The Case of Robert Lee Goldsby
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This Page contains information relating to the Robert
Lee Goldsby Case, the cause of his arrest,
indictment, conviction, and death for the murder of Mrs. Bryant Nelms on September 4, 1954, in
Mr. & Mrs. Nelms were
married April 21, 1944 by Rev. John A. Wade.
Officers Nab Five Negroes in Slaying of Woman at Vaiden
Clarion
Ledger,
Less than two hours after they shot and killed a white woman on the outskirts of Vaiden, and critically wounded her husband, a carload of St. Louis Negroes were apprehended south of Lexington still fleeing from the officers. Mrs. Bryant Nelms, 33,
was shot dead when she came to the rescue of her husband, Bryant Nelms, 34, who had been critically wounded moments
before. Arrested four and a half miles south of Lexington
between 9:30 and 10 a.m. Saturday were Robert Lee Goldsby,
28, said to be the gunman; his mother, Willie Lee Turner; his wife, Laura Mae
Goldsby; Robert Gallion;
and Rosie Lee Turner. Also in the car was Goldsby’s
three-year-old child, Patricia Ann. All are from A spokesman for the The Negroes, traveling south in a 1951 Dodge,
drove speedily and noisily up to the Nelms’ café
and dairy bar on the outskirts of Vaiden. Nelms asked them
to move on, and they refused. Nelms went inside and returned with his gun. But the Negroes opened fire first and wounded
him. He fired one round into the car
as he dropped to the ground. Mrs. Nelms rushed outside, and one of the bullets fired from
the car struck and killed her. The Negroes, traveled south and continued
southward. Witnesses to the incident
notified officers, providing a good description of the automobile, and road
blocks were thrown up for a wide area. A short time afterward the car was recognized near
Lexington where the Negroes stopped for gas. Sheriff Richard Byrd and Deputy Sheriff Farmer gave chase southward on Highway 51, and had to fire on the car before they could bring it to a stop. The Negroes pulled off the highway and handed over
an empty .32 revolver. The Holmes County officers and Deputies Lewis
McDougal and Herman Michie of Carroll County
brought the Negroes to Jackson for questioning and safekeeping. Feeling was said to be running very high in
the Vaiden area where the Nelms
had lived all of their lives and had many friends. One version of the shooting was that the Negroes drove up to Nelms’ place and demanded whisky. He was said to have told them he didn’t sell it whereupon the Negroes dumped several empty bottles out as “souvenirs.” He was said to have called for his gun, in this version, and as Mrs. Nelms handed it to him from the door of the dairy bar, the Negro in the car shot her. One bullet went into her heart, bringing instant
death. Nelms
was wounded about the head and back, and another bullet went into his hip,
coming out through the stomach. He is
in critical condition in a Grenada hospital. Mrs. Nelms had two
children, Billy, age 8, and Bobby, age 6; her parents, Mr. And Mrs. Andy McCorkle,
all of Vaiden, two sisters and four brothers. Funeral arrangements are incomplete. Lee Funeral Home of Winona will have charge
of the arrangements. (Inserted Text Caption in
the body of the story reads as follows): Robert Lee Goldsby, St. Louis, signed a confession at State Highway Patrol Headquarters late Saturday afternoon to the effect that he shot and killed Mrs. Bryant Nelms and wounded her husband. Charges had not been filed as questioning was being continued. Woman Killed by Negro Motorist
Delta
Democrat Times, Greenville, MS.
September 5, 1954 P.2. Bulletin – Lexington (UP) – Robert Goldsby, 28, who was en route to the Gulf Coast on vacation surrendered to Holmes County Sheriff Richard A. Byrd, after a wild chase on State Highway 17. He was accused of killing a Carroll County white woman at a drive in café near Vaiden. Vaiden, Miss. (UP) – A Carroll
County white woman was shot and killed today and her husband critically
wounded by a Negro motorist at the café they operated two miles north of
here. Sheriff H.E. Ashmore
identified the victims as B.S. Nelms, about 40, and
his wife, about 35. Authorities threw
up roadblocks for a car bearing a Missouri tag and carrying two women and one
man, all Negroes. The State Highway Patrol reported at 10:15 a.m.
