Black brothers executed for murder in 1913 get posthumous pardon

Washington: Two wealthy black brothers executed for killing a white Confederate army veteran in 1913 have been given a posthumous pardon in South Carolina, in the Deep South of the United States. Thomas and Meeks Griffin were ruled to have had no connection to the killing of John Lewis, 73, who was shot dead at his home.

Researchers and descendants of the brothers, who were aged 26 and 24 when they were sent to the electric chair in 1915, were convinced they were convicted by a racist judge who resented their success. They also suspected that the authorities were keen to clear the main suspect as it threatened to blow the lid on an interracial affair involving the victim.

The state's archives show that Lewis had been having a relationship with Anna Davis, a 22 year-old married black woman, who lived near his house in the town of Blackstock, Chester County.

Police initially focused on Davis and her husband, Bart, who were arrested with packed suitcases that included a bloody pair of trousers.

But investigators' attention shifted when the murdered man's stolen pistol was traced to John "Monk" Stevenson, a small-time criminal who said he had been given the gun by Bart Davis's brother.

Changed story

He claimed he was a lookout when Lewis was killed. However, in a plea deal that spared his life, Stevenson — who was also black — changed his story and named the Griffin brothers as the killers and testified against them.

According to sworn statements from his fellow inmates, Stevenson admitted in jail that the men he implicated knew nothing of the crime. He said that the Griffins "could afford a lawyer and beat the rap".

The brothers were the owners of a 138-acre farm, making them probably the wealthiest black people in the area. All of the land was sold to pay their legal fees and court costs.

Paul Finkelman, a legal historian at Albany Law School who researched the case, said: "There was absolutely no evidence linking the Griffins to Lewis. Stevenson was probably in cahoots with the woman and her husband."

While the story has opened a window on the racism of the old Deep South, it has also revealed that outrage over the injustice crossed racial lines.