Society Vs. Bill King Essay, Research Paper

Over the past few decades many parts of the world have undergone changes that are working towards equality of all. Even with these many accomplishments, there is still a long way to go. This is shown by the criminal case I have chosen to talk about.

On the morning of June 7th, 1998 in the town of Jasper, Texas the people of this town were shocked to find the dismembered body of 49 year old James Byrd propped up against the fence of a cemetery. There has always been a history of racial hatred in Jasper (which is made up of half whites, and half African Americans). There are records of obvious homicides that weren t investigated by the police just because the person killed was African American. There was one notable murder that occurred in Jasper in the 1930 s where a black man was beaten and shot. The police dismissed the case as being a suicide despite evidence of struggle and the number of broken bones which could not have been self-inflicted. Over the past few decades there has been very few, extreme, racial crimes within Jasper. People believed that the racial barriers were gone. This latest incident has made people realize that there is still racial hatred but is now characterized by more subtle, everyday occurrences such as favoritism in job hiring and promotions. People have begun the removal of physical barriers such as the one in the cemetery. There was a fence separating the blacks and whites which over time has become an invisible barrier that everybody has become accustomed to.

The day after this horrific crime, local authorities traced evidence from the crime scene back to 3 men. They found a lighter inscribed with KKK which belonged to Bill King, beer bottles and cigarette butts with saliva that genetically matched that of the 3 men, and blood, matching that of James Byrd of the clothes of the suspects. Bill King(24), Lawrence Russell Brewer(31) and Shawn Berry(23) were room mates who had left a party together. On their way home they came across James Byrd, who was walking home. They offered him a drive home but instead they drove down a remote back road, and severely beat him. They then tied a chain around James feet and to their pick-up truck. For nearly 5 kilometers James was drug along pavement, dismembering his body. Scratches on Byrd s body show that he was conscious when this ordeal began. He tried keeping his head off the ground by using his arms to elevate himself.

Bill King is the first of the men to be tried on charges of capital murder. If convicted may face the death penalty. King is an obvious white supremacist. While in prison in 1992 for burglary charges, King decorated his body with racial tattoo s, including one of a black man hanging from a tree. The defense intends to argue that King got these tattoo s to deter inmates from praying on the 5 9 individual. Also, while in prison King joined a group called the Confederate Knights of America, a recognized white supremacy group. The prosecution believes that King had intended to start up his own branch of the Confederate Knights of America called the Texas Rebel Soldiers. Initiation into this club was to brutally murder an African American. This club was to be formed on July 4th 1998, less than a month after King participated in the dragging murder of Byrd. This is believed to be his own initiation into the group and also a way of attracting new members.

This case has attracted many groups of people to the town of Jasper. Groups including the New Black Panthers and the Ku Klux Klan. The judge is enforcing a 2 block no protesting zone around the courthouse. State troopers have been brought in to enforce this rule.

Neurological instability

–Cause of Murder–

Neurological Theory

In the small town of Jasper, Texas, John William King (24) will go on trial facing capital murder charges. He, along with Lawrence Russell Brewer and Shawn Berry have been charged with the violent beating and the horrific dragging murder of 49 year old James Byrd. King believed that this stunt was necessary to draw attention to a new group that he had planned on forming called the Texas Rebel Soldiers.

After a night of partying King, along with Brewer and Berry were driving in their pick-up truck They saw James Byrd walking along the roadside and asked him if he needed a drive home. Trusting this men is the worst mistake Byrd has ever made. They took him down a remote road and beat him severely. While still conscious, James Byrd s feet were tied to the hitch of King s truck using a 7.5 meter long logging chain. Marks on Byrd s body showed that he made an effort to keep his head off the pavement but he was unsuccessful. James head and arm were severed off when he hit a drain pipe along the side of the road. The dragging continued some time after this happened.

This brutal crime has raised many questions in the minds of sociologists and psychologists. Why did he commit this crime? What factors influenced his behaviour? Could this have been prevented? After researching past behavioural records, and questioning of King and his family, the sociologists and psychologists have found circumstances that may have played a part in his behaviour. They discovered that while Bill King s mother was pregnant with him, she was severely abused. This could lead to neurological disabilities for her forming child. Any instability while her child was being formed may result in disorder s such as Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and Minimal Brain Dysfunction (MBD). These disorders are characterized by unusual bouts of rage, impulsively, hyperactivity, poor attention spans, dyslexia, and temper tantrums. Normally, a person suffering from neurological disorders is calm and collected. At the age of 1, little Bill King was accidentally dropped on his head. The resulting injuries may have contributed to King s instability. Evidence of these factors became more prevalent as King progressed through his life. After dropping out of highschool, he began on a road towards crime. While in jail, King was introduced to a white supremacist group called the Confederate Knights of America. This group allowed him to focus his temperamental behaviour on something real. While in prison with this group his beliefs about Aryan Pride developed.

