Howard Witt/Chicago Tribune with more on death of Brandon McClelland in Paris Texas
Categories: African-American
Written By: Shawn Williams
Here’s Howard Witt’s take on the death of Brandon McClelland death in Paris. The of sweeping details under the rug are headed towards a needed end. I’ll have more on Monday.
When the mutilated and partially dismembered body of
McClelland, a 24-year-old black man, turned up lying in the middle of a rural east
hit-and-run by an unknown driver.
Within a few days, however, suspicions turned toward two white friends who had
picked up McClelland in their truck a few hours before he was found dead early on
Sept. 16. Despite signs that the truck had been washed, authorities discovered blood
and other physical evidence on the undercarriage and arrested the two men, both with
long criminal histories, for murder.
Now this small, racially divided town–already seared with a racist label by civil
rights groups last year over differences in how blacks and whites were treated by
the local justice system–is on edge yet again, wondering if it’s got a horrific new
hate crime on its hands.
The district attorney insists race had nothing to do with McClelland’s death and
police investigators are portraying the case as an apparent falling-out among
friends.
But McClelland’s relatives and
the violence done to McClelland’s body and reports that one of the alleged
assailants, Shannon Finley, had white supremacist ties, they are demanding that
1998 lynching of James Byrd Jr., in Jasper, Texas, 250 miles south of here.
Byrd was dragged to his death behind a pickup truck by three white supremacists who
were later convicted of murder. McClelland was walking in front of the pickup when
Finley, 27, and a friend, Charles Ryan Crostley, 27, who was also arrested,
allegedly ran him down and then dragged him 40 feet along the road until his
mutilated body popped out from beneath the chassis, according to a police affidavit
accompanying the warrant for Finley’s arrest.
“If you take somebody out to the country like that in the middle of the night and do
that to him in that way, that’s how they do black people around here,” said Brenda
Cherry, a local activist working with McClelland’s family. “To me, it smells like
Jasper.”
Tribune reported the case of Shaquanda Cotton, a 14-year-old African-American youth
who was sentenced by a local judge to up to seven years in a youth prison for
shoving a hall monitor at her high school. Just three months earlier, the same judge
had sentenced a 14-year-old white girl to probation after convicting her of the more
serious crime of arson for burning down her family’s house.
The discrepancy in the treatment of the two teenagers provoked protests from
national civil rights groups and led to Cotton’s early release from prison. Now
McClelland’s family fears that
26,000 from another round of negative publicity over race relations, are
purposefully downplaying potential racial overtones in McClelland’s murder.
“At the crime scene, it looked like these boys went back and poured beer on my son’s
body,” said Jacqueline McClelland,
there, but the police didn’t even pick them up, they just left evidence out there.
They won’t even consider the racial issues. That’s the way it is in
Even the editor of the local newspaper, normally an impassioned defender of
reputation, has cautioned law enforcement officials to be thorough and “leave no
stone unturned” in their investigation.
“Hopefully, this community has learned from its past,” Mary Madewell wrote in the
actions of single individuals should in no way bring condemnation to an entire
community.”
Family members and other critics are also concerned about the impartiality of Lamar
County District Atty. Gary Young, who five years ago, before he was elected
prosecutor, served as Finley’s court-appointed defense attorney when Finley pleaded
guilty to manslaughter for shooting a friend to death.
Young has declined to state whether he will recuse himself and other prosecutors in
his office from handling the McClelland case.
Although the victim in Finley’s 2003 manslaughter case was white, race played a role
in the incident. Finley told police he was sitting in a pickup with his friend in a
park when two gun-wielding black men supposedly walked up alongside and tried to rob
them. Finley said he grabbed his friend’s handgun and fired at the robbers, but
instead shot his friend.
An autopsy determined that the victim suffered three gunshot wounds to the head, but
the district attorney at the time accepted Finley’s contention that the shooting was
an accident and offered him a plea bargain on a reduced manslaughter charge. Finley
served three years of a 4-year prison sentence. The alleged robbers were never
found.
