He Calls Me by Lightning: The Life of Caliph Washington and the Forgotten Saga of Jim Crow, Southern Justice, and the Death Penalty

This account of 17-year-old Caliph Washington’s wrongful conviction for a 1957 murder serves as a piercing primer on racism in the American justice system. On July 12, 1957, on a deserted Alabama highway, there was a deadly encounter between 17-year-old Caliph Washington, a black teenager, and James “Cowboy” Clark, a white policeman. Convicted of murder and sentenced to execution the following October, Washington was ultimately released on Mar. 17, 1971. Historian Bass (Blessed Are the Peacemakers) keeps a sharp focus on the town of Bessemer, Ala., known for a “general climate of violence” and corruption, as he proceeds through Washington’s multiple trials and appeals in his lengthy trek through local, state, and federal jurisdictions. The book includes detailed accounts of legal maneuvers and decisions, complemented by biographical sketches of just about everyone involved—judges, lawyers, prosecutors, policemen, politicians, fellow prisoners, and Washington’s family and friends. A casual reader may get lost in the thicket, but the details—such as the technical workings of the electric chair or a discussion of the salaries of prison guards—are eye-opening and carve out deeper complexities of the American justice system. 25 illus. (May)