We believe that the morals (or lack thereof) King had picked up while in jail, accompanied by the instabilities caused by neurological problems, answer the question as to why King committed this barbaric crime.

Stigmatized Youth

A young man, aged 24, is now facing capital murder charges in the State of Texas. The defendant, along with 2 others are believed to have participated in the dragging murder of 49 year old James Byrd.

On the night of June 7th, 1998 James Byrd was walking along the roadside, on his way home. 3 white males, in a pick-up truck, stopped and kindly offered to drive the man home. Instead of taking James home, the 3 males savagely beat James Byrd along a remote roadside. After beating him, James was then tied to the pick up truck with a 7+ meter. While still conscious, James was drug by the ankles for almost 5 kilometers. His bloody, dismembered body was unchained, then carried to the edge of a cemetery, where he had been found the next day.

As a young boy, John William(Bill) King was raised in a small suburban town, just outside of Houston, Texas. His family seemed to be living the American Dream . Bill was a typical child but always seemed to have trouble with school. At an early age, Bill was placed in a special school due to his slow learning capabilities. This event may have stigmatized the young Bill King. Events such as this take away from the person s capabilities in life by setting them onto a different set of tracks, almost a separation from the normal society. Being set back may have led to a low feeling of self-worth even at a very young age. When Bill recognized these feeling during his high school years he felt neglected and unattached. He began to resist authority in any way possible, leading to increased levels of deviance.

In 1992 Bill was convicted on charges of burglary. While in prison he sought companionship from people who shared his lack of respect for authority, people who had followed along with their own norms, and not along with the norms of the majority of society. He sought people he could easily relate to, without being judged as an outsider or a misfit. This need for camaraderie led Bill King to the road that has taken him to the small courtroom in Jasper, Texas. He had joined the white supremacist group called the Confederate Knights of America. King adorned his body with racial hatred tattoos and dreamed of starting up his own branch of white supremacists that he planned to call the Texas Rebel Soldiers. He was now conforming to the social values and norms of the sub-society that had accepted him as being normal , a place where he fit into society despite the conflict his norms have created in our society.

This vicious murder was a way of attracting media attention to his new group. To become a member, you must kill. It didn t take long for his dream to be shattered. Less than 24 hours after the incident that claimed the life of James Byrd, authorities arrested John William King(24), Lawrence Russell Brewer(31), and Shawn Berry(23). DNA strands found in the saliva of beer bottles and cigarette butts found on the crime scene matched the DNA of the three accused. Blood matching James Byrds, was found on the shoes of Bill King, and a lighter inscribed with KKK (for Ku Klux Klan) belonging to King was also found on the crime scene.

Basically, the effects of early labeling led King onto a path of crime and deviance. There are many children that are labeled as King was but this doesn t mean that all children who are labeled will lead a life of crime. It is just an underlying factor which may just play a small part in sparking a predisposition of criminal behaviour. There could be a genetic link or chemical imbalances that also added to King s behaviour. Many children face the same circumstances but have the will power to resist what they believe is wrong. They have the morals along with larger support systems that keep them out of crime. As King matured he may not have had anybody to support him and no expectations to live up to.

With many people facing similar circumstances questions are raised as to why King committed such a crime and nobody else has. The theories of neurological disruptions and The General Theory of Deviance are only a few of the possible explanations that have combined to influence the life of John William King. Everybody he has ever interacted with have made him the person he is today. From genetics to feelings of low self-esteem to external factors (such as the labeling theory), all play a part in the make-up of this man. The rewritten examples of my chosen articles only represent small pieces within all the possible factors that have caused him to commit this crime. They do however represent different views of possible root causes.

After carefully reading this article many, many, MANY times and observing the many possible theories, I believe that it is written along the lines of the labeling theory. I have come to this conclusion from the fact that there was no mention of Bill King s racial hatred, prior to his time in prison. Telling the readers that Bill was a failure at school gave me the idea that he was somewhat of an outsider who was reaching for support from anybody. The normal laws of society depicted him as an outcast so he had to compensate by finding a group that did accept him. He found a group that would accept him, while in jail for burglary, and it just happened to be a white supremacist group that lived the dream of Aryan Pride . I m not dismissing the fact that King may have been racist and prejudice prior to his jail term but that the need to belong to a society, any society, led him to rewrite his moral code to fit that of his new subculture.

Explaining why somebody committed a crime is the first step in preventing similar situations from occurring again. Observing the crime from many different points of view are required to unlock the combination of factors which have come together to cause such crime.

*notes On Tuesday, February 23rd 1999, John William King was convicted of capital murder. He now faces either life in prison or execution. The jury tool only 2+ hours to deliberate their decision. King appeared unemotional as the verdict was read. He shyed away from court-room TV cameras as he watched the family of James Byrd celebrate.