Illuminating Journalism from American Public Media. Each victim of the July 16, 1996 murders was murdered execution styleone or two bullets to the back of the head. He took the gun and placed it into a nearby shed. <a . That was a lie, Hallmon told APM Reports in an interview on a contraband cellphone from his prison cell. Saums believes whoever carried out the crime had inside information. LOW HIGH. In The Darks reporting on the case documented the inequities and outright barbarism of Mississippis criminal justice system. Resides in Greenwood, MS. State investigator Jack Matthews, one of those who had read Hemphill his rights, said hed only talked to Hemphill for a short time before realizing he didnt know anything. Following their Alabama crime spree, Presley and Gamble fled north to Boston, where Gamble had relatives. The police there picked up the investigation and also apparently probed the Tardy Furniture connection. Presley and Gamble were extradited to Alabama, and again Gamble was questioned, almost in passing, about Mississippi. The second season of the In the Dark podcast is about the case of Curtis Flowers, who was tried six times for the same crime. Not long after Armstrong found the gun in October 2001, two police officers happened to pull him over for speeding. When we finally found Hemphill, living in Indianapolis, he had some very surprising things to say about the case . In The Dark proved that Curtis Flowers was railroaded by an unjust system. Convicted murderer Alex Murdaugh has been sentenced to life in prison for killing his wife and son. Initially, Hemphill refused to provide further details of his whereabouts on July 16, 1996. It happens. Winona, Mississippi lies three hours west of Birmingham on Highway 82. And why didnt DA Doug Evans even consider the Presley-Gamble connection? F.T. It was a .380-caliber automatic handgun, coated in dirt and rust. Like LaSamuel Gamble, Hemphill wore Fila shoes and had a criminal record. Her new position on exactly what happened that morning is likely to be heard by a jury if Fleming faces one for a seventh time. They didnt question him about other suspects or bring up Flowers name. 23 Matches for Willie Hemphill . Authorities put together alineup later that day of black-and-white photos, and she identified Flowers from the lineup as the man she briefly saw that morning when she came outside to move her car. Steven McKenzie, the driver of the getaway car in the pawn shop murders, was arrested on August 1 in his hometown of Boston, Massachusetts. Includes Address(1) Phone(2) Email(1) See Results. Investigators John Johnson and Jack Matthews denied on the stand knowing anything about them. Passed away February 25, 2012. The funeral service will be 1pm Sunday at China Grove A.M.E. Zion Church. Why offer up another suspect? 0 Add Rating Anonymously. Its a pretty cold-hearted human being that can kill four people.. And the gun that Armstrong says he discovered is additionally important . Illuminating Journalism from American Public Media. Who was he? A bloody shoe print found in the store (left), and an investigator's sketch comparing the print to the Fila Grant Hill sneakers. In the months before the Tardy Furniture murders, Presley hit a grocery store, a fireworks retailer, three gas stations and three liquor stores. Baran said she reached out to the two state investigators who questioned Hemphill, Matthews and Wayne Miller. And Hemphill had a history of committing crimes in Winona and Memphis. Yet despite a number of theft and drug charges, probation violations, at least four domestic violence convictions and a girlfriend who alleges he stabbed her 13 times Hemphill has managed to avoid a long stint in prison. When he showed up the Montgomery County Sheriffs Department two days later, he said, they immediately cuffed him and that the investigators made it clear he was a suspect. Episode 10 of the In the DarkPodcast was largely dedicated to the strange case ofWillie James Hemphill, a local bad boy with a violent streak who was continually getting cross-ways with the law. The podcast, which uncovered evidence used by Flowers to get his conviction overturned, spoke with witness Clemmie Fleming. But we found a document showing that another man, Willie James Hemphill, had also been questioned just days after the murders. While that case was delayed for more than two years, Hallmon murdered three people, including his ex-girlfriend, Marquita Hill, and her mother. Evidence suggests that Marcus Presley was a psychopath who enjoyed random violence for its own sake. In the midst of the probe, the Mississippi Crime Lab sent a copy of the bloody shoeprint found at Tardy to the lead Boston investigator. An investigative team from American Public Media has uncovered evidence that law enforcement had at least two other suspects in the 1996 quadruple homicide in Winona that put Curtis Flowers on death row information that was not shared with his defense attorneys. Willie James Hemphill Birth 27 May 1919 Death 14 Jul 2000 (aged 81) Burial. Evans didnt want jurors comparing his tortured theory with a simple and sensible alternative. And why did Doyles brother, Emmett, run from law enforcement when they came to question him on the morning of the crime? Share via email. 