Danny Ray

Murder in Choctaw County Danny Ray

Murders just didn't happen in the little town of Choctaw, Mississippi. But apparently no one had told the dead man discovered in the only motel in town that. An employee of a liquor distributor, he had come to "spread some money" around in advance of the county's vote on whether to stay dry or to go wet. Tempers were as hot as the weather, and local ministers either disregarded or were unaware of the Johnson amendment forbidding mixing religion with politics. Potential suspects ranged from bootleggers whose businesses were threatened to elders and deacons who considered themselves cloaked in righteous armor.

The local sheriff wasted no time identifying his prime suspect, one who had means, motive, and opportunity, and whose conviction would not alienate either side of the liquor referendum. It was 1968 and he was up for reelection. What better way to ensure success than to solve the only murder in the county in years and be the hero of both sides of a hotly debated issue? His only problem was the two-person staff of the local newspaper, friends of the accused and believers in due process.