that the Negroes were captured near Lexington, about 25 miles southwest of
here. They were not identified
immediately. Ashmore quoted witnesses as
saying the man swerved into the café parking space about 8 a.m., “and almost
turned the car over.” Nelms went to investigate, Ashmore
said, found the motorists were drinking and ordered them to leave. When they refused, Ashmore
said, Nelms called to Mrs. Nelms
to bring him his gun. The driver then
shot Nelms in the mouth and hip and turned the gun
on Mrs. Nelms, killing her instantly, the sheriff
said. Ashmore said there were two
witnesses to the shooting. Nelms was rushed to a hospital
in critical condition. Vaiden is on Highway 51 about
nine miles south of Winona. Slayer to Face Murder Charge
Companions May Also Be Accused
Clarion
Ledger, Jackson, MS. September 6,
1954. P.1. Vaiden – Robert Lee Goldsby, 28, St. Louis Negro, was charged with murder in
the death of Mrs. Bryant Nelms, 33, of Vaiden, Deputy Sheriff Lewis McDougal said Sunday
afternoon. The other four Negroes riding in the car with Goldsby, Willie Lee Turner, Laura Mae Goldsby,
Rosie Lee Turner, and Robert Gallion, all of St.
Louis, will probably be charged as accessories, the deputy sheriff said. All were taken to Jackson and questioned several
hours at the State Highway Patrol headquarters, then lodged in the Hinds
County Jail for safekeeping. The Negroes will likely remain in Jackson,
McDougal said, until the Carroll County Grand Jury convenes in November. Mrs. Nelms was shot and killed and her husband critically wounded at their dairy-bar on the outskirts of Vaiden Saturday morning at 8 o’clock by Goldsby. McDougal said that the Negroes sailed into the
dairy-bar at high speed and, in a cloud of dust, almost turned over. Nelms ordered
them to move on and an argument resulted.
The shooting followed and the Negroes sped away in the 1951 Dodge. They were recognized a short time later near Lexington, and were taken on to Jackson. Funeral services for Mrs. Nelms
were held Sunday afternoon from the Nelms, who was rushed to the
Grenada Hospital, was reported resting fairly well but still in a critical
condition. Clarion
Ledger, Jackson, MS. September 7,
1954. P.1. (Picture of Goldsby on the bottom of the page with the following caption): “Robert Lee Goldsby is shown examining the weapon with which he has admitted shooting Mr. & Mrs. Bryant Nelms at Vaiden Saturday. Mrs. Nelms died
immediately. (Photo by Harold Bridges).” Preliminary Hearing Set for
5 Negroes Charged in Killing of Vaiden Matron Clarion
Ledger, Jackson, MS. September 7,
1954. P.1. Vaiden, Miss., September 6 – A preliminary hearing probably will be held within a few days for five St. Louis Negroes charged in the killing of a café operator’s wife, Dist. Atty. John E. Aldridge said today. Robert Lee Goldsby, 28,
was charged with murdering Mrs. Bryant Nelms at Vaiden Saturday, the district attorney said from
Kosciusko, where he was in court. Nelms remained critically
wounded in a Grenada hospital. Goldsby’s four companions were
charged with being “accessories after the fact” – aiding and assisting Goldsby to escape.
The charge draws a lighter sentence than the murder charge. Had they been charged as “accessories before the
fact,” they would have faced the same penalty as for murder – a maximum of
death. Mrs. Nelms was killed as
she dashed out of the small café to aid her husband after he was shot during
an argument with the carload of Negroes. Officers said Goldsby
admitted firing the shots. All five are being held in the Hinds County Jail
in Jackson until the preliminary hearing is held. They were captured in Lexington about an hour after
they roared away from the slaying scene.
The highway patrol threw up roadblocks in the area. Goldsby’s companions were
identified as Willie Reed Turner, Laura Mae Goldsby,
Rosie Lee Moore, and Robert Gillion. Charge of Murder is Filed Against Negro in SlayingDaily
Sentinel-Star, Grenada, MS.
September 7, 1954. P.1. Vaiden, Miss. – AP – A first degree murder charge has been filed against Robert Lee Goldsby, 28 year old St. Louis Negro, in the Saturday morning slaying of a Carroll County white woman, Sheriff H.E. Ashmore said today. Goldsby was also charged with
assault in the wounding of her husband.
