Chapter 3 the jury has reached its verdict

Most of the previous winter trips were in the north.This year, Christmas 2004, we drove south. The place where we live can be regarded as the south in the United States, but there are still four distinct seasons, and the days are short and the nights are cold in winter. Therefore, we want to catch up with the sunshine in the south at the end of the year, and avoid the risk of being blocked by heavy snow and being blocked in the middle of the road.I chose to go to New Orleans, Louisiana. It was a very special city.When we first came here, we took it for granted to read the name of the city in English, but later found out that many Americans call this American city in French.Because it was originally a French colony, although it was once given to Spanish relatives as a gift by Louis XV, it was ruled by Spain for forty years.However, under the rule of Spain, its subjects were basically descendants of the original French colonists, retaining French cultural traditions.When the French Revolution turned to terror, a large number of French took refuge here as their second home.Before Napoleon sold it to the United States in 1803, the French and the Spaniards were almost the same in terms of actual rule time, but it retained more French traditions.It belongs to the law of Louisiana, which is very special with some content of the Napoleonic Code.Today, a large part of its old city is still called the "French Quarter".

Of course, such a city must be buried with many allusions.But what I want to tell today is a very special story.It happened at the end of the 19th century, and one hundred and four years have passed. New Orleans "became" America in 1803.In 1891, when this story happened, this beautiful harbor city was already the largest city in the southern United States at that time, with a population of 242,000.At the end of the 19th century, Italian Sicilian immigrants became more and more here.It was suddenly like New York, with boatloads of immigrants brought in every day by ship.Most of them have no money and don't speak English. The poor residential area near the "French Quarter" quietly became the "Italian Quarter", crowded with Sicilians from Italy.Between 1891 and 1892, 5,644 Italians came to the city, all but sixty-two from Sicily.There are also many immigrants who have not been able to become American citizens for a long time, and they are still Italians.

The vast majority of immigrants are just low-level hard workers, but the famous gang vendetta in Sicily has also followed.It is conceivable that public security in such a city will be a big problem.At that time, there was no FBI in the United States, and public security relied on government police and large-scale, even interstate, private security agencies.The sheriff of New Orleans is a young man who has solved a major international case and is famous in the United States and even in Europe.He was only thirty-two years old, and his name was David C. Hennessy.Hannis not only headed the government police, but also served as a police officer in private police agencies.Our story begins with one night in Hannish.

On October 15, 1890, after a heavy rain, the streets were muddy and full of water, and the wet fog was steaming at night. Hannishy and his colleague Bill O'Connor (Bill O'Connor) went home from the police station.New Orleans is the estuary of the Mississippi River, where the French habit of eating raw oysters has always been left behind, and it is still famous for its high-quality oysters.Although it was late, they went to eat a dozen raw oysters before going home together.On a corner in the Girod, they shook hands and said goodbye.Hannish continued down Street, and O'Connor crossed the street toward the Mississippi River.

Hannish's family lived at 275 Gillow Street.Surrounded by cabins, many blacks and Italian immigrants lived.Hannish has not yet married and still lives with his mother.At this time, he could already see the lamp lit by his mother in the dark, which was being blurred by the fog.Hannish grew up in this community, and he still didn't move out after he became famous.But that night, he was never able to walk into the familiar lights again. On the street corner in front of Hannishy's house, five people suddenly appeared.O'Connor, who hadn't gone far, heard a burst of gunshots like an explosion.O'Connor and the patrolmen on the road immediately ran towards the direction of the gunfire.Hannishy fell in a pool of blood, and the murderer fled without a trace.

Hannig had always been a strong man.He was shot several times and struggled to catch up and fight back when he was seriously injured. After being sent to the hospital, he remained conscious.Of course, Mayor Shakespeare and some of the police officers who were trying to find the killer asked him: Who was the killer?What do you think of this murder?Hannessy firmly believed that he would recover. He told everyone that I will be better, and I will talk about it when I am better.At nine o'clock the next morning, he died suddenly after a few minutes of quiet rest, leaving behind one of the city's greatest murder mysteries.

