by Darcia Helle
When I hear the phrase “Trial by Media”, I think of high profile cases like OJ Simpson’s trial for murdering Nicole Simpson and Ron Goldman. I think of Nancy Grace and the other pundits who pronounce their opinions as fact, all the while taking great pleasure in creating the lynch mob mindset among their viewers. But this phenomenon isn’t limited to TV, nor is it something new to ‘modern day’ life. The more I read about old murder and death penalty cases, the more I realize that the media has been responsible for public opinion and trial verdicts since the invention of the printing press.
Recently I read an advanced copy of a book called Until You Are Dead, Dead, Dead: The Hanging of Albert Edwin Batson by Jim Bradshaw and Danielle Miller. The book is dry, at times difficult to follow, and better suited as discussion for a college course than a casual read for the true crime fan. The case itself, however, is a compelling example of trial by media.
In 1902, Ed Batson was a soft-spoken, 21-year-old migrant worker from Missouri, who’d never been in serious trouble, and according to all who knew him, had no propensity toward violence. He’d been working in the rice fields of Welsh, Louisiana when he was accused of brutally murdering an entire family. In 1903, despite conflicting and, at best, circumstantial evidence, Batson was hanged for the crime.
Before Batson was even placed under arrest, the local media went to work proclaiming his guilt. One early article published by the Signal, stated:
“Batson’s motive for wiping out the Earll family is a mystery unless it was for getting hold of the mules [which] is [too] preposterous for belief. If he had any grudge against the Earlls, or any one of them, it is not known here and his tigerish thirst for blood is beyond understanding. Some are inclined to think the man became insane, being unable to believe he could have butchered his victims as he did had he been in his right mind.”
On the day of the Earlls’ funeral, the Weekly American printed a provocative piece, describing the scene with unflinching detail:
“…next came two drays bearing the battered remains of the Earll family, butchered by the fiend Batson.”
The same article closed by emphasizing Batson’s guilt:
“…where in one immense grave the bodies of Batson’s victims were laid to rest.”
At the time of the murders, a “tramp” had been seen in the area. This was mentioned once, early on, but never followed up on by media or, more importantly, by police. The community had Batson, a poor migrant, as an easy target, and, for whatever reason, their scapegoat for the murders. No murder weapon was ever found. No plausible reason was ever given for Batson killing the family. He’d never had any sort of confrontation or other incident with any one of them that might have raised suspicions. Regardless, Batson had worked for the family, and therefore his close proximity was all the community needed to declare him guilty.
One Lake Charles newspaper, on the day of Batson’s arrest, led their story with this headline:
“Swift Justice for Ed Batson. Despicable Wretch Arrested Last Evening.”
Long before Ed Batson was arraigned, a headline in the New Orleans Picayune called him: “Batson, the Butcher”.
At the time of the Earll murders, the town of Welsh, Louisiana had a population of only 320 people. Everyone knew everyone else. Consequently, it’s easy to understand why no one there wanted to believe one of their neighbors could have committed such a horrible crime. That doesn’t explain why the issue of the tramp wasn’t explored, though it might simply be that he was unknown and long gone, and therefore not accessible.
Although Batson’s close proximity to the crime contributed to his conviction, the newspaper reporters ensured his guilty verdict. Every potential juror living in or anywhere around Welsh, Louisiana read the papers which declared Batson to be a murdering butcher. During the time Batson was held in the local jail, the police actually allowed the local people to parade through, ogle, jeer, and otherwise gawk at him. Batson was a caged animal, a man to despise, a sideshow event.
Fortunately, we no longer allow our citizens to parade through a jail and throw apples at the accused. But we do plaster their faces on the TV screen, the computer screen, and the pages of newspapers. The media, and particularly the talking heads who earn their money by 
spewing venom, offer a slanted perspective, a one-sided image of the person they want us to revile. Mainstream media, in its many forms, is largely responsible for establishing public opinion. It’s a psychological fact that once an opinion is formed, people cling to those beliefs even in the face of conflicting information or outright contradictory proof.
Ed Batson was put to death for a crime he, in all likelihood, did not commit. Otherwise intelligent jurors pronounced him guilty, not because of what the evidence said, but because of what the media said. Our justice system is fragile, reliant on independent thought free of prejudice. Maybe it’s time we expected those same qualities from our news media.
Please click to below to view Darcia’s Helle’s many excellent posts:
“Met Her on the Mountain”: Cold Case Social Worker Hog-Tied, Raped and Killed in Appalachia
Jovial Private Bartender Snaps; Assaults and Drags Obnoxious 84-Year-Old Club Patron
Frank Lloyd Wright and the Great Gasoline Mass Murder
“The Wrong Carlos”: Non-Violent Manchild Executed for Murder He Did Not Commit
The Electric Chair Nightmare: An Infamous and Agonizing History
Autopsies: Truth, Fiction and Maura Isles and Her 5-Inch-Heels
Don’t Crucify Me, Dude! Just Shoot Me Instead! Spartacus and Death by Crucifixion
To Burn or Not to Burn? Auto-Da-Fé Is Not Good for Women or Children!
The Disgraceful Entrapment of Jesse Snodgrass: Keep the Narcs Out of Our Schools
Why Should I Believe You? The History of the Polygraph
“Don’t Behead Me, Dude!”: The Story of Beheading and the Invention of the Guillotine
Aileen Wuornos, America’s First High-Profile Female Serial Killer, Never Had a Chance
The Terror of ISO: A Descent into Madness
Al Capone Could Not Bribe the Rock: Alcatraz, Fortress of Doom
Cyberspace, Darknet, Murder-for-Hire and the Invisible Black Machine
Darcia Helle lives in a fictional world with a husband who is sometimes real. Their house is ruled by spoiled dogs and cats and the occasional dust bunny.
Suspense, random blood splatter and mismatched socks consume Darcia’s days. She writes because the characters trespassing through her mind leave her no alternative. Only then are the voices free to haunt someone else’s mind.
Join Darcia in her fictional world: www.QuietFuryBooks.com