Killing of R. D. Skinner in Louisiana in 1931

Incident

Case summary

R. D. Skinner, 40, a highway construction worker and WWI veteran, was killed in 1931 in a drive-by shooting in Bentley, Louisiana. Skinner was asleep in a tent at a highway construction camp when three men in a car fired multiple shots. Another worker, Ed Ivory, 38, was wounded. The shooting was apparently part of a series of violent acts by white men angered by the employment of Black men on highway projects. No arrests were made.

Victim(s):

R. D. Skinner


Date of incident: 1931-08-16
Location: Grant Parish, Louisiana
Location type: public space - rural
Allegation against victim: having "race prejudice"; being employed while many whites were unemployed; resentment

Coroner process
Coroner/inquest: [ ]
Finding of no legal responsibility: [ ]

Criminal process
Arrest: [ ]
Charge/indictment/information: [ ]
Grand jury: [ ]
Trial: [ ]
Conviction: [ ]
Sentence: [ ]


Document(s):
death certificates
news articles - closed
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