Although many indirect witnesses came out afterwards, including policemen, night watchmen, passers-by and so on.They all claimed to have seen the killer running away afterward, some with conflicting reports.The key point is that no one said that he could see the murderer's face clearly in the foggy night.In the sudden attack, did Hannig see the murderer clearly in the dark?No one knows. O'Connor offered what is said to be the most authoritative account of Hannessy's injury, claiming that Hannessy whispered the word, "dagoes," in his ear. "dagoes" is the plural of "dago" and is a pejorative, like "nigger" is a pejorative for black people.However, this term refers specifically to the olive-skinned southern Europeans in Italy, Spain, and Portugal.Did Hannig see the killer, or guess?Did Hannig really say that?Even if the murderer is Italian, who exactly?When these questions have not yet been answered, the Italian community in New Orleans is already in panic.Mass arrests have already begun.

The development of the United States in history is very uneven.The South is very different from the North, and New Orleans is different from other cities in the South.At that time, the American South never regarded a large number of immigrants of all colors as the norm, as the northern port of New York did. During this period, the population of New Orleans skyrocketed due to immigrants from southern Europe, becoming the only city in the south with a large number of immigrants from Italy and Sicily.Culturally, Italian immigrants are completely different from the original descendants of French immigrants and white American residents here.A large number of new immigrants could not immediately integrate into the society, so they formed groups on their own, and gang fights often occurred, which brought new problems to the city's law and order. On the other hand, the rule of law tradition in this area has been unstable for a long time.One of the reasons it was not formally accepted as a state for nearly nine years after Napoleon sold it to the United States was the inadequacy of its political institutions.After entering the United States, a new system began to be built, and it experienced the chaos of the Civil War.

New Orleans was occupied by the Northern Army in 1862. It went through a period of military control during the war and a long period of semi-military control after the war.The normal pre-war rule of law was broken.The government imposed by the Confederacy after the Civil War, with black participation, had no popular support and was heavily in debt economically.In the end, they were driven away by the local militia almost in the form of riots.The city's new white government was re-established on such a violent basis. In the case of very weak rule of law, there was a climax of economic development, and a lot of opportunities for sudden wealth made New Orleans officialdom corrupt.At the same time, economic success has enabled the administrative branch of the government to gain unprecedented prestige among the majority of white people, and the administrative power has expanded irresistibly.This city has never had a long-term system to balance and stabilize, and its style of acting is also very unique.Political disputes are often resolved by force.Sixty to seventy percent of citizens walking on the streets carry guns.A typical example is that the position of sheriff in this city was once vacant. Three candidates, including Hannig, shot each other in public, and the other two were killed by different opponents at different times.Although both cases were tried in court, neither case resulted in a conviction for various reasons.After a while, Hannish, who had killed one of the candidates, became the sheriff, and because of his toughness and ability, he was actually quite popular.Local newspapers are often just echoes of the city's mainstream, and have yet to develop into an impartial, neutral voice.

The murder of a prestigious sheriff and the loss of Hannig's widowed mother to her only child send the city "outraged" by tragic stories.Besides, the murder of law enforcement officers is itself a challenge to the law and the public.But at this juncture, how the whole incident will develop, whether it is strictly following legal procedures or going out of order, is severely testing the standard of this city.At this time, Shakespeare, the leader of the city's administrative branch and the mayor of New Orleans, played an important role in the direction of the incident. Mayor Shakespeare was annoyed by the social problems caused by Italian immigrants at the time, when racial prejudice was common in the South.He once wrote in a letter that the Italians were "without courage, without honor, without faith and pride, without religion and any quality that could point to a good citizen".The problem is that such a mayor has power in his hands, has the support of the majority of the people, and has no power to restrain him, and the city does not have a solid tradition of rule of law.Immediately after the murder, he gave the order to the police in front of the crowd: "Sweep this place!

