New Twist In 1964 Miss. Killings

Prosecution Seeks Revocation Of Bail, Citing Alleged Death Threat

(AP)  Hood's petition to the Supreme Court also mentioned a bomb threat at the Neshoba County Courthouse the day Killen was indicted in January. No explosives were found.

Because of the threat on Gordon's life and the bomb threat, “there were extensive security measures in place throughout the trial,” Hood wrote. But Gordon said Tuesday that extensive security plans for the trial had already been made before he was told about the death threat.

Hood's petition also mentions Killen's 1975 felony conviction on making threatening phone calls — a case Gordon had prosecuted when he was district attorney.

“Edgar Ray Killen's convictions, both for the deaths of Schwerner, Chaney and Goodman and for telephone harassment, demonstrate his propensity for violence and show that his continued release constitutes a special danger to the community,” Hood wrote.

It was not clear how long it will take the Supreme Court to consider Hood's request for revocation of the bond.

Killen was convicted on June 21 — exactly 41 years after the deaths of Schwerner, Chaney and Goodman. He is the only person to ever face state charges in the deaths, which shocked the nation and helped spur passage of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964. The case was dramatized in the 1988 movie “Mississippi Burning.”

Killen was tried in 1967 on federal charges of violating the victims' civil rights, but the all-white jury deadlocked, with one juror saying she could not convict a preacher. Seven others were convicted, but none served more than six years.