Carolyn Bryant Donham has died at the age of 88 following a quiet battle with cancer.
The Daily Mail reports that Donham – whose accusations against teenager Emmett Till led to his subsequent death by lynching – Louisiana.
Emmett Till was just 14 years old when he was abducted, tortured, and murdered in 1955 after being accused of making improper advances toward Donham – a white woman – in her family’s shop in Money, Mississippi.
Last summer, the Associated Press reported how a search team that included Till’s relatives and members of the Emmett Till Legacy Foundation were looking in the basement of a Mississippi courthouse when they discovered a warrant for Donham.
The reported discovery detailed an unserved warrant – dated August 29, 1955 – for the arrest of Donham (who was identified as “Mrs. Roy Bryant” on the document).
The teenager’s family fought for justice to be brought against Donham. Credit: ZUMA Press, Inc. / Alamy“They narrowed it down between the ’50s and ’60s and got lucky,” said Stockstill, who affirmed that the warrant was authentic. The Mail adds that a grand jury was even impaneled to weigh charges against her – but jurors declined to indict her.
Despite members of the search group demanding that authorities arrest Donham with the warrant, her death means she has died without any conviction.
Roy Bryant and J.W. Milam sitting in a courtroom after being charged with murdering Emmett Till. Credit: Everett Collection Historical / Alamy.Days after Donham made the allegation that Till had reportedly wolf-whistled towards her, Bryant and Milam kidnapped the young teen from his great-uncle’s house in the middle of the night. They beat him before killing and tossing his mutilated body into the Tallahatchie river.
During their trial, Donham claimed Till had grabbed her and threatened her physically.
They would later admit to murder in a magazine interview, per the Mail, but neither man was ever brought to justice.
Both Bryant and Milam are now dead.
Woman whose accusation led to the lynching of 14-year-old Emmett Till has died
By Stefan Armitage
Carolyn Bryant Donham has died at the age of 88 following a quiet battle with cancer.
The Daily Mail reports that Donham – whose accusations against teenager Emmett Till led to his subsequent death by lynching – Louisiana.
Emmett Till was just 14 years old when he was abducted, tortured, and murdered in 1955 after being accused of making improper advances toward Donham – a white woman – in her family’s shop in Money, Mississippi.
Her allegation against the teenager was never proven or disproven. Nevertheless, after she informed her husband, Roy Bryant, about the alleged encounter, Bryant and his half-brother John William Milam abducted and murdered Till.
Emmett Till was killed when he was just 14. Credit: Everett Collection Inc / AlamyLast summer, the Associated Press reported how a search team that included Till’s relatives and members of the Emmett Till Legacy Foundation were looking in the basement of a Mississippi courthouse when they discovered a warrant for Donham.
The reported discovery detailed an unserved warrant – dated August 29, 1955 – for the arrest of Donham (who was identified as “Mrs. Roy Bryant” on the document).
Leflore County Circuit Clerk Elmus Stockstill told the publication back in June that the warrant was found inside a folder that was kept inside boxes for decades but there was nothing else to indicate where the warrant was.
The teenager’s family fought for justice to be brought against Donham. Credit: ZUMA Press, Inc. / Alamy“They narrowed it down between the ’50s and ’60s and got lucky,” said Stockstill, who affirmed that the warrant was authentic. The Mail adds that a grand jury was even impaneled to weigh charges against her – but jurors declined to indict her.
Despite members of the search group demanding that authorities arrest Donham with the warrant, her death means she has died without any conviction.
The Calcasieu Parish Coroner’s Office today confirmed that she had been receiving hospice care for an unknown cancer.
Roy Bryant and J.W. Milam sitting in a courtroom after being charged with murdering Emmett Till. Credit: Everett Collection Historical / Alamy.Days after Donham made the allegation that Till had reportedly wolf-whistled towards her, Bryant and Milam kidnapped the young teen from his great-uncle’s house in the middle of the night. They beat him before killing and tossing his mutilated body into the Tallahatchie river.
During their trial, Donham claimed Till had grabbed her and threatened her physically.
Bryant and Milam were subsequently acquitted by an all-white jury.
They would later admit to murder in a magazine interview, per the Mail, but neither man was ever brought to justice.
Both Bryant and Milam are now dead.