That manslaughter case also tied Finley and McClelland closely together. McClelland
furnished a false alibi for Finley, testifying before a grand jury that Finley was
with him at the time the shooting occurred. That lie under oath earned McClelland a
conviction for aggravated perjury, for which he served two years in prison.
Largely because of that connection between McClelland and Finley, police discount
the possibility that race played a part in McClelland’s death. “I don’t see how it
was racial, being as how they were good friends,” said Stacy McNeal, the
Ranger who is the lead investigator on the case.
But McClelland’s relatives say they have heard that Finley fell in with white
supremacists while in prison and that he had grown upset over
a white girl–factors they say the police ought to investigate.
“I always told
said Ervin Barry, a friend of McClelland’s. “But
friends.”
Race relations in
SHAQUANDA COTTON: The black high school freshman whose sentence of up to seven years
in prison for shoving a school hall monitor drew national scrutiny to the town’s
justice system was released from prison in March 2007. Now 17, she is studying for
her GED certificate and hopes to attend junior college.
TASK FORCE: Citizens concerned about racial fissures in town exposed by the Cotton
case convened a local Diversity Task Force, which has held several meetings and last
month hosted a community-wide block party attended by several hundred residents.
INVESTIGATION: The U.S. Department of Education last month concluded a two-year
investigation of allegedly discriminatory disciplinary policies in the
schools. The agency said it found “insufficient evidence to support a conclusion”
that black students were being disciplined more harshly than whites.
October 4th, 2008 at 11:38 am
This story has truly upset hundreds of citizens. I am torn between the comments of Mary Madewell and the realization that “individuals” make up our community. I am apart of the Diversity Task Force Committee and although our objective is to identify ways in which Paris can improve its race relations, I firmly believe the unspoken truths about our community must be articulated, including but not limited to: education, the justice system, the make up of our civic and social organizations, health system and the like. We (Parisians) know best the “race parallels” in Paris, whether we speak of them or not. But it is the latter that has contributed to the national spotlight on incidents like Cotton and McClelland. Though unfortunate, Paris has been served a meal it must digest. Prayerfully, on the route in and out, Paris will finally admit we have a problem and take pro-active steps to solve it. I love living in Paris and I love all the many things Paris has to offer families of different backgrounds as much as the next person, but that does not mean I turn my head when injustice occurs. I applaud the efforts of those who work on a daily basis to improve relations in our town and I pray through this– we have all realized, we still have a long way to go.
October 17th, 2008 at 12:07 pm
SAD STATE OF affairs this is all that i see injustice that needs to be address but what can you say to the ones who live like this everyday in this lopsided kind of way…..SAD
October 19th, 2008 at 11:22 pm
Paris, TX keeps living up to the reputation they are trying to avoid. I am so glad I don’t live there anymore. I would be damaged soul if I did.
October 22nd, 2008 at 5:16 am
The injustice done to one person is the injustice done to all. If we do not speak out and demand justice, tomorrow it could be you.
I pray that God’s will for the Kingdom will be done on earth, and that justice will be upheld. I also pray, that those who perpetrate hate will be challenged by the Almighty God. Lord let your will be done.
October 24th, 2008 at 7:21 pm
Surprise, surprise….another racially motivated killing in the great state of Texas!!!
Texas…..one of the most xenophobic, redneck, backward states in the nation. It’s too bad the civil war ended when it did….the north should have wiped these inbreds off the map 144+ years ago. Here we are a century and half later and the south still has not managed to evolve out of the cesspool that was the Confederacy. These “God fearing Christians” are really blood thirsty, hypocritical heathen scum….just as bad as the Islamic Fascists on the other side of the world. They deserve each other.
My heart goes out to McClelland’s mother.
