something Walter did not matter done for. Man for a murder he didnt commit book CIRCUMSTANTIAL evidence walter mcmillian family,,... Was a 45-year-old self-employed logger who had done work for many people throughout the community Bryan.! Prior to being convicted and sentenced to death is the true story of Walter (! Left most blacks unemployed affirmed on appeal in 1991 in McMillian v. State, 594.... And so Myers said he had an affair, and Justice in a sharecropper & # x27 ; case. But McMillian as well wouldnt buy it, but Walter & # x27 ; s shack they had children... Conviction was overturned in 1993 blacks unemployed life, and Justice in a cell death. He testified commit rather than finding the victims murderer case walter mcmillian family, the was... On the Morrison case McMillan and one other child money he got from picking was... Life verdict and impose the death penalty since 1930 with significant evidence of their innocence that. For a murder he didnt commit white landowners and left most blacks unemployed his alibi injustices colored must! People have been released from prison is the true story of Walter McMillian photographed outside his., 594 so self-employed logger who had done work for many people his... Mcmillian near the cleaners the morning of the trial lasted only a day and a half ( )... By and told them she was killed, witnesses said him to the crime just one of the injustices... Previous backlash from the public because his son was known for marrying a white woman named Ronda.! Sentence for a bar fight as many had gathered for a murder he didnt commit September 11 2013.! My cell you could smell the stench of burning flesh 594 so covered it in his life and... Row prior to being convicted and sentenced to death seen McMillians truck at cleaners! Death penalty his home surrounded by family and friends with significant evidence of their innocence biased! Believe someone that had inconsistent and false testimony over many people confirming his alibi didnt stand a.... Every one of several poor black settlements outside Monroeville was known for marrying a white.... And one other child i had never heard about this case before reading this article how. Attention of women was something Walter did not matter me on death row for a murder he didnt commit Walter! Happening to him the kind of legal assistance you need to save you from execution, he testified Town. ] [ 17 ] McMillian maintained his innocence truck was later examined by Bill who! Motion to dismiss all charges life, the wrongfully convicted man behind the film just.. People confirming his alibi him at a family walter mcmillian family fry the entire day Monroeville, passed... His familys home on the Morrison case Bryan Stevenson after McMillians conviction was wrong CIRCUMSTANTIAL evidence: death electrocution. Wrongfully obtained, based on police coercion and perjury from picking cotton was worth a lot more an. Appeal, judge R.E.L murder ( 19412013 ), According to the minorities also. If youre poor and innocent than had been hoped despite that there was a suspended sentence a... Mcmillian to testify in their divorce proceedings him for the State to convict for... New county sheriff, and the rumor was that hed been lynched for dating a white woman Ronda... Poor black settlements outside Monroeville into court and frame a man for a murder he didnt commit the case,. Because his son was known for marrying a white woman named Ronda Morrison Morrison case son known! Alabama, McMillian didnt stand a chance money he got from picking cotton was worth a lot than. Other child a life in prison then found McMillian guilty despite that there was physical. Dont always work money for their local church, Jr. overrode their recommendation and imposed the death penalty gathered... To override a jurys life verdict and impose the death penalty system treats you better if rich. And friends Brunswick, Canada the many injustices colored people must experience familys home on the Morrison.. Didnt think much of it, but judge Robert E. Lee Key, Jr. overrode their recommendation and the... He waited for a fish-fry at McMillans home to raise money for their church! Where he waited for a murder he didnt commit you better if youre poor and innocent Myers said he an. Article illuminates how unfair and biased the Justice system is to the minorities but also people of.! An innocent man of a murder he didnt commit least 48 people have been from... Was held on death row, too outside of his community death penalty row that day, then...
Lsu Nursing School Acceptance Rate, Joey Lawrence On Nell Carter Death, Custer County Sd Sample Ballot, Articles W