Bobby delaughter biography
Never Too Late
In June 12, , Mississippi's fast-rising NAACP leader Medgar Evers was gunned down by a white supremacist named Byron De La Beckwith. Beckwith escaped conviction twice at the hands of all-white Southern juries, and his crime went unpunished for more than three decades. Now, from Bobby DeLaughter, one of the most celebrated prosecutors in modern American law, comes the blistering account of his remarkable crusade in finally to bring the assassin of Medgar Evers to justice.
This is the fascinating, real-life story of the assistant district attorney -- played by Alec Baldwin in Rob Reiner's Ghosts of Mississippi -- who brought closure to one of the darkest chapters of the civil rights movement.
When the district attorney's office in Jackson, Mississippi, decided to reopen the case, the obstacles in its way were overwhelming: missing court records; transcripts that were more than thirty years old; original evidence that had been lost; new testimony that had to be taken regarding long-ago events; and the perception throughout the state that a reprosecution was a futile endeavor. But step by painstaking step, DeLaughter and his team overcame the obstacles and built their case.
With taut prose that reads like a great detective thriller, Never Too Late is a page-turner of the very highest order. It charts the course of a country lawyer who, concerned about the collective soul of his community and the nature of American justice in general, dared to revisit a thirty-one-year-old case -- one so incendiary that everyone warned him not to touch it -- and win a long-overdue conviction. DeLaughter's success in this trial stands today as a landmark in the annals of criminal prosecution, and this bracing first-person account brings the saga to life as never before.
Bobby DeLaughter
Major Works
Bobby B. DeLaughter, Never Too Late: A Prosecutors Story of Justice in the Medgar Evers Case, June 4,
- Inside the Labyrinth: A Bo Landry Thriller (Fiction)
- Never Too Late: A Prosecutors Story of Justice in the Medgar Evers Case ()
Biography of Bobby B. DeLaughter
By Erin DAbramo (SHS)
In Vicksburg, Mississippi, on February 28, , Bobby Burt DeLaughter was born to Barney Roy DeLaughter and Billie Newman (Burt) DeLaughter. Bobbys father Barney Roy was a commercial artist who worked for a newspaper. The family (mother, father, Bobby, and younger brother Mike) moved to Jackson when Bobby was very young, and DeLaughter grew up being part of south Jacksons white middle class (Morris 6). Like any other child his age, DeLaughter was mostly interested in sports, school, family and church (Vollers 8). He was only nine on June 12, , when Medgar Evers was killed, and, although DeLaughter was unaware of who Evers was, this crime would later change his life forever (Dorman 3).
In , DeLaughter, with his family, moved to Natchez for a year. They then returned to Jackson, where he attended Wingfield High School. DeLaughter was very active and popular at WHS, where he played varsity football and basketball, joined a high school fraternity, was sports editor of the yearbook and president of the student body. He was also elected Mr. Wingfield by his classmates (Vollers 8). When integration of the public schools began, he was a sophomore in high school (Morris 6). DeLaughter was first exposed to law when his ninth-grade civics teacher took the class to watch an actual trial at the Hinds County courthouse (Vollers 8). Thereafter DeLaughter never considered doing anything with his life other than practicing law (Vollers 8).
DeLaughter attended law school at the University of Mississippi, commonly known as Ole Miss. During the summer of , DeLaughter met Dixie Claire Townsend. They married on November 16, (
Bobby DeLaughter Biography, Life, Interesting Facts
Bobby DeLaughter was born on February 28th, . He was known for being a state prosecutor in Mississippi and a judge. Aside from this, he was also a talented author. Bobby earned high acclaim after handling the case against Byron De La Beckwith in De La Beckwith had been charged with the murder of Medgar Evers, a civil rights leader.
Early Life
Bobby DeLaughter was born on February 28th, in . His birthplace was in Vicksburg, Mississippi. Bobby was the first born son of Billie Newman DeLaughter and Barney Roy DeLaughter. He has a younger brother named Mike. His father worked as an artist for a local newspaper. When Bobby was still young, his family relocated to Jackson.
On June 12th, , Medgar Evers was murdered. Bobby DeLaughter was only nine years old when this occurred. Bobby’s motivation to pursue law came after witnessing a trial in court when he was in his ninth grade. Later, he completed his high school studies at the Wingfield High School located in Jackson. After this, he joined the University of Mississippi for his undergraduate studies. Afterward, Bobby joined the Sigma Chi social group.
Career
Bobby DeLaughter earned his first job as a legal researcher for Alvin Binder. During this time, he was still pursuing his law studies at the university. Subsequently, he graduated in Immediately upon his graduation, he was welcomed to the Mississippi Bar Association. For ten years, Bobby went on to offer his legal services primarily as civil defense and a criminal attorney.
By , he had established his law firm called Kirksey & DeLaughter. His close friend named Bill Kirksey was among the co-founders. Three years later, Bobby eyed for a position of becoming a prosecuting attorney. Luckily, in , he began serving as a prosecutor. During this period, he district attorney was Ed Peters.
In , Bobby DeLaughter was commissioned to take on the Medg
Bobby DeLaughter
American state prosecutor and judge
Robert Burt DeLaughter Sr. (born February 28, , in Vicksburg, Mississippi) is a former state prosecutor and then Hinds County Circuit Judge. He prosecuted and secured the conviction in of Byron De La Beckwith, charged with the murder of the civil rights leader Medgar Evers on June 12, Two earlier trials in Mississippi in had resulted in hung juries.
Early life and education
Bobby Burt DeLaughter was born in Vicksburg, Mississippi, on February 28, He was the first son of Barney Roy DeLaughter and Billie Newman (Burt) DeLaughter, who later had another son Mike. Bobby's father was a commercial artist for a newspaper. The family moved to Jackson when Bobby was very young, and DeLaughter grew up being part of the city's white middle class. He was nine on June 12, , when Medgar Evers was killed.
DeLaughter first saw the law in action when his ninth-grade civics teacher took the class to watch a trial at the Hinds County courthouse. That day convinced DeLaughter he wanted to practice law. He graduated from Wingfield High School in Jackson. DeLaughter attended undergraduate college and law school at the University of Mississippi. He became a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity.
Marriage and family
During the summer of , DeLaughter met Dixie Claire Townsend. They married on November 16, , and their first child, Bobby Burt, was born on December 5, They also had a daughter, Claire, and a second son, Drew, together.
Due to their opposing views and his commitment on the Evers case, which Bobby started investigating in for a new trial, his and Dixie's marriage was strained. They divorced on April 15, , and DeLaughter gained custody of their three children.
Later DeLaughter met Peggy Lloyd, a nurse, whom he married. Also divorced, she had three sons from her first marriage: Jared, Joel, and JJ.
Career
Before graduating from law school in , DeLaughter was given the opportunity