Get me all the Italians. "The police did not apply to the court for an arrest warrant in accordance with the law, and the "big sweep" began." It was not until much later that someone wrote in a column in the New Orleans newspaper New Delta that the whole "wholesale" arrest of Italians was based on the isolated The friend whispered "dagoes".But what is surprising is that during the nine hours that the sheriff was still awake, no one even checked with him once.What is even more absurd is that in the subsequent court hearing of the case, O'Connor, such a key witness, never appeared as a witness in court. Not only did the mopping up of the Italians begin, but the hostility and hatred of the people of New Orleans towards Italian immigrants was also instigated.The mayor speaks out, declaring, baselessly, that he is the next target of the "Italian murderers".And "bravely" stated that he will never back down and will fight to the end.The mood of the people is near boiling point. In a New Orleans courthouse, judges confer as they do what they can to prevent mob behavior.However, we have seen that the most critical step in the legal system is that the culture itself must establish a tradition of absolute respect for the judiciary.Because in terms of "hardware", the judicial branch is the weakest link, and it must rely on social consensus to maintain it to a considerable extent.The emergence of a constitutional state, in terms of its historical development, is a society based on its long-term experience, which first comes to the recognition of the lofty status of the judiciary.Without this cultural approval, justice is weak and easily undermined.Because the judicial branch itself has no law enforcement power, it needs the administrative branch to enforce the law.In a system framework of separation of powers, the most worrying thing is that the administration is too strong, the judiciary is too weak, and the administrative branch of law enforcement tends to break the law. Unfortunately, this was the state of New Orleans in 1890. With the instigation and support of the mayor, hundreds of Italians were illegally arrested. Although all those who claimed to have witnessed the murderer's escape clearly stated that they did not see the murderer's face clearly, these people were still taken to the prison to identify the murderer.The basis for their identification is very vague references such as height and clothing style.These completely unreliable designations still became the basis for the prosecution.Immediately, five people were indicted and taken to the New Orleans County Jail (New Orleans Parish Prison). The warden of the county jail knew the character of the city well.He knew immediately what danger he might face.The warden immediately ordered a large number of guards to line up, armed with live ammunition, and ready for battle.His worries were not superfluous, and soon a twenty-nine-year-old street vendor named Dai Fei came to the prison, claiming to visit the Italian prisoners in prison.He kept one hand in his pocket until he saw a prisoner come out, and it was a pistol.He badly wounded the prisoner and yelled: If there were dozens of people like me, we could drive all the "dagoes" out of our city!This gunshot was really an ominous signal. Mayor Shakespeare entered City Hall to thunderous applause and delivered an impassioned speech.He claimed that the police had obtained "evidence beyond doubt" in the arrest and collection of materials, proving that this was Sicilian revenge, because the slain sheriff represented the law and often tried to stop the bloody vendettas of Italian gangs on the streets. .The mayor later announced, baselessly, that ninety-four people in the city had been killed in vendettas by the Italian Mafia.The unverified claim immediately made newspaper headlines. Funded by municipal expenses, he appointed a citizens' committee on the spot to investigate these secret gang organizations thoroughly.This committee of eighty-three came to be known as the "Committee of Fifty".On this committee, not a single one is of Italian origin. The "Fifty People" Committee had "sufficient food and grass", not only rented a separate office building for "secrecy", but also hired two detectives.One of them was an Italian from New York who was spying in the Italian community.The other deliberately put himself in prison, "mingled" with Italian prisoners in prison, and even blackmailed