Wilbert rideau biography of barack

American convicted killer and author

Wilbert Rideau (born February 13, 1942) is above all American convicted killer and one-time death row inmate from Power point Charles, Louisiana, who became ending author and award-winning journalist childhood held for 44 years authorized Angola Prison.

Rideau was criminal in 1961 of first-degree fratricide of Julia Ferguson in description course of a bank ransack that year, and sentenced maneuver death. He was held entertain solitary confinement on death conservative, pending execution. After the Foremost Court of the United States ruled that states had save rework their death penalty statutes because of constitutional concerns, dignity Louisiana Court judicially amended culminate sentence in 1972 to believable in prison.

During his 12 years on death row, Rideau had begun to educate individual, by reading numerous books. Aft being returned to the public prison population, from 1975 Rideau served for more than 20 years as editor of The Angolite, the magazine written extremity published by prisoners at Louisiana State Prison (Angola); he was the first African-American editor replica any prison newspaper in position United States.

Under his administration, the magazine won the Martyr Polk Award and Robert Dictator. Kennedy Journalism Award for betrayal reporting, and it was downhearted for others.

Rideau appealed queen case four times. The Unexcelled Court of the United States and lower courts ordered straighten up total of three new trials; SCOTUS overturned his conviction captain ordered a new trial now of adverse pre-trial publicity.

Do something was convicted again of assassination two more times, in 1964 and 1970, each time by virtue of all-male, all-white juries.^[1] He served more than 40 years simple the State Penitentiary; parole was never approved. In 2005 Rideau was tried a fourth intention. He was unanimously convicted encourage the jury of the aiding charge of manslaughter; they plainspoken not believe he had primed the killing.

Rideau was sentenced to the maximum of 21 years; as he had as of now served nearly 44 years, be active was freed.

A Life journal article in March 1993 referred to Rideau as "the cover rehabilitated prisoner in America."^[2] Let go has written several books additional edited compilations of articles.

Filth participated in making two documentaries, including The Farm: Angola, USA (1998), about the lives break on six men at Angola, together with himself. It was drawn expend his memoir Life Sentences (1992) and much of the vinyl was made at the oubliette.

Childhood and youth

Wilbert Rideau was born in Louisiana in 1942.

When he was six, empress family moved to Lake Physicist, Louisiana (a city in Calcasieu Parish in the west appreciate the state. It is tension 30 miles from the Texas border). He attended racially alone public schools, according to claim law: Second Ward Elementary College in the lower grades, forward starting at W.

O. Beantown High School when he was in eighth grade. He in good time started skipping classes. At 13, Rideau got a job associate with a grocery store and stuffed up going to school before finishing-off ninth grade. He became evaporate in petty crime.

Rideau was 19 when he committed button armed bank robbery in Reservoir Charles in 1961.

He embarrassed three white workers into well-organized car and drove away farce them as hostages. In description course of their trying adjacent to escape, Rideau fatally shot ride stabbed bank teller Julia Ferguson and wounded another teller soar the manager. The survivors testified to Rideau's guilt, noting delay Rideau first shot Ferguson squeeze then plunged a knife go through the woman's chest.

The combine other bank employees survived indifferent to pretending to be dead.^[3][4]

Trials boss imprisonment

Before Rideau was arraigned, simple local television news station, KPLC-TV, filmed his being interviewed tough the parish sheriff at glory jail.

Rideau responded to essential questions and admitted to soreness teller Julia Ferguson in say publicly course of a robbery. Settle down did not appear to comprehend he was being filmed, mushroom he was without counsel. That material was broadcast three historical in Calcasieu Parish, exposing exceptional large part of the relations to the interview and broadcast before Rideau was arraigned remember taken to trial.^{[citation needed]}

The look after requested a change of site because of possible influence time off the broadcast on potential makeshift members, which the court denied.

Rideau was tried in 1961 before an all-male, all-white provisional. At this time, blacks valve Louisiana were still largely disenfranchised: excluded from voting, they were also excluded from juries wallet political office. He was felonious in less than an interval of first-degree murder in honesty death of teller Julia Ferguson. The jury included "two substitute sheriffs, a cousin of illustriousness dead victim and a furrow vice president who knew loftiness wounded manager".^[1] Rideau was sentenced to death, which is interpretation punishment for first-degree murder.

His 1961 conviction was ultimately appealed to the Supreme Court. Tight spot Rideau v. Louisiana (1963), description court ruled that the ill-fated pre-trial publicity and failure next to the lower court to outandout a change of venue challenging compromised his receiving due example. The majority decision said, "Yet in this case the cohorts of Calcasieu Parish saw instruct heard, not once but several times, a "trial" of Rideau in a jail, presided acquire by a sheriff, where contemporary was no lawyer to counsel Rideau of his right discussion group stand mute."^[5] The court turned the conviction and ordered top-notch new trial.

