In the shade of an old oak tree, a plaque outside the Albemarle County Courthouse in downtown Charlottesville tells the story of John Henry James, a Black man who had lived in the area for about five years, sold ice cream for a living, and was accused of sexually assaulting a White woman.
“He was taken into custody, and he was removed from Albemarle County to spend the night because of a fear that there would be racial violence directed toward him," said Jim Hingeley, commonwealth’s attorney for the county. He explained that James was on his way back to Charlottesville the next day for a hearing when a mob of about 150 White men stopped the train on which he was riding.
“He was taken to a nearby locust tree, lynched, and then his body was shot, and word came to the grand jury that he was killed. Despite that, the grand jury issued the indictment.”
This week, to bring some justice to James, he took the case to court, asking to have the indictment thrown out.
“Mr. Hingeley, we are here on your motion. The court is prepared for you. You may proceed," said Judge Cheryl Higgins.
He told the court that evidence in the case was thin and contradictory.
“We have an account that Mr. James as he was being murdered proclaimed his innocence. Another account said that he confessed. The person who claimed to be assaulted said that she scratched his face and his neck, and so on. We don’t have any evidence that Mr. James showed any signs of having been attacked.”
So why did the grand jury decide to indict him? Hingeley believes they were trying to protect the mob from charges of murder.
“What the justice system was doing was putting a formal accusation against John Henry James on the record, as if to justify the extra-judicial killing of John Henry James. The lynching was accomplished by a mob of 150 people, and the 150 people took no pains whatsoever to disguise their identity, and yet the justice system had an inquiry into John Henry James' death, and it concluded that he had met his death at the hands of persons unknown."
University of Virginia Professor Jalane Schmidt studied the case and gave testimony affirming HIngeley’s belief.
“I think it was kind of a signal from the grand jury to law enforcement. ‘Hey, don’t even bother to investigate this. We’ve got this taken care of. Let’s just move on.’”
But the black community in Charlottesville did not move on. They remembered James and many were in the crowded courtroom this week, sitting quietly as Judge Higgins rendered her decision.
“The indictment was never intended to be and did not serve as an instrument of justice," she said. "Instead, it was used corruptly to sanction the racial terror — lynching of John Henry James. The motion to dismiss is granted.” (applause)
Outside the courthouse, civil rights activist Freeman Allen rejoiced.
“Justice finally has come to John Henry James, and it is a redemption in many ways for Albemarle County and for Charlottesville.”
A young member of the NAACP, Ty'leik Chambers, was inspired.
"Steps like these and initiatives like these are very crucial, because it allows us to show the next generation the past harm that has been done, but also give them necessary steps to operate toward the future."
And Albemarle County Board Member Ann Mallek thought this case had important educational value.
"This was history that I was not taught in my American history class at Albemarle High School in 1966, and I should have been taught thiis. I should have had that additional 30 years to be able to do what I could to make things better."
But for Robert Trent Vinson, director of UVA’s Carter G. Woodson Institute for African-American and African Studies, the decision was bittersweet.
“While I’m happy for this indictment being removed after 125 years, I’m still in mourning for the fact that this man, John Henry James, lost his life in the first place.”
Don Gathers, a deacon at the First Baptist Church said the ruling was just one small victory in an on-going fight.
"This just once again ripped the bandage off the lack of what should be American justice," he told RadioIQ. "Systemic racism continues to rear its ugly head, and we have to continue to fight it at every opportunity.
"The struggle continues, and we'll just keep pushing," added long-time city resident Deanna McDonald.
Others hope the judge’s ruling serves as a warning to law enforcement today. Professor Schmidt says the police chief and sheriff were present when John Henry James was lynched. Nearly a century later, in August of 2017, white supremacists marched in Charlottesville, and officers again failed to protect people of color.
“Right here, right where we’re standing, this is where white supremacists beat up members of this community and racial justice activists while the police stood idly by and watched it happen,” Schmidt recalled.
For his part, Jim Hingeley hopes the case of John Henry James prompts Americans to fix a broken system of justice.
“The objective here is to remember our history so that we can work harder to eradicate racial injustice going forward," he concludes.
