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215 bodies found in mass grave behind Mississippi jail

Pancho

By Pancho
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Posted (edited)

Well, you've just got to get over it. /s

Holy hell this story is awful. 

 

Edited by FirstTimeCaller
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atomheartbevo

atomheartbevo 89648

Posted
Posted
4 minutes ago, PhillyD said:

What the hell? 215??!!

Pauper’s graves, which can be a catch-all for Mississippi towns that have a lot of prisoner deaths.  This is tied I think to a woman who found her son in that graveyard, after he had been hit by a deputy’s car, and nobody notified her.  Basically, the county wasn’t telling people they found their relatives dead.  These are recent deaths btw.

Quote

Alarmed over the discovery of 215 multiracial bodies found buried in a pauper’s cemetery behind the Hinds County, Mississippi jail, Reverend Hosea Hines, senior Pastor of the Christ Tabernacle Church and the national leader of A New Day Coalition for Equity and Black America (ANCEBA), joined Attorney Ben Crump in calling for an investigation.

Some relatives of those found buried behind the jail simply thought they were missing. They object to having to pay a fee for the removal of their loved one’s remains that are needed for a proper burial.

Quote

At a press conference held on December 20 at the Stronger Hope Baptist Church in Jackson, Mississippi, Crump was joined by relatives of three of the deceased men. Each of the women held pictures of their loved ones.

Gretchen Hankins, who is white, held a picture of her son, Jonathan Hankins, 39. Mary Moore Glenn, a Black woman, held a picture of her son, Marrio Moore, 40, and Betterstem Wade held a photo of her son, Dexter Wade, 37. They were shocked to learn their relatives had been buried behind the jail.

Quote

Crump and his co-counsel, Dennis Sweet, are demanding to know why officials failed to investigate their deaths and did not try to find the next of kin, as opposed to burying them in a pauper’s grave near a dirt road by the jail work farm. Their gravesites were reportedly marked with a metal rod and a number.

“People all across America are scratching their heads in disbelief about what’s happening in Jackson, Mississippi, with this pauper’s graveyard,” said Crump.

Quote

A lot of these things that have happened were not under the watch of Joseph Wade, the chief of the Jackson Police Department,” Hines stated. “He has instituted a new death notification policy that would give relatives information about their deaths and the cause.

“I have spoken with the chief, and he has told me he will implement policies and procedures to ensure this won’t happen again and to hold those individuals responsible for what has occurred.”

 

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TKthunder2

TKthunder2 4988

Posted
Posted
27 minutes ago, UTexasFight said:

In totally, completely unrelated news:

The American South Is Booming. Why Is Mississippi Left Behind?

Magnolia State struggles to find workers and stop brain drain

https://www.wsj.com/us-news/the-american-south-is-booming-why-is-mississippi-left-behind-eff0d986

 

 

Serious question, how is Alabama “booming”?

Georgia (Atlanta), Arkansas(Walmart), Tennessee(Nashville), and South Carolina (beach/golf) have improved their standing over the last 25 years or so but I don’t think anything notable has occurred in Mississippi, Alabama, or Louisiana outside of college sports.

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Deej

Deej 76759

Posted
Posted
1 minute ago, TKthunder2 said:

Serious question, how is Alabama “booming”?

Georgia (Atlanta), Arkansas(Walmart), Tennessee(Nashville), and South Carolina (beach/golf) have improved their standing over the last 25 years or so but I don’t think anything notable has occurred in Mississippi, Alabama, or Louisiana outside of college sports.

Boom will end when Saban retires.

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Neonmoon

Neonmoon 38129

Posted
Posted
21 minutes ago, TKthunder2 said:

Serious question, how is Alabama “booming”?

Georgia (Atlanta), Arkansas(Walmart), Tennessee(Nashville), and South Carolina (beach/golf) have improved their standing over the last 25 years or so but I don’t think anything notable has occurred in Mississippi, Alabama, or Louisiana outside of college sports.

Huntsville is booming due to War. Aerospace NASA space flight center and military contracts for US Army Redstone Arsenal. They test weapons. 
 

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Mighty fine

Mighty fine 169

Posted
Posted

After reading the story, it sounds like the county pauper cemetery is located on the same land as the jail, but the graves aren't necessarily tied to the prison. Ie, unclaimed or indigent deaths from county hospital, etc. Other than poor taste in location, I'm not sure what the story is here. A mass grave wasn't 'discovered'...it's the pauper cemetery.

