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Contempt of Court: The Turn-of-the-Century Lynching That Launched a Hundred Years of Federalism

Contempt of Court In 1906, Ed Johnson, an innocent black man, was found guilty of the brutal rape of a white woman in Chattanooga and was sentenced to die. Two black lawyers appealed to the Supreme Court for a stay of execution, and the stay was granted. Frenzied locals responded by lynching Johnson, and what ensued was a breathtaking whirlwind of groundbreaking legal action. Illustrations.

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Chattanooga (61)

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Hamilton (65)

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Tennessee (979)

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Cumberland Plateau (211)
Appalachian Mountains (1,111)