a mentally weakened prisoner.However, none of them had any evidence that these people were involved in the case.However, the city authorities said that the details of the crime had been found out, but they were not released yet. On October 23, 1890, eight days after Hannish's murder, the "Committee of Fifty" published an open letter in a New Orleans newspaper.In the letter, on the one hand, it declared that this committee would act strictly within the scope of the law; on the other hand, it called on the 30,000 Italian immigrants in the city to expose each other and report bad people.At the same time, threats of violence were issued against them, declaring, "Gang vendettas must be wiped out, assassinations must be terminated. To achieve this goal, if possible, we prefer to use legal means peacefully; if necessary, We will also act immediately and decisively through violence. It depends on whether you have the willingness to cooperate with the authorities." Hannessy has become a martyr and a hero to the city, giving the largest funeral New Orleans has ever seen.Its scale even exceeds the funeral of former Confederate President Jefferson Davis. The attitudes of the mayor and the local upper class towards the murder also hide the economic and political competition and disputes between them and the part of the Italian upper class who have integrated into the local society.The mayor complained of Italian monopoly on markets such as fruit, oysters, and fresh fish, among other political entanglements.As a result, the number of Italians accused of murdering the conspiracy quickly increased to 19 people, including Maceca, a businessman and political leader in the Italian community. Maceca was born in a Sicilian immigrant family, but he himself is a second-generation immigrant born in the state and an American.He participates in community activities and has the ability to sit on an equal footing with local whites. In 1874, the young Maceca participated in the famous street battle in New Orleans - the Battle of Liberty Square.At that time, the militia organization composed of local whites drove out the government of the Southern Reconstruction period established by the Union after the Civil War.Twenty-seven people were killed and a hundred wounded in the street fighting.What makes Maceca different is that he saved the commander who was seriously injured in that street fight.Thereafter he was successful in business, and at the time of his indictment for Hannishy's murder he was one of the most prominent and powerful men of the city's thirty thousand Italian-born citizens. According to the regulations of the New Orleans City Prison at that time, rich prisoners could pay to live in better cells, and they could also buy food outside.Maceca and another wealthy Italian prisoner were given such conditions, while seventeen others lived in dire prison conditions, and the case was portrayed as "a gang of mafia conspired to kill the beloved Sheriff", so that they were repeatedly beaten by other prisoners in prison.Among them were not only Italian-Americans but also Italian citizens, which sparked a protest from the Italian consul.At the same time, lawyers also demanded that they be moved to a safe place. At the insistence of the consul, a grand jury inspected the prison, and their conclusion also called for the improvement of prison conditions for these prisoners.Despite the denials of his colleagues, the warden also acknowledged the fact that the Italian prisoners had been beaten by other prisoners and admitted that he was powerless to protect them, and he also demanded the transfer of these prisoners.However, Mayor Shakespeare, addressing the public, flatly declared these claims to be "rumors" and refused to transfer the prisoners.Not only that, the mayor even ordered to stop visiting relatives and friends of prisoners, and no one except lawyers is allowed to see them.Lawyers struggled in court to partially regain their family visitation rights. The judiciary, much weaker than the executive, is struggling.Meanwhile, the disinformation campaign by the mayor, the Committee of Fifty and local newspapers has escalated, and the alleged prisoners' lawyers themselves have been portrayed as "law-breakers sent by the Mafia." Grand jury hearings were held in November 1890.But the grand jury itself had two members of the "Committee of Fifty".The authorities claimed that the 19 suspects belonged