FAST FACTS:
(Kennett, MO 11/16/2009) Hundreds of people marched through the small Missouri town of Kennett, as racial tension remains thick after a woman's 2007 altercation with police.
Several dozen people from the Memphis area made the trip to Missouri's boot heel to show their support for the college student. Police and members of the KKK lined the parade route, as protesters marched through downtown. The march started at the local Walmart, where the case began. Heather Ellis faces 15 years behind bars for allegedly assaulting police officers after she cut in line while shopping.
Not long after, a local police officer handed the family a card which read "You have just been paid a social visit by the Klu Klux Klan. The next visit will not be social." When the family complained to police, the department put that same officer in charge of the investigation.
The family claims racial inequality and corruption by law enforcement. They also target the prosecutor, saying he has taken the case personally.
"Racism and bigotry is thick in this city. There are skinheads, there are KKK in this city," says Southern Christian Leadership Conference President, Rev. Dwight Montgomery. "We believe that... people who are part of the police department are connected with the Klu Klux Klan."
That prosecutor has since recused himself and says the family has refused numerous plea deals. The police department reffered questions to the prosecutor.
The case has received national attention and several civil rights figures took part in the rally on the courthouse steps. The group plans to head back to Kennett when the young woman's trial begins on Wednesday.
- Heather Ellis facing 15 years in prison after cutting in line at Walmart
- Kennett, MO police claim Ellis fought with officers
- Hundreds marched to support Ellis
(Kennett, MO 11/16/2009) Hundreds of people marched through the small Missouri town of Kennett, as racial tension remains thick after a woman's 2007 altercation with police.
Several dozen people from the Memphis area made the trip to Missouri's boot heel to show their support for the college student. Police and members of the KKK lined the parade route, as protesters marched through downtown. The march started at the local Walmart, where the case began. Heather Ellis faces 15 years behind bars for allegedly assaulting police officers after she cut in line while shopping.
Not long after, a local police officer handed the family a card which read "You have just been paid a social visit by the Klu Klux Klan. The next visit will not be social." When the family complained to police, the department put that same officer in charge of the investigation.
The family claims racial inequality and corruption by law enforcement. They also target the prosecutor, saying he has taken the case personally.
"Racism and bigotry is thick in this city. There are skinheads, there are KKK in this city," says Southern Christian Leadership Conference President, Rev. Dwight Montgomery. "We believe that... people who are part of the police department are connected with the Klu Klux Klan."
That prosecutor has since recused himself and says the family has refused numerous plea deals. The police department reffered questions to the prosecutor.
The case has received national attention and several civil rights figures took part in the rally on the courthouse steps. The group plans to head back to Kennett when the young woman's trial begins on Wednesday.