Ashmore said Goldsby
admitted shooting down the couple, Mr. And Mrs. B.C. Nelms,
at their drive-in café near here when Nelms ordered
them to leave and called for his shotgun. Charges of accessory after the fact and aiding a
felon to escape were filed against four passengers in Goldsby’s
car – Robert Gillion, 22; Laura Mae Goldsby, 26, Goldsby’s wife;
Willie Turner, 43; and Rosa Lee Moore, 40, all of St. Louis. Ashmore said Goldsby
admitted the shooting after the group was captured near Lexington Saturday. Ashmore quoted witnesses as
saying the man swerved into the café parking space about 8 a.m., “and almost
turned the car over.” Nelms went to investigate, Ashmore
said, found the motorists were drinking and ordered them to leave. When they refused, Ashmore
said, Nelms called to Mrs. Nelms
to bring him his gun. The driver then
shot Nelms in the mouth and hip, turned the gun on
Mrs. Nelms, killing her instantly, the sheriff
said. Vaiden is on Highway 51, about
nine miles south of Winona. Mr. Nelms, a patient at
Grenada Hospital, was reported getting along satisfactory today. Mrs. Nelms, the former Mozelle McCorkle, a lifelong resident of Carroll County
and a member of the Baptist Church, is survived by her husband, two sons,
William Bryant Nelms and Robert Wade Nelms; her parents, Mr. And Mrs. W.A. McCorkle of Vaiden; two sisters, Mrs. Charlie Stewart of Vaiden and Mrs. Spencer Mullen of Grenada; four brothers,
W.E. McCorkle of Hollandale and Charles McCorkle, Fred McCorkle, and William
“Pete” McCorkle, all of Vaiden, and her
grandparents, Mr. And Mrs. Charlie McCorkle of Vaiden. Funeral services were held for Mrs. Nelms Sunday at the Vaiden
Baptist Church. Ironically, in
January, 1955, because of Mississippi's conversion from the electric
chair to the gas chamber, the Clarion Ledger reported: "Executioner to Get
Hike in Pay Under New Bill" Five Negroes Are Charged
In Shooting Captured After Fleeing Vaiden And Jailed Winona Times
– September 10, 1954 Five St. Louis Negroes involved in the fatal
shooting Saturday of Mrs. Moselle McCorkle Nelms and the wounding of her husband, Bryant Nelms, at their dairy bar at Vaiden
are being held for preliminary hearing at the Hinds County jail in Jackson,
after having fled and being captured later the same day 30 miles distant in
Holmes County. According to reports, Robert Lee Goldsby, 28, admitted the shooting and is charged with
first degree murder of Mrs. Nelms and with assault
with intent to kill in the case of Mr. Nelms, who
is in critical condition in a Grenada hospital. Charges of accessories after the fact and aiding a
felon to escape are reported to have been lodged against the other four
Negroes: Robert Galion, 22; Laura Mae Goldsby, 26,
Robert Goldsby’s wife; Willie Turner, 43; and Rosa
Lee Moore, 40. The shooting occurred Saturday when the carload of
Negroes [drove] recklessly into the parking lot of his [(Nelms)]
dairy bar and Mr. Nelms ordered them to leave. Goldsby is
charged with firing four shots from a pistol at Mr. And Mrs. Nelms. Funeral services for Mrs. Nelms
were held Sunday at the Vaiden Baptist Church, with
Lee Funeral Home in charge of arrangements. She leaves her husband, Bryant S. Nelms; two sons, William Bryant Nelms,
9 and Robert Wade Nelms, 7; her parents, Mr. And
Mrs. W.A. McCorkle of Vaiden; two sisters; Mrs.
