Other Days

One of my favorite parts of the Demozette is the "other days" section. Today's "25 years ago" piece recaps the well-known Dyas trial down here in Little River County in southwest Arkansas, where convicted murderer Jimmy Lee Dyas received word near today's date that the United States Supreme Court upheld a ruling that he was entitled to a hearing on his contention that his right to a fair trial was jeopardized due to the relationship of all trial officials.

Who were they? My uncle was the prosecutor (his cousin was the deputy prosecutor), his uncle (and the dad of the deputy) was the judge, and my grandfather was the defense attorney. His daughter (my aunt) was engaged to the prosecutor. The judge's wife was the court reporter. There's some Arkansas folklore for ya. I think the U.S. Supreme Court Justices just shook their heads.