Mississippi Burning arrest

The week's news at a glance.

Philadelphia, Miss.

A 79-year-old preacher was arrested last week for the 1964 murders of three civil rights workers—a case dramatized in the film Mississippi Burning. Edgar Ray Killen, a reputed Ku Klux Klan member, said he was innocent. The victims—James Chaney, 21; Michael Schwerner, 24; and Andrew Goodman, 20—had been registering black voters. They disappeared after driving down a dirt road to investigate a fire in a black church. Their bodies were found in a ditch. No one was charged, but prosecutors reopened the investigation in 1999. “This has been a long time coming,” said Goodman’s mother, Carolyn. “But it was definitely worth the wait.”

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us