Charlie Stewart of Vaiden and Mrs. Spencer Mullen
of Grenada; four brothers, W.E. McCorkle of Hollandale, Charles McCorkle,
Fred McCorkle and Andrew Clyde McCorkle, all of Vaiden,
and her grandparents, Mr. And Mrs. Charles McCorkle of Vaiden. Mrs. W.B. Nelms is Victim
[of] Brutal Slaying
at Vaiden Saturday
Conservative,
Carrollton, MS. September 10,
1954 P.1. Five Negroes, all from Saint Louis, Mo., are being held in the Hinds
County Jail at Jackson in connection with the fatal shooting of Mrs. Moselle McCorkle Nelms, 30, and
the serious wounding of her husband, Bryant Nelms,
at the dairy bar operated by Mr. And Mrs. Nelms one
mile north of Vaiden on Highway 51. Charges range from first degree murder to
aiding a felon to escape have been placed against the Negroes.
The shooting occurred Saturday morning when the Negroes are reported
to have driven recklessly into the parking area at the dairy bar and were
ordered to leave by Mr. Nelms. An altercation followed resulting in the
fatal shooting of Mrs. Nelms and the wounding of
Mr. Nelms.
The Negroes then drove by back roads to Lexington where they were
captured by Holmes County officers about two hours after the affray.
Mrs. Bryant Nelms
Obituary Conservative,
Carrollton, MS. September 10,
1954 P.1. Funeral Services were held at the Vaiden Baptist Church at 4:00 o’clock Sunday afternoon. . .for Mrs. Moselle McCorkle Nelms, 30, whose death occurred Saturday, September 4. The services were conducted by the Rev. Joe Cooper, pastor. Mrs. Nelms was a
lifelong resident of Carroll County and was a young woman of lovable
Christian character and a helpful friend and neighbor. Survivors are her husband, Bryant Nelms; two sons, William Bryant and Robert Wade Nelms; her parents, Mr. And Mrs. W.A. McCorkle of Vaiden; two sisters, Mrs. Charlie Stewart of Vaiden and Mrs. Spencer Mullen of Grenada; four brothers,
W.E. McCorkle of Hollandale, and Fred, Charles, and William McCorkle of Vaiden; and her grandparents, Mr. And Mrs. Charlie
McCorkle of Vaiden. Funeral
Announcement
Winona Times,
September 10, 1954, P. 6 Mrs. Moselle McCorkle NelmsVaiden was saddened over the tragic death of Mrs. Moselle McCorkle Nelms, who was instantly killed Saturday morning, Sept. 4, in front of her dairy bar, 2 miles north of Vaiden. Funeral services were held Sunday, Sept. 5, at 4
p.m., at the Vaiden Baptist Church. Pallbearers were Weldon Baskin, Bernard Sanders,
Joe Stanton, Clarence Pierce, W.G. Barker, Billy Eubanks, Tom Dulin, and Leo Tindall. Honorary Pallbearers were all her friends.
Goldsby's First Trial
Negro Goes on Trial for Roadside Deaths
Delta
Democrat Times, Greenville, MS.
November 17, 1954 P.2. Vaiden, Miss. (UP) – Robert Goldsby, St. Louis Negro charged with wounding a Carroll County storekeeper and killing his wife, went on trial today for murder. Goldsby was accused of shooting
Mrs. Richard Nelms last Sept. 3 when he stopped at
their store to buy gasoline and food. Officers said Nelms threatened to use a shotgun during an argument with Goldsby and the Negro pulled a pistol and started firing, wounding Nelms and killing Mrs. Nelms. Five passengers in Goldsby’s car were held as material witnesses. Storekeeper and Negro Exchanged Shots in Vaiden
Delta
Democrat Times, Greenville, MS.
November 19, 1954 P.1. Vaiden, Miss. (UP) – Storekeeper Richard Nelms and a St. Louis Negro tourist exchanged pistol shots during an argument in which Nelms’ wife was killed, a New Orleans steelworker testified. Dan Willis told a Circuit Court Jury yesterday
that the argument between Nelms and Robert Goldsby, accused of murdering the storekeeper’s
29-year-old wife, began when Goldsby braked to a
stop in front of Nelms’ café Sept. 4. Willis said Nelms asked Goldsby “what he meant by coming in like that” and
ordered Goldsby to “leave and I mean right now.” The witness said Nelms
walked away from the car, then returned with a hammer in his hand. Willis said three shots were fired and Nelms fell, striking the side of Goldsby’s
car. Mrs. Nelms ran to her
husband, Willis said, and was shot.