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atomheartbevo

atomheartbevo 89648

Posted
Posted
Just now, Mighty fine said:

After reading the story, it sounds like the county pauper cemetery is located on the same land as the jail, but the graves aren't necessarily tied to the prison. Ie, unclaimed or indigent deaths from county hospital, etc. Other than poor taste in location, I'm not sure what the story is here. A mass grave wasn't 'discovered'...it's the pauper cemetery.

The story is that they weren't bothering to notify next-of-kin - several of the people mentioned had been reported missing, etc.

This sounds like the sheriff/coroner were doing some serious cost-cutting, but there are some potential misdeeds - deaths that may not have been investigated (if the family doesn't know they are dead, they can't pressure the cops to investigate, etc.).

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Scheiss Meister

Scheiss Meister 8407

Posted
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Maybe this isn't as isolated as we would like to believe.  How many people are listed as missing but have been buried in a pauper's grave and no one notified because it would embarrass someone, or the authorities were too lazy to notify next of kin?  I understand John Does happen all the time, but this makes me wonder how many are really unidentified.  Obviously it's not that hard to get away with it.

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RPM

RPM 26318

Posted
Posted
3 hours ago, atomheartbevo said:

The story is that they weren't bothering to notify next-of-kin - several of the people mentioned had been reported missing, etc.

This sounds like the sheriff/coroner were doing some serious cost-cutting, but there are some potential misdeeds - deaths that may not have been investigated (if the family doesn't know they are dead, they can't pressure the cops to investigate, etc.).

600px-Lone_star_8.jpg

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deadshank

deadshank 24652

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Posted

Is there a notion that pauper’s graves / potter’s fields are unique to MS?  Is there outrage because the site is close to a jail work farm and there is a Brubaker connotation?   
 

I know that it is ghastly and incomprehensible to most of us.  How can a county not notify relatives? How can relatives lose track of their relations?  I’ve had the same thoughts myself.  Somebody’s final resting place is in a spot marked by an iron rod and a number.  (The tweet said “unmarked” graves while the attorney(s) mentioned they were marked….click bait?) 
 

That’s how it’s done for the unclaimed or unidentifiable.  This doesn’t mean the individual died in police custody (but, of course, it could).  They aren’t cremated so they can be recovered if later claimed.   They are usually in individual pine boxes and not one big hole all together with no coffins. 

Regarding the charge that next of kin weren’t notified, let’s get real.   Is that an accusation or a fact?  It’s possible that Hinds County did nothing.   It’s also possible the notified parties did nothing.  We’re talking Mississippi residents and government workers.  Who knows?
 

Every major city, most counties and some smaller cities have potter’s fields.  NYC has Hart Island and is the largest in the country.   It went on tilt during COVID.

It is weird and ghoulish and possibly ripe for some abuse.   MS’s earned reputation hasn’t won it any passes when incidents like this occur.  In no way am I laughing this off.   Potter’s fields are  gruesome and unseemly necessity and incomprehensible to most of us.  
 

 

 

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Mrs Whiggins

Mrs Whiggins 13050

Posted
Posted

IIRC the case that brought this forward was that of Dexter Wade. Run over by a police cruiser and had identification. (Story here: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/dexter-wade-buried-mississippi-id-home-address-lawyer-says-rcna125511  ) His mother reported him missing and they had a home address, so why not stop by or send a letter if no one answers the telephone?

@atomheartbevo mentioned this in his post and it was Mr. Wade's death that led to the rest of the investigation. Like was mentioned earlier, poverty has much to do with ill treatment of citizens as well as race, and considering Texas treats its living foster care children as if a potter's field is their only future,  Mississippi is not alone in not wanting to consider the incomprehensible ways in which citizens are born, live, and die w/o dignity.

 

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baboso

baboso 6054

Posted
Posted
11 hours ago, TKthunder2 said:

Serious question, how is Alabama “booming”?

Georgia (Atlanta), Arkansas(Walmart), Tennessee(Nashville), and South Carolina (beach/golf) have improved their standing over the last 25 years or so but I don’t think anything notable has occurred in Mississippi, Alabama, or Louisiana outside of college sports.

Automobile manufacturing.  Mercedes, Honda, Mazda, Toyota, and Hyundai all have huge plants in Alabama.  

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Don Johnson

Don Johnson 4753

Posted
Posted
17 hours ago, TKthunder2 said:

Serious question, how is Alabama “booming”?