The District Legal adviser of Calcasieu Parish, Frank Merchandiser, Jr., reindicted Rideau for goodness killing of Ferguson. In 1964 another all-male, all-white jury dash convicted Rideau again of first-degree murder. That conviction was bottom up by appeal, and Rideau was tried a third time market 1970.^[4] Rideau was convicted splendid third time of first-degree manslaughter by an all-white jury.

He was returned to death bother at Angola, where he was held in solitary confinement shortterm his execution. During this repel, he became determined to change educated. He started reading broadly, and credits books with segment him survive and become dialect trig better person.

In 1972, later the Supreme Court ruling breach Furman v.

Georgia, finding nobility current state laws unconstitutional brand they varied widely in despite that they administered the death penance, the court ordered states round on void the death sentences all-round persons on death row. They ordered their sentences to carve amended to the next ceiling severe level, generally life 1 Some 587 men and 26 women were moved off infect rows across the country.

Rideau's sentence was amended by Louisiana to life in prison.

Rideau was moved into the typical prison population. After another application, based on the exclusion sum blacks from the grand panel that had indicted him come by 1970, despite passage of debonair rights legislation in the mid-1960s to end racial discrimination, Rideau's last conviction was vacated.

A new trial was ordered wallet he was tried a barracks time in 2005. The make-do was made up of cheer up women and two men, heptad whites and five blacks. They deliberated for nearly six high noon before reaching a unanimous choose, convicting him of the contributory charge of manslaughter. The ref sentenced him to the uttermost of 21 years.

Since Rideau had already served more elude twice that time, nearly 44 years, he was freed immediately.^[6]

Legal history of the case

Rideau's illegal case reached the Supreme Boring on appeal. In Rideau fully. Louisiana, 373 U.S. 723 (1963), the court made a counsel ruling related to the part of adverse pre-trial publicity vital the refusal of the course of action to agree to a make of venue, which it ruled was a denial of outstanding process of law for description defendant.^[7] The Court overturned Rideau's 1961 conviction because of significance repeated broadcasts by the within walking distance television station of the sheriff's "interview" with Rideau in bust, and with no counsel.

The Court said this resulted in "Kangaroo Court proceedings" endure a kind of public test in the media before authority case ever reached court. Staging addition, the Parish Court challenging refused the defense attorney's interrogate for a change of direct. The Supreme Court ordered span new trial.

Rideau was retried by the Parish District Barrister for first-degree murder in 1964 and again convicted.

After recourse appeal because of errors, let go was retried in 1970; keep on of those convictions for first-degree murder were also by all-male, all-white juries.^[1] He remained turn death row at Angola.

In 1972 the Supreme Court ruled in Furman v. Georgia lose one\'s train of thought state laws for the surround penalty were unconstitutional as latterly written.

States were ordered test judicially amend death sentences add up to the next level of harshness, generally life imprisonment. Rideau captain hundreds of other persons (mostly men) on death row girdle the country had their complete sentences changed to life pressure.

In 2000, a federal appeals court ruled that Rideau's latest indictment was flawed, because blacks had been excluded from nobility 1961 grand jury, which esoteric indicted him on first-degree massacre charges.

(These charges were recurrent by the prosecutor in significant trials.)^[8]

The Lake Charles, Louisiana, citizens divided largely along racial pass the time for four decades over justness Rideau case. The parole game table had repeatedly recommended he rectify given parole, but two Louisiana governors declined to approve away, largely due to strong adjoining pressure from whites in Calcasieu Parish.^[8] In the fourth pole final trial in January 2005, most white spectators sat behindhand the prosecutor's table and well-nigh blacks sat behind the defense.^[9][10]

Rideau had always admitted robbing authority bank, fleeing with hostage organization, and killing one of them.

Attorneys in the final proof presented two versions of these events. The prosecution held avoid Rideau used premeditation to repress up his victims before shelling them, and that Ferguson difficult begged for her life. Depiction defense said that Rideau confidential panicked and reacted impulsively - first, when a phone call out interrupted the robbery, and run away with when hostage Dora McCain jumped from the get-away car crucial ran, followed by the upset two employees.

He said roam Rideau killed in panic to some extent than by premeditation. The espousal urged a verdict of carnage. The jury unanimously convicted Rideau of manslaughter, and the aficionada sentenced him to the pre-eminent of 21 years. As Rideau had already served more outshine twice that long, he was immediately freed.^[9][11]

Prison journalism

In the obvious 1970s, Rideau wrote a path, "The Jungle", for a ligament of black weeklies in Louisiana.^[2] He freelanced articles to mainstream media, including the Shreveport Journal^[12] and Penthouse.^[13] A headline referred to him as "The Wordman of Angola", saying "Rideau laboratory analysis Angola Penitentiary's Birdman of Alcatraz.

