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Maryland s governor on Saturday posthumously pardoned 34 victims of racial lynching in the state dating between 1854 and 1933, saying they were denied legal due process against the allegations they faced.
It was a first-of-its-kind pardon by a governor of a U.S. state.
Gov. Larry Hogan signed the order at an event honoring Howard Cooper, a 15-year-old who was dragged from a jailhouse and hanged from a tree by a mob of white men in 1885 before his attorneys could file an appeal of a rape conviction that an all-white jury reached within minutes.
“My hope is that this action will at least in some way help to right these horrific wrongs and perhaps bring a measure of peace to the memories of these individuals and to their descendants and their loved ones, Hogan said.
Larry Hogan was one of the many people to attended an event honoring
Howard Cooper in Towson, Maryland. Cooper, a 15-yeard old boy, was lynched in 1885 after an all-white jury wrongfully convicted him of rapes within minutes. Unfortunately, Cooper s story is not uncommon throughout American history. Over time, thousands of Black Americans have been lynched and murdered as punishments for crimes they did not commit. In an attempt to wipe these unjust convictions from individual public records, Hogan has issued a pardoned for Cooper and 33 others that were convicted and lynched under unjust circumstances. My hope is that this action will at least in some way help to right these horrific wrongs and perhaps bring a measure of peace to the memories of these individuals and to their descendants and their loved ones, Cooper said.
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Via Office of the Governor’s Flickr. Taken 5/8/2021.
Gov. Larry Hogan issued posthumous pardons for 34 victims of racial lynchings in Maryland, including three victims who were killed around the Montgomery County area.
“My hope is that this action will, at least in some way, help to right these horrific wrongs. And perhaps to bring a measure of peace to the memories of these individuals and to their descendants and their loved ones,” Hogan said during an event Saturday.
Of the 34 victims pardoned between 1854 and 1933, three were killed in the county area, according to the governor’s office.
George Peck (around January 10, 1880): Peck was seized and lynched in or near Poolesville as a justice transported him to Rockville for trial. He is pardoned from assault allegations.
Maryland governor issues posthumous pardons for 34 victims of racial lynching
AP
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan participates in a panel discussion during the Republican Governors Association annual conference Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2015, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Chase Stevens)
By: WMAR Staff
and last updated 2021-05-10 16:18:07-04
TOWSON, Md. â Over the weekend, the governor of Maryland issued full posthumous pardons for 34 victims of racial lynching in the state between 1854 and 1933. It is the first time in history that a governor has issued a blanket pardon for the victims of racial lynchings.
âThe State of Maryland has long been on the forefront of civil rights, dating back to Justice Thurgood Marshallâs legal battle to integrate schools and throughout our national reckoning on race,â said Governor Larry Hogan. âToday, we are once again as together we continue the work to build a more perfect union. My hope is that this action will at least