to two criminal groups, and nine of them belonged to the "Macheca criminal group" in the first trial.The remaining ten will be reviewed in another case.The first group of suspects included a fourteen-year-old boy.Of the nineteen, only one had a criminal record. The trial began on February 28, 1891.The prosecution is the District Attorney.Among the Italians, since Marcheca and the other defendant were rich, they paid for themselves and hired two very famous lawyers at the time.One was the former attorney general of Louisiana and a former Confederate senator, and the other was the former attorney general of New Orleans.As soon as they took on the case, they were billed as taking "mafia money." When the jury was selected before the official trial, the atmosphere in the city was already palpable.Defense lawyers rejected hundreds of juror candidates because they blatantly declared prejudice and hatred against Italians and would not believe the testimony of any Italian witnesses.Prosecutors rejected all Italian candidates. The final trial took two weeks.In total, the prosecution called sixty-seven witnesses and the defense eighty-four witnesses.One of the most important witnesses, a black man, said he saw four men open fire and identified four of the defendants as "looking a lot like" them. One of the four was a shoemaker who could only speak simple English words. The reason why he was arrested in the first place was just because the simple apartment he rented happened to be next to the crime scene.In court, his neighbor, a black woman named Emma, ​​testified that shortly after the opening fire, she ran out and saw the shoemaker standing outside.Empty-handed and only in his underwear, he yelled at her in a panic: "Emma Emma, ​​sheriff, sheriff, mommy's shoes!" Repaired shoes.Emma said she thought the shoemaker was just in a hurry to tell neighbors that something had happened to the sheriff at the house of "mum," who he repaired shoes for. The fourteen-year-old defendant testified that a black teenager was involved.But at least some of his testimony proved untrue in court.The teenage defendant and his father were arrested simply because they were friends with the shoemaker and sometimes visited him in his humble shed. Some witnesses identified the defendant after the incident but denied it in court.It was also claimed that he saw the shooter wearing a raincoat, which led to the idea of ​​a raincoat. The Italian-born defendant was arrested.But in court, when the defendant's raincoat was taken out, the witness said it wasn't that one, and the color was wrong.Another eyewitness said that he saw a certain defendant at the scene, but a reporter immediately testified that he had interviewed the eyewitness and that he was very drunk.Four other non-Italian citizens testified that they saw one of the defendants selling fruit at his fruit stand at the time of the murder.A large number of citizens, Italian or non-Italian, testified that another defendant was in a theater at the time. The prosecution of this "group case" is mainly based on the speculation of motives.There are two big Italian gangs in New Orleans.In the case of two gangs fighting each other, Sergeant Hennessy is said to be presenting new evidence to reopen the trial of one of the gang leaders.It is also judged that Maceca, one of the leaders of the Italian community, is somewhat inclined to this gang, so according to "reasonable suspicion", it is speculated that this is his motive for murdering Hannish.As for the rest of the defendants in the "group", they are only Maceca's shooters and accomplices.But a close friend who grew up with Hannihy testified in court that Hannihy told him that he had no intention of getting involved in the case at all. The trial ended on March 12, 1891.Before the jury could begin deliberations, the judge directed that two of the defendants must be acquitted. The reason for this is that the prosecution did not present any evidence against either of them at all.This is extremely rare in prosecution and trial.It can be seen that the administrative branch of New Orleans at that time had become self-inflated and arrogant. The jury discussed the cases of the remaining seven.Their conclusions were in the hands of the judge the next afternoon.After opening it, for a few minutes, the judge stared silently at the conclusion in his hand without saying a word.He then announced loudly that the jury had