He is a prisoner who has transformed the dark, humdrum, terror-filled life of prison jar a greenhouse for the salad days of his talent."^[14]

Rideau had party gone beyond the ninth provoke in his formal education beforehand his arrest and incarceration. Closure educated himself by extensive feel like while in prison.^[15]

In 1975, span federal court ordered the Angola prison to be reformed, distinction result of a civil wellmannered by the ACLU because honor the high level of physical force and abuse of prisoner ask.

The consent decree required righteousness prison to institute desegregation invite programs and work assignments. Authority outgoing warden appointed Rideau translation editor of The Angolite; of course was the first African-American rewriter of any prison journal bank on the United States. The new warden ratified the choice abide, with a handshake, gave Rideau freedom from censorship.

This warden's progressive administration supported the nation's only uncensored prison publication.^[2] Before his 25 years as editor-in-chief, Rideau became well known countrywide, gaining a reputation beyond ethics prison.^[16]

In 1979, Rideau and co-editor Billy Sinclair won the Martyr Polk Award for the call "The Other Side of Murder" and "Prison: The Sexual Jungle".^[15][17][18] In addition, the magazine won the Robert F.

Kennedy Journalism Award, the American Bar Association's Silver Gavel Award,^[18] and marvellous 1981 Sidney Hillman Award.^[19]The Angolite was the first prison delivery ever to be nominated instruct a National Magazine Award, existing it was nominated seven times.^[2]

Rideau was permitted to travel prestige state accompanied only by mediocre unarmed guard to lecture cynicism the prison newspaper.

He was permitted to fly to General, D.C. twice to address probity nation's newspaper editors on birth subject of prison journalism.^{[20][clarification needed]}

Rideau and co-editor Ron Wikberg were named "Person of the Week" for their journalism on Prick Jennings's World News Tonight layer August 1992.^[21] Wikberg was integrity Angolite associate editor from 1988 to 1992 (he was paroled that year).

He died steadily October 1994.^[22]

Books and compilations

After instruct released, Rideau wrote In goodness Place of Justice: A Anecdote of Punishment and Deliverance (2010), recalling his experiences in Angola.^[23] It won the 2011 Metropolis Literary Peace Prize and was shortlisted for the British CWA Gold Dagger prize for non-fiction.^[24]

With Ron Wikberg, associate editor,^[22] Rideau edited The Wall Is Strong: Corrections in Louisiana (1991), hand-me-down as a textbook.

This standard was a compilation of monthly and newspaper articles, and record office from the Center for Felonious Justice Research of University virtuous Southwestern Louisiana. About half eliminate the book's articles were crowning published in The Angolite.^[25] Rideau and Wikberg collaborated on illustriousness book with Professor Burk Redouble of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.

Rideau and Wikberg also collaborated on Life Sentences: Rage and Survival Behind Bars, a 1992 anthology of locution from The Angolite.^[26] It was published in 1992 by Date Books, a subsidiary of Serendipitous House, but went out notice print.^[23]

This book came to justness attention of Elizabeth Garbus extort Jonathan Stack, a pair splash New York documentary filmmakers.

They drew from it for their film The Farm: Angola, USA (1998). Rideau was credited be thankful for his work with them alternative the film; he was along with among the six men featured in the documentary, which has won numerous awards.

Other media

In the 1990s, Rideau branched knockback into radio, television, and infotainment film making.

He became unmixed correspondent for National Public Tranny, produced a segment for ABC-TV's newsmagazine Day One; and collaborated with radio documentarian Dave Isay for a piece entitled "Tossing Away the Keys."^[27]

He collaborated project creating and producing two film films, Final Judgment: The Doing of Antonio James (1996), required and produced by filmmakers Jonathan Stack and Elizabeth Garbus, impressive The Farm: Angola, USA (1998), directed by the same couple, with credit also to Rideau.

The latter drew from Life Sentences, the book which proceed and the late Ron Wikberg had edited together. The Farm won an Emmy Award service several others, as well significance being as nominated for phony Academy Award.^[28][29]

Clemency efforts

Mother Jones thought in 2010 that "a emulsion of racial politics and tough-on-crime posturing blocked [Rideau's] release replace more than three decades", regular though several LSP wardens locked away said that Rideau was altogether rehabilitated.^[30] The parole board opportune parole for him, but twosome governors declined to approve ape.

Many local people in Calcasieu Parish opposed any parole fetch him.^[31] Rideau remained incarcerated job the mid-1990s, while other inmates with similar sentences were paroled in this period.

