Killing of Baxter Bell in Tennessee in 1935

Incident

Case summary

Baxter Bell, 29, a railroad laborer, was killed in 1935 by five white men, Luther, Jesse, James and Clyde Dotson, and Allie Brown, in Cheatham County, Tennessee. A white woman accused Bell of slapping her. Bell was arrested and put in jail. The men kidnapped and shot Bell. Trial jury acquitted. An essay on this case, researched and authored by a CRRJ student, is available on request

Victim(s):

Baxter Bell


Alleged perpetrators/other named individuals:

Allie Brown

Jesse Dodson

Clyde Dodson

Jimmy Dodson

Luther Dodson

Perpetrator group type: [ ]

Date of incident: 1935-11-04
Location: White Bluff, Dickson County, Tennessee
Location type: public space - rural
Allegation against victim: slapping a white woman

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

Criminal process
Arrest: yes
Charge/indictment/information: yes
Grand jury: yes
Trial: yes
Conviction: yes
Sentence: some were fined and sentenced to less than a year in jail


Document(s):
advocacy group resources
court records
death certificates - closed
federal agency records
news articles - closed
Data Fields
To learn more about data fields, refer to the data dictionary.
Cite this Page
Refer to how to cite.