October 25th, 2008 at 7:02 pm
I just feel that it is sad and shows a strong lack of intelligence for people to be so judgemental because of the color of one’s outter beauty. The fact that a person does not like me or anyone else because of the color of our skin is sad. If people would take the time to get passed the racial barriers that have brewed for so long then and only then will they understand that it takes a nation to be successful. “Success first starts in the eyes of the heart. If you can believe it, you will see it, if you can see it, then you can achieve it.”~~ by Tamara Dudley..With God all things are possible to those who believe. The question is are we willing to be the living vessel to take the front line when God calls us to the front line. Shawn, keep up the excellent work that God has given you to do. “One life changed, is one less obstacle.~~Tamara Dudley
October 25th, 2008 at 10:42 pm
This is sad, it only embarasses America. Hopefully this story will get a lot of national coverage to force the police to make sure justice is done and matters are address. They claim it’s a falling out between friends. I had falling outs with friends before never had I drug one of them to death. Call it like it is , it’s a hate crime and they know it. They pretended to be his friends to gain his trust and get him to go where they wanted. And whta is up with the little girl that got 2/3 years in jail for pushing a hall monitor? Do they not do suspensions there or something??? You throw kids in jail all the time for minor stuff. I’ve never even heard of a kid going to jail for anything done at school not even fighting. It is starting to look like Texas is one of the most racist states in the US.
October 27th, 2008 at 2:28 pm
Hate crime. That’s all I have to say. All you racist hicks- stay in Texas. I live out on the Wild West Coast and we don’t want any of that nonsense. You come around here espousing any of that backwards attitude and YOU will quickly find yourself in a BAD situation. Seriously, rednecks and racists, stay off the Left Coast.
November 11th, 2008 at 8:48 pm
These men need to be persecuted to the full extent of the law i.e death penalty.From what I’ve read it sounds like a hate crime and this town seems like it have big issues with that. This needs too end, black people have gone through enough, by the way these so-called racist needs to come to EAST NEW YORK or BEDFORD-STUYVESTANT BROOKLYN we wil MAKE your DAY.
November 12th, 2008 at 4:33 pm
Wow. I am really dissappointed with most of the comments left by people regarding this article. These comments show the amount of ignorance still alive in all states in our great nation. Nice job america.
November 18th, 2008 at 1:40 pm
Friend or Foe. It does not matter. The day they drug him to death and mutilated his body was the day the love of the friendship turned to hate. I cannot imagine people being so hateful and then others that are left to discern the mess (legal authorities) try to cover it up. What is wrong. A man is dead. Someone’s son, brother, uncle is dead and died a brutal death. How can anyone turn a deaf ear and eye to this type of HATRED. This is the very reason why we need groups like the Panther Party and others to bring light to such injustices. I know the town wants to say “mistake” but there is no mistake when you drag someone to their death. I know they want to say we don’t need this attention and we are trying to do better— well we do need the attention, Until the world is able to see people applying justice and fairness to the situation, then people of Paris you still have issues that need to be addressed and God is shedding light on all those nasty racial injustices that in the past, you were able to get away with. It is a new day and time. Stop while you can. You will reap what you sow. Many prayers for Brandon’s family and friends and for those involved that these people will get what they deserve — and it is definitely not 4 years in prison—- how about life because they took a life.
November 18th, 2008 at 5:59 pm
Same as it ever was. This is such a tragedy. Yes, these men are not guilty yet, and of course they are innocent until proven guilty, but the institutions of this town and the area must recognize that irrationality on account of someone’s skin color happens or it will happen again. Is not the history of east Texas, and indeed of the whole country, one of racial injustice? Why do not the powers that be just come to terms with the fact that so many crimes, so much, is done in the name of racism? This will happen repeatedly, until some morally courageous white leaders take a stand and say NO MORE. We all know the famous saying of Georges Santayana that those who do not know history are doomed to repeat it. And don’t you also know that what goes around comes around? That’s the ethos of the street, and also natural law. Please America, we are squandering the right to any sort of moral superiority. And white people, I’m talking to you. I’m a white person but why must be afraid of people with darker skin? They have to put up with our ignorance all day long….hell, it’s been happening for 400 years…..what are you so scared of white America? People are just people. One love.
