Justice Department reopens investigation into the murder of Emmett Till

Emmett Till's gravestone.
(Image credit: Scott Olson/Getty Images)

The Justice Department is reopening the investigation into the death of Emmett Till, the 14-year-old boy whose brutal murder in 1955 added to the momentum of the Civil Rights movement, The Associated Press reports.

While the case initially closed in 2007, its reopening comes after witness Carolyn Donham admitted in 2008 that she was misleading when she testified that Till whistled at her and made sexual advances in a store in Mississippi. Donham's then-husband and his half brother were accused of murdering Till after the alleged advances — going to his home to abduct him, beat him, shoot him, mutilate his body, and finally dump it in the Tallahatchie River. The men were acquitted, but later confessed to the crime and were not retried; they are both now dead.

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
Jeva Lange

Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.