The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 86, July 1982 - April, 1983 Page: 522
616 p. : ill. (some col.), maps, ports. ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Southwestern Historical Quarterly
toward Waco. Upon their arrival at the county jail, the men conducted
a meticulous search of the cells, including close scrutiny of every black
prisoner. Having satisfied themselves that Washington was not there,
the men left quietly and returned to their homes. Following this initial
attempt to circumvent the judicial process, community leaders in Rob-
inson assured Waco law enforcement authorities that no further mob
action would be planned as long as the legal system operated swiftly in
convicting and punishing the confessed rapist and murderer."
Officials in Waco needed little encouragement to resolve the case
quickly. On Thursday, May i i, a McLennan County grand jury con-
vened and required only thirty minutes to return a murder indictment
against Jesse Washington. District Judge Richard I. Munroe appointed
six young Waco attorneys to defend the accused and set the trial date for
the following Monday. The Morning News, noting these preliminary
maneuvers, predicted that "justice will move on swift feet in the
case."12
The trial of Jesse Washington commenced at lo:oo A.M. Monday,
May 15, in the Fifty-fourth District Court of McLennan County, with
Judge Munroe presiding over a courtroom filled to capacity. Spectators
packed the balcony, and some stood on railings and benches to obtain a
better view. On several occasions prospective jurors had to be lifted
over the crowd to reach the front of the courtroom. Judge Munroe
periodically sought to preserve decorum by gavelling for silence and re-
minding several of the male onlookers to remove their hats. Those who
could not get inside congregated around the courthouse, lining the
sidewalks on all sides. Among this crowd of bystanders (described as
the largest ever seen in the city) were several Negroes whom one Waco
paper characterized as "quiet and seemingly not much excited."'8
Among some of the white spectators, however, the mood was ugly.
Trouble was narrowly averted before the trial when Jesse Washington,
whom Sheriff Fleming had brought back to Waco the previous eve-
ning, was escorted into the courtroom by sheriff's deputies. At the sight
11Waco Morning News, May io, 1916; Waco Times-Herald, May so, 1916 (quotation).
l2Waco Morning News, May 11, 12, 14 (quotation), 1916. In Texas the common practice
in cases involving murder and criminal assault, where the guilt of the accused was beyond
doubt, was to insure the defendant a speedy jury trial and, following a guilty verdict, to
carry out the death sentence at the end of a thirty-day waiting period. "This has had the
effect," the Morning News reported, "of stopping many of the lawless demonstrations
which formerly characterized the commission of the diabolical crime of which Washington
stands accused and to which he has confessed." Ibid., May 13, 1916.
13Ibid., May 16, 1916 (quotation); Waco Times-Herald, May 15, 1916.522
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 86, July 1982 - April, 1983, periodical, 1982/1983; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101209/m1/582/: accessed May 5, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.