Vernon Dahmer
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Vernon Ferdinand Dahmer (born March 10, 1908, in Forrest County, Mississippi - died January 11, 1966, in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, burns suffered from an arson fire) was a civil rights leader and president of the Forrest County, Mississippi, chapter of the NAACP.
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[edit] Death
In late 1965, Dahmer set up a voter registration drive in the store he owned. On the night of January 10, 1966, Dahmer's house was fire bombed and gunshots were fired. While his wife and eight children escaped, Dahmer returned fire and sustained substantial burns. As a result of damage to his respiratory tract, he died in the hospital the next day.
[edit] Trials
Fourteen men, most with Ku Klux Klan connections, were indicted in connection with the attack on the Dahmer home. Thirteen were eventually brought to trial, eight on charges of arson and murder. Four of these were convicted and one entered a guilty plea. In addition, 11 of the defendants were also tried on federal charges of conspiracy to intimidate Dahmer because of his civil rights activities. However, former Ku Klux Klan Imperial Wizard Samuel Bowers, who was believed to have ordered the murder, was tried four times, with each trial ending in a mistrial.
Finally, in August 1998 Bowers was tried for the fifth time. This time, on August 21, he was convicted and sentenced to life in prison. Bowers died in prison of cardiopulmonary arrest at age 82, on November 5, 2006.
[edit] Legacy
Since Dahmer's death, a street in Hattiesburg has been named in his honor and a park now bears his name. On July 26, 1986, a memorial was dedicated at the park in Dahmer's honor.
