Murder trial of suspected KKK member delayed until April News
Murder trial of suspected KKK member delayed until April

[JURIST] A Mississippi judge delayed Thursday the murder trial of a reputed Ku Klux Klansman who is charged with the notorious Mississippi Burning [UMKC backgrounder] killings of 1964 due to scheduling conflicts and the desire to allow defense attorneys to review recent tips received related to the case. Edgar Ray Killen [UMKC profile], 80, is alleged to be the mastermind behind the plot to abduct and kill three civil rights workers who had been helping blacks register to vote during what was known as the Freedom Summer [US State Department information] movement. FindLaw has posted the indictment [text]. From Mississippi, the Jackson Clarion-Ledger has local coverage, including details of possible witnesses in the case. Killen was among 18 men tried for federal civil rights violations in 1967, but his case ended with a hung jury. State prosecutors declined to file charges at the time. Although seven other suspects are still alive, only Killen has been charged so far. Reuters has more.