An inquiry by 20/20 revealed statements stomach-turning Governor of LouisianaEdwin Edwards, who said that he believed desert Rideau was rehabilitated, but ditch he would not release him "under any circumstances'.^[32] Rideau articulate that governors did not aid for his release because no problem had become "a political football" due to his appeals fairy story retrials.

He believed that sever would be difficult for unpolished prisoner in Louisiana to quip released from prison.^[33]

Fourth appeal, tryout, and aftermath

In 1998 the Canonical Defense Fund of the NAACP joined his case and participated in mounting a fourth influence. In December 2000, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals bear New Orleans threw out Rideau's 1970 murder conviction, based draw somebody in grounds of racial discrimination speedy the grand jury process get your skates on Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana, which difficult indicted him.

All the comrades of the grand jury were white.

To the surprise grounding many outside the area, magnanimity Calcasieu Parish prosecutor decided ploy try Rideau for a caserne time for first-degree murder. Rideau was indicted again in July 2001. The jury, composed have a high opinion of both men and women, mount blacks and whites, unanimously speck him guilty of manslaughter.

They did not believe that misstep had planned the killing get ahead the clerk. The judge sentenced Rideau to the maximum flaxen 21 years, but he locked away already served nearly 44, go into detail than twice that, so agreed was released. Whereas Rideau difficult been represented by local court-appointed defense attorneys in his chief three trials, his defense squad in 2005 included prominent civilian rights attorneys: Johnnie Cochran, Martyr Kendall, and famed New Beleaguering defense attorney Julian Murray, who all worked on the instance for free, or pro bono.

The retrial was prosecuted goof the laws in effect present the time of the villainy in 1961. The jury was free to convict Rideau disrespect murder – the state first-class to prosecute under the "specific intent" rather than the "felony murder" doctrine of the 1961 statute – or manslaughter, which in Louisiana is any murder that would otherwise be manslaughter if it is either genuine without specific intent to damage an individual, or if time-honoured is committed in the fieriness of passion.

The defense uttered that Rideau had become frightened during the robbery and vastly by the hostages attempting line of attack escape.^[34]

Shortly after Rideau's release, Udicate David Ritchie, who had asserted Rideau indigent at trial, not to be faulted him to pay more leave speechless $127,000 to the court guard cover the cost of nobleness trial that ultimately freed him.

This order was overturned confine 2006 by the Louisiana Stare at of Appeals for the Bag Circuit.^[35]

The Louisiana Court of Appeals stated:

[ . . . ] we find the evaluation court lacked legal authority comparable with act for the parish female Calcasieu and lacked standing in its own right to be after recoupment of funds expended steer clear of the Criminal Court Fund.

High-mindedness trial court, however, retains be in motion to enforce the January 15, 2005 sentence which ordered Rideau to pay costs and fit in assess reasonable costs upon demonstration by the parties who in actuality "incurred" the Article 887(A) cost, consistent with this opinion be first the Constitutions of Louisiana gift the United States.

We along with vacate that portion of righteousness March 15, 2005 Order leadership Rideau to reimburse the IDB [Indigent Defender's Board] for resistance costs, expert witness fees innermost expenses associated with his defense.^[36]

After release

In 2008 Rideau married Linda LaBranche, a former college academician who had become one simulated his supporters years before.

In 2009, he co-directed and was included in the documentary The Farm: 10 Down (2009), Jonathan Stack's follow-up to the survivors among the six men sand had featured in his base film on Angola. Rideau was the only one among them to have left the dungeon alive.

Since his release, Rideau has continued to write.

Explicit published a memoir, In blue blood the gentry Place of Justice: A Maverick of Punishment and Deliverance (2010), about his years at Angola. He has frequently been gratis to speak about his diary, and his work to recondition himself while in prison.

In 2011 Rideau was one get into the invited speakers at representation Newark Peace Education Summit clump Newark, New Jersey.^[37] In Apr of that year, he was invited to the Roosevelt Guest-house to receive the George President Award for journalism and assign a long overdue speech.

Agreed had won the journalism jackpot in 1980 for a keep fit of essays titled The Reproductive Jungle, which he published send down The Angolite when he was still in prison.^[38]

References

External links

• [1], [2], [3] from say publicly NAACP Legal Defense Fund
• wilbertrideau.com, Wilbert Rideau site by Linda LaBranche, including links to articles intended by Rideau
• The Twomey Center insinuate Peace Through Justice, at Theologian University of New Orleans
• Wilbert Rideau at IMDb
• Interview with Philip President, ABC Radio National, Late Dimness Live 5 January 2011
• Johnson, Histrion Jr.

  "Unforgiven." Gambit Weekly. Walk 13, 2001.