May 3rd, 2009 at 9:27 am
http://www.theparisnews.com/story.lasso?ewcd=99781b6d028dc029
Investigation takes a new turn
By Bill Hankins
The Paris News
Published May 1, 2009
Investigation into the death of Brandon McClelland this week took a dramatic turn with a deposition taken from a gravel hauler who said the truck he was driving may have hit something on the road the night McClelland’s body was discovered.
The truck driver was on Farm Road 2648 shortly before McClelland’s body was found by passers-by shortly after 4 a.m. on Sept. 16, 2008.
Two other men, Shannon Finley and Ryan Crostley, have been charged with murder in McClelland’s death.
Finley’s trial is scheduled to begin Monday, July 20, in Sulphur Springs on a change of venue.
Crostley’s trial is scheduled to begin Monday, Sept. 21, also in Sulphur Springs.
Defense attorney Ben Massar said the driver of the truck told investigators he thought he had hit something, looked back and saw nothing, stopped at one point to inspect his truck then went on.
The two witnesses who found McClelland’s body told authorities they passed a gravel truck going the opposite direction shortly before finding the body.
Finley and Crostley were charged with McClelland’s death in part because of acquaintances who told police the two men talked about his death and were the last people to be with McClelland on the night he died.
Since McClelland’s death, theories have swirled about how he died, who struck him and whether it was a hate crime or not.
The New Black Panthers came to Paris pushing for convictions of Finley and Crostley and demanding the crime be categorized as a hate crime. When McClelland’s body was found, first responders first believed it was a hit-run death, but investigators soon developed a different theory when they learned McClelland had been seen with Finley and Crostley in the evening before the body was discovered. U.S. Marshals, Texas Rangers and Texas Department of Public Safety troopers handled the investigation and determined McClelland’s death was “likely intentional.” Investigators seized Finley’s truck and put it through a series of tests. “I truly believe in this case,” Massar said Thursday. “If it goes through to trial, I believe Finley will be fund not guilty. The burden of proof will be on the prosecution, but there is a significant amount of information indicating the two defendants are not guilty in McClelland’s death.” Massar said: “Speaking with the gravel truck driver, I believe it was an accident, and I don’t think it was his intent to injure or kill anybody.” Special prosecutor Toby Shook of Dallas said: “We are trying to follow up with the new information on the gravel truck driver. Testing on the truck is beginning today (Thursday), and I don’t know when the results will be in. I know he has given a deposition and in it said he though he hit something, but I have not had a chance to speak with him as yet.” Massar said his team of investigators have determined the road where McClelland’s body was found is a common route for gravel trucks, and McClelland’s partially dismembered body was consistent with having been struck by a gravel truck. Early in the investigation, Finley’s truck was tested and came up negative for DNA evidence. It was later retested with the same results. “I don’t know what they will find on the gravel truck,” Massar said. “It has rained several times since McClelland’s death seven months ago, and the truck has had maintenance done on it.” “Obviously, at this point we are getting close to finding all the particulars about this case,” he said. After McClelland’s body was found, Finley fled to Wichita, Kan., where he was arrested. Both Finley and Crostley have denied they had anything to do with McClelland’s death, but said the three had been out drinking on the night of the death and an argument ensued over who was sober enough to drive. At that point, the defendants said McClelland got out of the truck and began walking along the farm road.
October 18th, 2009 at 2:10 pm
Why even talk about it? Black folks never ever do anything about it! Sad…the history just recycles itself.
July 18th, 2010 at 8:58 pm
Both the Tribune and these posts are incorrect and gravely misleading. It is a shame that the internet gives people the ability to make comments and statements that differ from facts and the truth.