declared a "mistrial" against three of the nine defendants because they could not reach a consensus.The remaining six defendants were "not guilty of all charges." The whole court was stunned, and a few seconds later, there was a whirlwind of angry shouts. Throughout the case, the role of the judicial process is evident.Italian-born defendants had the best lawyers available under the law.In the process of selecting jurors, the lawyers of both parties have a certain right of denial.This keeps the most extreme and prejudiced citizens legally excluded from juries.Jurors acceptable to both lawyers must be relatively neutral.On the other hand, the court provides an opportunity for a fair contest of evidence, and the final instruction for jurors' judgment is: to make a "judgment beyond reasonable doubt" based on the evidence.Therefore, the conclusions reached by this all-white jury may be different from the emotional conclusions of the majority of the entire city.Since the judgment is only a measure of evidence, the jury system cannot guarantee that the judgment must be correct, but it is relatively more likely to be fair. The judge silenced everyone, and then announced the very extraordinary decision that all defendants remain in the county jail instead of being released in court as usual.The reason he announced in court for the continued detention was that the defendants would face yet another charge: that they had lied about Hannessy's murder.If this is the judge's reason, then the just acquitted of murder In any event, it was an abuse of justice for the six of us.But afterward, the judge insisted that the reason he did this was actually because he was afraid that something would happen that day, that is to say, it was a "protective detention".What his real reason was, no one knew. Maybe the judge was really looking for an excuse to protect the defendant?Outside the courtroom, an angry and rowdy crowd has been trying to breach the cordon.Under the protection of the police, the defendants hurried away and were taken back to the prison.If they are allowed to leave the courthouse and go home now, they may be torn to pieces by the angry people if they cannot get home.The white jurors left through another exit, but were still shouted and harassed by the public. Early the next morning, a small advertisement appeared in a newspaper in New Orleans, which shocked the entire Italian community.The title of the ad is: "Mass meeting".The ad reads: "Saturday, March 14th, at ten o'clock in the morning, all the good people of this city are invited to gather in front of the Clay Statue to salvage the failure of justice in the Hannessy case. Arise and prepare for action." In the back, is A long list of sixty-one convenor signatures.It included Paxson, Mayor Shakespeare's deputy, and several members of the "Committee of Fifty". The Italian consul in New Orleans was startled when he read in the newspapers early in the morning an advertisement for a mass meeting.He rushed out immediately, trying to stop it.In his view, the meaning of this advertisement is that the local white alliance is going to incite a war against the Italian residents.He rushed immediately to the mayor's office, where the consul met the state attorney general who also arrived.However, the mayor is not there.No one knew where he was either.The two of them were like headless chickens, anxiously looking for the mayor, but precious time passed by mercilessly. March 14, 1891, it was a sunny day. At ten o'clock some six or seven thousand people had gathered before the statue of Henry Cray.The 34-year-old mayor's deputy, Paxson, and others climbed onto the statue's seat.He declared that "disreputable jurors" had exonerated "the underworld of the Mafia," and asked, "Would you like to follow me to convict the murderer?" Below, a "hang the dogaes!" response.The other ended with: "Gentlemen, let us do our duty!" They set off, and along the way, a group of about a hundred people with long guns and short guns appeared, joined their ranks, and walked at the forefront of the ranks, becoming the later "firing squad".People have never been clear about the origin of this mysterious "firing squad". It wasn't until 1955 that a 78-year-old man who died in Florida left a self-indictment, and people didn't solve the mystery.He was a member of the "Firing Squad".The "firing squad" was arranged privately by the "Committee of Fifty" in Paxson's legal