Georgia (Atlanta), Arkansas(Walmart), Tennessee(Nashville), and South Carolina (beach/golf) have improved their standing over the last 25 years or so but I don’t think anything notable has occurred in Mississippi, Alabama, or Louisiana outside of college sports.

When I think of cities in those states, in Alabama, Birmingham (Metro) and Huntsville have grown and improved over the past 25 years.  Plus Alabama has a nice coast with Fairhope, Gulf Shores, Orange Beach etc.  The real start of the Redneck Riviera.  Mobile has gotten shittier IMO, but the two big college towns, Tuscaloosa and Auburn, have grown a lot.

Mississippi has no real attractive places to live for professionals.  Oxford is nice and charming, but that's like 25k people.  Jackson is one of the worst cities in the US.  The coast is nicer than you'd think but not much of a beach attraction.

IMO, everywhere in Louisiana has gotten shitier.  NOLA.  Baton Rouge.  Shreveport.  

So, Alabama >>>> Mississippi and Louisiana.

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Don Johnson

Don Johnson 4753

Posted
Posted
6 hours ago, Mrs Whiggins said:

IIRC the case that brought this forward was that of Dexter Wade. Run over by a police cruiser and had identification. (Story here: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/dexter-wade-buried-mississippi-id-home-address-lawyer-says-rcna125511  ) His mother reported him missing and they had a home address, so why not stop by or send a letter if no one answers the telephone?

@atomheartbevo mentioned this in his post and it was Mr. Wade's death that led to the rest of the investigation. Like was mentioned earlier, poverty has much to do with ill treatment of citizens as well as race, and considering Texas treats its living foster care children as if a potter's field is their only future,  Mississippi is not alone in not wanting to consider the incomprehensible ways in which citizens are born, live, and die w/o dignity.

 

Correct, this started with Dexter Wade.  There was a thread on it.  Linked below.  

People should not be shocked that a city and county that 1) can't provide clean drinking water, 2) is the murder capital of the US, 3) can't answer 911 calls, 4) can't pick up trash regularly, 5) can't provide ballots on voting day, 6) doesn't pay its bills.......

Would drop the ball on something like this.

 

 

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Don Johnson

Don Johnson 4753

Posted
Posted
3 minutes ago, Pato del Muerto said:

Is it dropping the ball to hiding the ball?  And what are the chances that’s the first time they’ve taken such action?

The accusations to date are that they just didn't put out any effort to find out who these people were, contact the relatives, bury them with any dignity, etc.

That's dropping the ball to me.  

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F250

F250 28767

Posted
Posted
26 minutes ago, Pato del Muerto said:

Is it dropping the ball to hiding the ball?  And what are the chances that’s the first time they’ve taken such action?

It sounds more like "no fucks given" we're a third world society in Mississippi.

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Brisketexan

Brisketexan 105095

Posted
Posted
4 minutes ago, tx 3 putt said:


 

 

Yeah....I think the story here is about how the cops apparently used the site as part of their coverup of deaths they didn't want investigated.

Cop runs over a dude who was carrying ID?  Say he was unidentified so you can just bury the body without any investigation or questions.  How many other bodies there have a similar story?  It's a good place to hide a body so that no questions are asked.

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Don Johnson

Don Johnson 4753

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Posted
3 minutes ago, Brisketexan said:

Yeah....I think the story here is about how the cops apparently used the site as part of their coverup of deaths they didn't want investigated.

Cop runs over a dude who was carrying ID?  Say he was unidentified so you can just bury the body without any investigation or questions.  How many other bodies there have a similar story?  It's a good place to hide a body so that no questions are asked.

Possibly. But if you follow anything that goes on in that city, it’s more believable that they 1) are just really shitty about doing their job and 2) don’t give a fuck about doing their job, than it is to believe they are involved in a big coverup. 

Like discussed in the original thread, this guy was on PCP and meth and crossing an interstate at night. It’s not surprising that he got hit. 

He clearly wasn’t unidentified. They knew who he was and where he was buried. They just didn’t bother making an effort to let the family know. 

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jdhorn92

jdhorn92 1545

Posted
Posted (edited)
23 hours ago, TKthunder2 said:

Serious question, how is Alabama “booming”?

Georgia (Atlanta), Arkansas(Walmart), Tennessee(Nashville), and South Carolina (beach/golf) have improved their standing over the last 25 years or so but I don’t think anything notable has occurred in Mississippi, Alabama, or Louisiana outside of college sports.