She died instantly. Willis testified that Nelms
then pulled a pistol from his pocket and fired three or four times at the
fleeing tourist’s car. Willis, who said he was working on an automobile
gas gauge when the shooting occurred, told defense attorneys he had been
staying at Nelms’ home since coming to Vaiden to testify. Goldsby, 28, was arrested by
officers a short distance from the café when he tried to run a
roadblock. Four other persons in the
car were held as material witnesses. A
fifth, Robert Gillion, was indicated as an
accessory before the fact. Goldsby Sentenced to Die Dec. 24 in Vaiden
Shooting
Clarion Ledger -- November 20, 1954 -- P.
1
Vaiden, Miss., Nov. 19 -- AP --
Robert Goldsby was sentenced today to die in
Mississippi's portable electric chair for the murder of a Vaiden
white woman Sept. 4.
A Circuit Court jury took less than 15 minutes to convict
the 28-year-old defendant from St. Louis, a native of Mississippi. Circuit
Judge Henry Lee Rodgers sentenced Goldsby to die in
the electric chair on Dec. 24. The jury refused to recommend mercy. That made the death
sentence mandatory. The conviction probably will be appealed to the State
Supreme Court. Goldsby,
in a choked voice, replied "Nawsuh," when
asked if he had anything to say before sentencing. He had appeared calm throughout
the testimony. Two highway patrolmen whisked him out of the room after Judge
Rodgers told Goldsby he must die the day before
Christmas for slaying Mrs. Moselle Nelms, wife of a Vaiden dairy
bar operator. Her husband, Bryant Nelms, was
wounded seriously in the same spatter of gunfire. Goldsby
is the second man scheduled to die Dec. 24 in the state's only electric
chair. Ross Hawkins was sentenced to die the same day for slaying his wife. Goldsby
testified today that he never saw Mrs. Nelms during
the few seconds it took him to fire four shots that wounded Nelms and killed Mrs. Nelms. Witnesses to the shooting testified that Goldsby, and five other Negroes, sped up to the dairy bar
in their car. An argument started and Nelms ordered
them to leave. They refused and Nelms went inside
for a gun. When he walked out, Goldsby
opened fire with a pistol. Nelms
was hit twice. A third bullet went astray. Mrs. Nelms dashed out to aid her
husband. The fourth bullet killed her. Goldsby
claimed he was firing at Nelms in self-defense. Nelms struck him "up the side of the head" with
a rubber mallet, Goldsby claimed. But a state witness, Dan Willis, testified yesterday that Nelms struck at Goldsby after
the Negro shot him. And a defense witness, Rosalie Moore who was with Goldsby, said that Nelms struck
at Goldsby but missed and hit the car door. Goldsby
testified: "I would say that I never saw Mrs. Nelms running to the car." He denied hearing her scream, "quit shooting my
husband." The defendant readily admitted shooting Nelms "to protect myself" but denied that he
continued to shoot after Nelms hit the ground. "I was nervous and scared," he said in reply to
a question of why he shot four times. "I shot as fast as I could pull
the trigger." Goldsby Sentenced to Die for Death of Vaiden
Woman
Delta
Democrat Times, Greenville, MS.
November 21, 1954 P.2. Vaiden, Miss. (UP) – Robert Goldsby, a 28-year-old St. Louis Negro, today faced death in Mississippi’s electric chair for the fatal shooting of a rural white storekeeper’s wife Sept. 4. An all-white jury took only 15 minutes yesterday
to find Goldsby guilty of murder in the shooting
after an argument with Richard Nelms when the Negro
tourist sought to buy gasoline and goods at Nelms’
small café and store near here. Goldsby, who pleaded self
defense, was sentenced to die Dec. 24.