office two hours after the verdict was announced.They were also asked to swear an oath to forever keep the process of setting up the "firing squad" a secret. They headed all the way to the county jail.There are black areas around the prison, and seeing a group of murderous mobs coming, the accompanying reporter heard a black woman involuntarily yelling, "Thank God, it's a good thing it wasn't a black man who killed the sheriff!" The crowd is still angrily saying that yesterday, "the mafia celebrated their victory" and "the mafia flag was flying in the street".In fact, this is the birthday of the King of Italy. Italian residents regard it as a traditional festival and have traditional celebrations.Those flying are just the flags with the Italian royal emblem.In the midst of prejudice and hatred, how easy it is for rumors to grow wings and travel through angry crowds. The Italian consul finally found the governor of Louisiana who was visiting here in the suburbs.The governor was a Confederate general during the Civil War, who fought bravely and fearlessly.He lost an arm and a foot in the war, so in January 1877, he led 3,000 Louisiana white union militiamen, drove out the state government during the post-war reconstruction period, and then took the oath in the government building Become governor. The governor is a good friend of the mayor. After listening to the Italian consul's urgency, he said that he also saw the advertisement and thought it was nothing but a "peaceful rally".Besides, he had no intention of "interfering in the internal affairs of the city hall."He said he left a message for the mayor today and asked the mayor to call him back.So it is suggested that the Italian consul wait with him.Since there was no other way, the consul, although anxious as an ant on a hot pot, could only hold on to his last hope and wait there for the time being. At this moment, nearly 20,000 citizens surrounded the county jail.Near the prison is a residential area for blacks.In order to show that their actions "represented the will of all New Orleanians", the white people invited blacks to participate, and indeed many blacks joined their ranks. In the prison, the warden knew early in the morning that the situation was not good. A dozen or so police officers guarding the gate suddenly disappeared and never came back.The warden first placed guards with long guns everywhere to protect the prison.Then rush to call the mayor. He couldn't find anyone, but he saw the noise and the mob approaching.In the end, they confronted each other on either side of the prison gate.The mob wanted him to open the prison and hand over the Italian prisoners, but the warden flatly refused.Therefore, the mob began to use various methods to try to break open the all-steel prison gate, but all failed.They remembered that on another street, there was another small gate of the prison, which was far less solid, and turned to rush there.Seeing the situation, the warden hurriedly set up most of the guards behind this small door, but of course he knew that, being outnumbered, he would not be able to defend it in the end. His last hope was to seek help from his superiors.He hurriedly called the mayor and the sheriff, but he couldn't find anyone.The warden finally despaired.He ordered all the prisoners to be locked up in cells, but called the nineteen Italian prisoners together and told them that he could not last long.He decided to let them go now, to hide and escape.However, although this prison is large, there are not many places to hide. He suggested that they hide in the women's prison department, which is relatively better.They asked the warden to give them guns.He did not agree.He said that he could only give them a short time to hide by themselves, and then he locked all the doors inside the prison to make it less unimpeded for the mob to come in. The nineteen Italian "free men" ran in all directions like crazy. The Italian consul, who was waiting at the governor's residence, finally waited until the phone rang.The state attorney general who was with him answered the phone.He answered the phone and told the consul and the governor that the mob had entered the county jail. Consul Kurt rushed out of the house and went to the county jail, trying to stop it himself.He had no idea how many mobs were there and what kind of scene it was. The small door of the prison has been smashed to pieces.The mayor's deputy