B'ham has a decent medical community.  Auto manufacturers love the no union South.  Huntsville has the Aerospace /Tech thing going.  Lower AL has water.  Tons of people taking equity and moving to Baldwin County towns like Fairhope, Gulf Shores, Orange Beach and paying cash.  Cheap/less expensive alternative beach communities minus the craziness of FL and lots of people love the conservative climate.  No BS riots, shutdowns etc.. very homogeneous (no racist)  populace, conservative, easy going etc... close to New Orelans if you want that, 40 min flight or 5 hours to ATL.  Easy-ish commute to FL if you want.   Much more progressive state than MS or LA and if they get a bridge over Mobile Bay, it will boom even more.  New airport going in downtown Mobile, cruise industry has taken notice plus there is a large deep water port on Mobile River that if they really got their way and got their shit together, companies will move out of LA to Mobile.  There is a B$ downtown riverfront revitalization project going on now.  I do a lot of business there and if they play it right, could be a game changer.   If a fraction of the out of staters currently roaming Bama and AU campus stay in state, they could have something.

Edited by jdhorn92
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Captainant

Captainant 27653

Posted
Posted
11 minutes ago, jdhorn92 said:

B'ham has a decent medical community.  Auto manufacturers love the no union South.  Huntsville has the Aerospace /Tech thing going.  Lower AL has water.  Tons of people taking equity and moving to Baldwin County towns like Fairhope, Gulf Shores, Orange Beach and paying cash.  Cheap/less expensive alternative beach communities minus the craziness of FL and lots of people love the conservative climate.  No BS riots, shutdowns etc.. very homogeneous (no racist)  populace, conservative, easy going etc... close to New Orelans if you want that, 40 min flight or 5 hours to ATL.  Easy-ish commute to FL if you want.   Much more progressive state than MS or LA and if they get a bridge over Mobile Bay, it will boom even more.  New airport going in downtown Mobile, cruise industry has taken notice plus there is a large deep water port on Mobile River that if they really got their way and got their shit together, companies will move out of LA to Mobile.  There is a B$ downtown riverfront revitalization project going on now.  I do a lot of business there and if they play it right, could be a game changer.   If a fraction of the out of staters currently roaming Bama and AU campus stay in state, they could have something.

The number of times you say "no union" and "conservative" and then "no racist" make me infer the opposite lol

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RDCanecutter

RDCanecutter 26411

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Posted

I wonder if Mississippi's stats would be better if they included its main city, Memphis.

You'd think Alabama and Mississippi would be identical twins, but there is a different vibe. Mississippi got a head start on plantations and castes back when Alabama was still wilderness filled with people who'd cut you for lookin at em.

It's still that way RD!

Goldurnit, son, I'm a-talkin. I'll cut yew later.

OK fine!

Anyway, in Mississippi you either inherit your family's lands, or you move to Memphis. Or Mobile. Or my street in the Birmingham metro. Which if you feel like doing it, cmon down. I am talking Hyde Park with actual families, walking distance to groceries, drug store, oncologist and multiple less dramatic medical types, several churches, a dozen restaurants, a library, and maybe 14 bars. And a 30 cent bus to the fucking train station.

In the past 20-30 years there has been an explosion in things to do here. An artist can make a living exhibiting at the shows in Birmingham, with maybe some side trips to Huntsville and Montgomery. Mobile is its own world but I've had some good times there. Honestly, it, Pensacola, and maybe New Orleans are some crypto-state that should exist on the coast, and doesn't have a thing to do with anything more than 50 miles from the coast.

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jdhorn92

jdhorn92 1545

Posted
Posted
9 hours ago, Captainant said:

The number of times you say "no union" and "conservative" and then "no racist" make me infer the opposite lol

One can be conservative and not be a racist.  Lots of manufacturing prefer a non-union workforce.  Your inference is an assumption, which would make me infer you are skeptical, a cynic perhaps. 

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Captainant

Captainant 27653

Posted
Posted
7 minutes ago, jdhorn92 said:

One can be conservative and not be a racist.  Lots of manufacturing prefer a non-union workforce.  Your inference is an assumption, which would make me infer you are skeptical, a cynic perhaps. 

No, it's more that you felt you needed to call it out as "not racist" is why I posted what I did. My inference IS an assumption, but it's based on the number of racists I've seen who will be the first to tell you they're not racist 

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