Documentary film of civil rights murder investigation shown Oct. 24 at SU College of Law; victim’s brother discusses case

Documentary film of civil rights murder investigation shown Oct. 24 at SU College of Law; victim’s brother discusses caseOctober 23, 2007Jaclyn D. Grossojgrosso@law.syr.edu

Forty-three years after the brutal killing of his brother by members of the Ku Klux Klan, Thomas Moore will talk about the events surrounding the murder, the documentary film that was made about the case, and why his family never rested until the killer was brought to justice. Moore, along with Canadian documentary filmmaker David Ridgen, will present the film and discuss “Mississippi Cold Case” on Wednesday, Oct. 24, at 6:30 p.m. in Room 104 of E.I. White Hall. The event is sponsored by the Syracuse University College of Law.

Moore is the brother of Charles Edward Moore, who, with Henry Hezekiah Dee, was abducted, tortured and drowned by the Ku Klux Klan in Mississippi in 1964. State authorities brought and then dropped murder charges against reputed Klan member James Ford Seale for the murders of two 19-year-olds. Moore and his family never rested in their quest for justice in their brother’s killing. With documentary filmmaker Ridgen, they pressed the federal government to reopen the case and bring federal charges. In June 2007, James Ford Seale was convicted on federal charges in relation to the murders of Moore and Dee.

As part of the film viewing, Moore and Ridgen are guest speakers in the course “Unsolved Civil Rights Murder Cases” taught by College of Law professors Paula C. Johnson and Janis L. McDonald. This course focuses on efforts to investigate and reopen decades-old civil rights murder cases to bring public attention, honor and justice to the many lives that were taken

The event is free and open to the public. For further information, call (315) 443-9991.