His conviction, however, was automatically appealed to the State
Supreme Court. When asked by Judge Henry Lee Rodgers if there was
anything he wanted to say, Goldsby, who had
remained impassive during the three-day trial, answered chokingly: “No Sir.” Witnesses said Mrs. Moselle
Nelms was killed instantly as she rushed to her
husband, wounded after he ordered Goldsby to leave
his place. Goldsby said he fired a pistol when Nelms struck him “up the side of the head” with a hammer. “I was nervous and scared,” he said, “and shot as fast as I could pull the trigger.” Sentence of Death Given Negro KillerJudge Commends Defense Attorney For Doing DutyWinona Times,
November 26, 1954, P.1 In the Carroll County Courthouse at Vaiden Friday afternoon of last week, Robert Gouldsby, a St. Louis Negro, and a native of Canton, was sentenced to die December 24 in the portable electric chair for the pistol slaying of Mrs. Moselle Nelms, Sept. 4. The shooting occurred at the Nelms
Café near Vaiden and Mrs. Nelms’
husband, Bryant, was wounded in the gun-fire. The jury was out only 15 minutes before bringing
in a verdict of “guilty as charged” at 2:45 p.m. last Friday. Shortly afterwards, Gouldsby’s wife, Laura Mae, pleaded guilty to being an accessory after the fact and was given six months in jail. The same charge was dismissed against Robert Gillion, who was with Gouldsby at the time of the shooting. District Attorney John E. Aldridge of Winona was
prosecutor, and Rupert Ringold of Winona was one of
the attorneys for the defense. Concerning Mr. Ringold’s
role in the trial, Circuit Judge Henry L. Rodgers, who presided, wrote him
the following letter, dated November 20th: Let me express thanks of the Court for your
cooperation in the trial of Robert Lee Gouldsby. I realize the handicap under which you
worked, and natural reluctancy to take a case
unpopular in the community; nevertheless your acceptance of the duty
certainly commends you to the admiration and respect of right-thinking
people. You discharged your duty with
fidelity, and therefore entitled to the commendation of the court. Again I thank you. With every assurance of my high appreciation
for your splendid and kind friendship, I am, your friend, Henry Lee Rodgers. Carroll
County 2nd District Court Minutes – First Trial (1954) Record 1 – Record 2 – Record 3 – Record 4 Record 5 – Record 6 – Record 7 – Record 8 Record 9 – Record 10 – Record 11 – Record 12 Goldsby Again Seeks Clemency In Federal Court
The
Conservative, April 4, 1958. P.1. Robert Lee Goldsby, St. Louis Negro, under death sentence for the 1954 slaying of a Vaiden white woman, will again seek clemency in U.S. District Court at Oxford. Atty. Gen. Joe T. Patterson said Saturday that he will
appear in court on behalf of the state to fight the granting of further
extensions of relief from execution at the hands of the state for Goldsby. Newly appointed judge Claude Clayton of Tupelo,
will preside at the hearing for Goldsby. The Negro, held in the death cell at Parchman penitentiary, has managed to drag his case
through state and federal courts since his conviction and death sentence in
November, 1954. In September, 1954, he and a group of other
Negroes drove into a filling-station café operated by Bryant Nelms and his wife at Vaiden. After creating a disturbance, Goldsby stands convicted of shooting Nelms
to the ground with a bullet in the neck, when the latter ordered the carload
of Negroes off his property. Mrs. Moselle McCorkle Nelms, the wife, ran from the café to the aid of her
husband and was shot in the side, dying almost instantly. Goldsby was duly tried and
convicted, appealed to the State Supreme Court, where he lost again, and then
the case was taken to federal court. Once in the federal court, Goldsby
claimed that he was convicted by a jury that had no Negroes on it and thus
was unjustly sentenced. On this
premise, the case has gone to the U.S. Supreme Court, and has now returned
twice to the federal district court after going recently to the Circuit Court
of Appeals at Mobile. Atty. Gen. Patterson
said Saturday that he will on Thursday again contend that the Negro’s claims
should not be honored because they were not made during his trial in the
state courts, and that the man is seeking a retrial of his case in federal
court at the expense of the state courts, and on grounds which were not laid
in the state courts. Goldsby Case Begins New Route Through Courts
The
Conservative, April 18, 1958. P.1. Robert Lee Goldsby, charged with the slaying of a Vaiden white woman, is contemplating an appeal of his case to the U.S. Court of Appeals, New Orleans. The Negro, a native of St. Louis allegedly slew
Mrs. Moselle McCorkle Nelms
of Vaiden in September, 1954, as she rushed to the
aid of her husband, Bryant Nelms, who had been shot
down by the Negro. Goldsby, at the time of the
double shooting, had driven into the Nelms service
station restaurant near Vaiden, along with others
of his race and apparently created a disturbance. The Negro was admittedly drunk at the time. Mrs. Nelms was slain by