Paxson and other three leaders brought sixty executioners into the prison, and the rest were held at the door.Not only did the warden's guards not resist, but they also handed over their spears to the mob, and some even pointed out the whereabouts of the fugitives.The women's department on the third floor, where six fugitives heard footsteps on the stairs, they ran across the corridor and down another staircase, but the door to the yard was locked, and the killers were already there. Under the guidance of the female prisoner, he chased after him.The six Italian fugitives stood there, watching them approaching.When they were within twenty feet of each other, hundreds of bullets fired and shattered them. The other three fugitives, including Maceca, were caught by other mobs in the corridor of the men's prison. Maceca tried to resist and was immediately beaten to death at close range.The other two were hit by bullets, and the other two who were hiding alone were also found and dragged to the corridor where they were shot.Every time there was a gunshot, there were cheers from the people outside.At this time, several leaders decided to have a public celebration. They ordered the breathing out of the victims, and one was dragged a block away to be hung on a light pole, and while he was still struggling, another burst of gunfire came. Then, another victim, who was still breathing, was hanged from a tree in the same way. Italian consul Kurt arrived.There was a carnival crowd in front of him.He saw that there were more than 2,000 women and children among the crowd. Hours of bloody massacre and celebration swept away like a storm.Satisfied, the mob mostly dispersed.In the prison, the warden Davis found eight survivors from various hidden corners, including the 14-year-old boy Marches, and the father of the boy who was also convicted of "not guilty", Together with ten other victims, he died at the gunpoint of the rioters and could never return home. According to The Encyclopedia's definition of "lynching," lynching is a form of violent execution by mobsters...to kill individuals who have committed a real or supposed crime.According to this definition, in the incident that occurred in New Orleans on March 14, 1891, a total of eleven Italian citizens were lynched to death by the mob.It was the largest and deadliest lynching in U.S. history. The "Lynching in New Orleans" incident reflected the problems and conditions of the United States at all levels in 1891.It not only reflects the situation in New Orleans, Louisiana and the South in 1891, but also reflects the situation and awareness level of a considerable part of the American people and American media at that time.在遭遇社会治安被来自意大利移民的黑手党挑战的时候，在安全普遍感受威胁的时候，民众会自然倾向于不顾一切，只求安全只求“有效打击”。尤其是民众认定的犯罪分子集中在一个陌生的群体中，和主流民众之间不仅文化隔阂，甚至语言不通。这个“族群”会自然被人贴上“标签”，他们的个人权利会非常容易遭到侵犯。 事件发生之后，在全美国，包括《纽约时报》、《华盛顿邮报》等将近一半的报纸，对“新奥尔良私刑”是持肯定态度的。理由是，“新奥尔良人的生命和财产更安全了”。 新奥尔良人“被激怒”了，不得不起来打破他们生活其下的犯罪集团的“恐怖统治”。其原因就是，当时的民众，包括在北方大城市中，都遇到陌生的意大利黑手党犯罪的威胁。 有组织的犯罪势力强大，警察系统难以奏效，寻求正常的司法程序往往失败。我们从电影中看到的情况，一点没有夸张的成分。直到今天，意大利西西里岛本身，还在为黑手党犯罪而头痛万分。 这是让我们陌生的一百年前的美国。因为在今天，美国的民众和媒体已经普遍有了比较根深蒂固的法治文化。不论是什么原因，私刑已经是一个绝对负面丑陋的词。也根本不能想象主流媒体会支持私刑。这种变化来自于美国人在历史上的两个艰巨的努力。一是尽最大的努力，使得司法系统独立、公正和有效；二是对民众的“公民”和“法治”教育。 这些历史上的教训，就是他们的孩子们受教育的教材。无疑，制度的建设是最重要的，而当我读这样的南方故事，再看看我的南方邻居和朋友们在今天的法治观念。我就知道，后一部分内容，在美国的进步中，也是绝不可缺少的。 不仅如此，这一事件也折射出，美国在建国时作为一个保留州主权的联邦，制宪时无法在宪法中解决的死角。 事件发生之后，美国总统哈里森表示这样的罪行“骇人听闻”。可是，面对意大利政府的抗议和“对家属赔偿”和“惩治凶手”的合理要求，联邦行政分支却无能为力。 根据美国宪法第十条修正案，主要的管理权利都留在州一级，其中包括司法的刑事审理和处罚权。因此联邦政府无权迫使州或者市一级起诉凶手，而联邦法庭又没有这个权力。 为了应对意大利政府，甚至连哈里森总统，都曾经指示联邦司法部长派人私下前往新奥尔良，调查私刑死难者们在汉尼希谋杀案中“确实有罪”的可能性。虽然他本人就是律师，当然知道不论他们是否“有罪”，私刑都是违法的，对被害者都是不公正的。虽然市政府试图提供所谓“证据”，联邦的调查报告仍然显示：这些受难者们，不仅没有任何证据能够证明他们涉案，也没有任何证据，能够证明他们是黑手党或者任何类似帮派的成员。 我们到达新奥尔良的那天，当地寒风刺骨，意外地飘着小雪。第二天一早，满街是南方灿灿的阳光，洒在游人们的身上。我们在老街小巷里转悠，捧着一本城市老照片集，寻寻觅觅，试着找到当年这一事件的遗迹。一百年过去了，原来是贫民居住的意大利区，现在新楼林立。当年暴民们集合的那个街口还在，那条街却已经变成了汽车大道，街心的绿化带和克雷雕像都不复存在了。就连庞大的县监狱，也已经拆掉，片瓦不存。可是，我们知道，那些意大利裔的受难者，他们并没有离去。 “新奥尔良私刑事件”给后世留下的教训，至今令人警醒。陪审团制度是美国司法中最重要的制度。法律要求陪审团根据涉案双方在法庭上按照严格程序呈递的证据，来作出他们的判决。有时候，证据并不完整。可以想象，陪审员也是人，陪审团也可能得出错误的结论。当陪审团作出的判决和民众期待的不同的时候，当陪审团的结论使愤怒的民众认为“正义没有得到伸张”的时候，怎么办？美国的司法制度要求民众，必须无条件地尊重陪审团的判决。这个制度把陪审团的判决提高到几乎至高无上的地位。在美国的司法制度下，“陪审团已经作出了判决”这句话的分量是非常重的。 一旦陪审团宣布被告无罪，任何人，即使是总统和最高法院大法官，都没有权力改变。假如不是这样，那就将是一个打不开的死结，就会引出打着伸张正义旗号的民众私刑，就会走向暴力和血腥。假如不是这样，司法就失去权威，整个法治制度都将崩溃。新奥尔良私刑事件中的意大利裔受难者们，用他们的鲜血，用他们被民众的子弹打得残碎的躯体，为后代美国人重申了非常简单却至为重要的道理，这就是今日美国人在法庭大门口经常听到的话：“陪审团已经作出了判决，我们的制度要求我们，必须尊重陪审团。”