a bullet allegedly from Goldsby’s pistol which
entered her side, killing the woman almost instantly. IN MANY COURTS The case has traversed the State Supreme Court,
the U.S. District Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals, and the U.S. Supreme
Court and it is starting back along the same old track twice trod in the
federal courts. Goldsby’s principal contention for
freedom is that no Negroes were on the jury that convicted him. It seems of small if any consequence whether he
was guilty of the slaying of which he is charged. The race question is paramount. At this time, the Negro is held in the death cell
at Parchman penitentiary. If the federal courts ever tire of his case, he
state supreme court will be asked to set a new death date for Goldsby. U.S. Circuit Judge Claude F. Clayton last week
ruled against the Negro on the grounds that Negroes were barred from his jury
at the time of his trial. He had adequate counsel, Judge Clayton said, and
should have raised the point at the time of the trial. Ross R. Barnett, Jackson attorney, retained by Nelms in the case at a hearing at Oxford a few days ago,
instituted an investigation and brought before the court the fact that Goldsby, who claimed to be 23 years of age at the time of
the crime was really 28 years old. He also set forth that the Negro who claimed
originally to have only a fourth grade education, actually completed high
school in St. Louis, by his own admission. RULING Judge Clayton, when confronted with these facts by
Atty. Gen. Joe T. Patterson and Mr. Barnett, held that “with these factual
findings, the court could not do otherwise than conclude, as a matter of law,
that ample opportunity was afforded Goldsby to
raise in the courts of the State of Mississippi, the constitutional question
involved in the hearing, and undoubtedly if the question of the absence of
Negroes from the grand jury, and the absence f Negroes from the petit jury
had been presented in the circuit court of Carroll County, by a proper motion
to quash such a motion would have been sustained.” It was set forth by
Judge Clayton that ample opportunity was given and that the counsel and the
Negro both knew it at the time, and waived the right. Judge Clayton further said that there was
no evidence to support the contention of Goldsby
that the systematic exclusion of Negroes from juries was practiced in Carroll
County. Sidebar
Comments The
Conservative, April 25, 1958.
P.1., Col. 1. The Mississippi Supreme Court has again set a date – May 29 – for the
execution of Robert Goldsby, Negro, convicted of
the murder of Mrs. Bryant Nelms near Vaiden in 1954. No
announcement has yet been made of further appeals by Goldsby,
but we expect there will be some other scheme forthcoming to keep him out of
the gas chamber. We believe in giving
a man every opportunity when his life is at stake but such cases as this,
where the courts allow prolonged evasion of justice are inclined to make us
lose respect for the laws we have.
Execution Date Set For Killer
The
Conservative, April 25, 1958.
P.1., Col. 2. (Comments) Four years of court fights apparently ended Monday
when the Mississippi Supreme Court set May 29 for the execution of a St.
Louis Negro convicted of shooting a white woman to death. It was the fourth time the state court set a date
for Robert Lee Goldsby, 32, to die in the gas
chamber for the September, 1954 death of Mrs. Bryant Nelms
of Vaiden. REACHED HIGHEST COURT Each time, attorneys for Goldsby
have won delays by appeals to the Federal Courts. The Supreme Court denied appeals in 1955
and 1956. Last year, Chief Justice
Earl Warren granted a stay until all federal rights were exhausted. Those
rights apparently were exhausted April 3 when Federal Judge Claude Clayton,
named to the North Mississippi bench in March by President Eisenhower
rejected Goldsby’s claims that his civil rights
were violated. Goldsby Granted New Stay By
Supreme Court Of U.S. Chief Justice
Holds Up Execution Set Thursday
The
Conservative, May 30, 1958. P.1. --Washington, D.C., May 27 – Chief Justice Earl Warren Tuesday stayed the execution of Robert Lee Goldsby, Negro, sentenced to die Thursday for the fatal shooting of Mrs. Moselle McCorkle Nelms in Vaiden, Miss., in 1954. The stay will allow Goldsby
to appeal to the Fifth United States Circuit Court of Appeals. He was turned down by the Supreme Court on
Dec. 12, 1955 and Dec. 11, 1956. The high court wired Gov. J.P. Coleman that the
execution was staged “until he can exhaust his rights under the law.” After going as far as he could in state courts, Goldsby applied to Federal courts for a writ of habeas
corpus. If the Fifth Circuit rejects
his appeal, he may file a third petition with the Supreme Court. His attorney told Justice Warren the appeal to the
Circuit Court will be filed June 17. Goldsby said he can show a long
time systematic exclusion of Negroes from jury service in Carroll County,
Miss. Goldsby is in the Mississippi
State prison at Parchman. Fact, Fancy and
Frivolity
By Buchanan ! The
Conservative, May 30, 1958. P. 1.
Col. 1. [Ed. Note: “Buchanan,” is C.C. Buchanan, the Associate
Editor of The Conservative.] Chief
Justice Earl Warren and the U.S. Supreme Court seem determined to thwart the
execution of Robert Lee Goldsby, convicted killer
of Mrs. Bryant Nelms near Vaiden
in 1954. The latest stay of execution
granted “until he can exhaust his legal rights,” saved Goldsby
from the gas chamber again this week.
We wonder how many legal rights a killer can claim after conviction
and the usual appeals and reviews have determined that he has had a fair
trial. Probably if the murder had
occurred in any but a Southern State the killer would have gotten his rights
in short order from the execution, but in Mississippi, the case stays before
the courts on order of a crackpot, jackleg jurist who wouldn’t know a “legal
right” if he met one whose only thought is to stay in the good graces of the
NAACP and the Communist Party for political expediency. Such action on the part of a court brings
to rock bottom our already low level of respect for all that the court which
wants not only to adjudicate the laws but also tries to usurp the right to
make laws and govern through fear a people who can no longer depend upon
their lected representatives for their
government. The Goldsby
case is but one of many on which the Supreme Court has sacrificed legal and
logical reasoning for wild-eyed dreaming.
Speaking About Rights –
What About Our Rights ? Published Comment, Author Unknown The
Conservative, May 30, 1958. P. 1.,
Col. 4. Chief Justice Earl Warren, of the United States Supreme Court, has granted a stay of execution for Robert Lee Goldsby, who was scheduled to die this week for the fatal shooting of Mrs. Bryant Nelms in Vaiden in 1954. The Chief Justice said the execution was stayed
“until he (Goldsby) has exhausted his rights under
the law.” Just what does it take to exhaust his rights? Goldsby was tried and convicted
in Carroll County and sentenced to death. No one has questioned the fairness of the trial. His case has been reviewed and affirmed by the Mississippi
Supreme Court and has been turned down twice by the United States Supreme
Court. Appeals to the District Federal Courts have been
denied. Only Monday his petition for a
stay of execution was denied by Judge Claude Clayton, of the North Mississippi
Federal Court District. We repeat:
What does it take to exhaust his rights? And what about the rights of the family of the
dead woman? And the rights of the
law-abiding citizens of Carroll County and the State of Mississippi? The
Chief Justice might well ponder these questions. Goldsby Gets 15th
Delay In Execution The
Conservative, October 10, 1958.
P.1., Col. 2. The U.S. Fifth District Court of Appeals this week gave Robert Lee Goldsby’s attorneys 20 days in which to file appeal briefs. Mississippi Attorney General Joe Patterson and
Asst. Atty. Gen. Ruble Griffin were in Montgomery to argue for the 5th
time the State’s side in the Federal Court of Appeal. A Jackson attorney appointed as special prosecutor
for the state aided in the case. He
was identified as Ross Barnett. Goldsby, 32, claims in his
appeal, his civil rights were violated when he was tried in 1954 for the
murder of Mrs. Moselle Nelms
in the parking lot of her husband’s café near Vaiden. Just Like Paul
Wrote It
By Paul Tardy The
Conservative, October 10, 1958, P. 1., Col. 1. If you ever commit
murder, be sure to paint yourself black and join the NAACP. Absolutely nothing can be done about
it. It might help to name yourself Goldsby. Goldsby Case Gets Extension
The
Conservative, February 6, 1959. P.
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