0 Reputation Score Range. A series of Willie James Hemphill mugshots ranging from 2000 through 2016. "I was out of the whole jurisdiction in another state.". That said, I dont see a compelling motive, and none of these people is any more capable of pulling off an outrage on this scale than poor Curtis Flowers. After months of looking for Twanda Woods, In the Dark reporters located her a few months ago at her trailer in Winona, half a mile south of Tardy Furniture. Editor's note: This endorsement editorial was updated on . Reporters also poked holes in Hemphill . FUNERAL HOMES. He said he knew nothing about the burglary. Prosecutors have always said that Curtis Flowers was the only serious suspect in the Tardy Furniture investigation. He will be held in a county jail while its decided if he should face trial for a stunning seventh time. "Yes, sir," Snow replied. The podcasts reporters spent months methodically proving that prosecutors systematically denied black people a seat in the jury box, and how a man who is likely innocent has been repeatedly sentenced to death. Six trials and six successful appeals. It was June 21 just an hour before the U.S. Supreme Court would overturn Curtis Flowers' conviction and reporters for In the Dark had intercepted Hemphill at a courthouse in Indianapolis. Wrong Manpresented us with a small group of criminal justice professionals who started out believing that Curtis was probably the killer. "They were investigating that intently back then. Their pattern was to spend a week or so lying low before going on another rampage. Reporters spent months combing through police and court records in Mississippi, Tennessee and Indiana to compile his extensive, and at times violent, criminal history. Contacts (5) Locations (10) Family (3) Social (2) Doug Evans, the district attorney who prosecuted Flowers in all six trials, has declined to be interviewedby APM Reports and has not returned calls from the Clarion Ledger. District Attorney Doug Evans insisted he'd given the defense access to all records of the investigation. But we found a document showing that another man, Willie James Hemphill, had also been questioned just days after the murders. He lived near Tardy Furniture at the time of the murders, and near where a gun that might have been the murder weapon was found. She lived in Winston, Mississippi, United States in 1930 and Beat 2, Winston, Mississippi, United States in 1940. Evans has spoken to the Greenwood Commonwealth, most recently about APM Reports analysis of his record of striking potential black jurors vs. white juries 4 1/2 times more often. Although authorities quicklysettled on Flowers as their main suspect, he wasnt arrested until seven months later. Hemphill: A lot of people dont like to talk to the press and the police., Reporter: She was actually pretty talkative., Hemphill: Maybe she dont recall the day in question., Reporter: She actually has a really clear memory of that day., Hemphill: I dont know what she told you. Armstrong said a law enforcement officer told him the gun had been sent to the state Crime Lab, determining this .380 handgun wasnt the murder weapon. View Actual Score Check Background . In the course of these crimes, one employee was shot in the leg and another in the back (both survived) and Presley was the shooter in both cases. He was nominated for an Academy Award in the category Best Sound for the film Belfast. William is related to Alicia Kristen Hemphill . Hallmon is now serving three life sentences in Parchmanwithout the possibility of parole. When Flowers went back on trial, Armstrong heard no mention of the gun by either prosecutors or defense attorneys. At first he was reluctant to divulge who he was with that morning, but later said it was a woman named Twanda Woods. By licks he meant places to rob.. Police received a call about the murders at 10:21 a.m. (Page 3) 20181228 Willie James Hemphill Criminal Civil Records Item Preview remove-circle Share or Embed This Item. Updated: June 22, 2016 . Before he left on July 3, he said she gave him $30. We went to boot camp together., The officers denial dont make me mad, he said. It took theIn the Dark team a full year to track Hemphill down in an Indianapolis courtroom (hes still getting into trouble). The Dallas Morning News Homepage. Case Details Parties Documents Dockets . So, maybe Curtis didnt steal the gun after all. If the state Supreme Court were to order a seventh trial for Flowers, the district attorney would face a difficult task, Saums said. Nothing in the investigative file for the case explains why officers let him go. Burial will be at Barber Memorial Cemetery It was June 21 just an hour before the U.S. Supreme Court would overturn Curtis Flowers' conviction and reporters for In the Dark had intercepted Hemphill at a courthouse in Indianapolis. This score is (-15%) Above the National Average View Actual Score View Reputation Details . . One of them wore Grant Hill Fila sneakers. with Reverend Shane Russell officiating, assisted by Max Bennett. They did, however, find bullets, bullet fragments and shell casings at the crime scene. Hemphill said investigator took his shoes for a few minutes as well as his fingerprints. Sign the Guest Book . Visitation will be observed from 10:00 a.m. until the time of service. The Dallas Morning News. Armstrong questions whether Flowers could have carried out the killings of four people execution-style. Presley wasnt the only suspect defense attorneys didnt know investigators had seriously considered. Both men bounced from one traumatic living arrangement to another with no respite. Also known as Willie L Hemphill, Hemphill Wilie. Willie Headen; Willie James Lyons; Willie Love; Willie Mabon; Willie Smith; Willie Trice; Willie Williams; (1909). For Ali and the other lawyers working on Flowers' appeal at the time, this was a significant revelation. Doyle, he said, used to work for Tardy Furniture.. Despite raising earthshaking doubts about the justice system, the show ultimately conforms to the systems logic that crime, denuded of context, must be solved and punished. He allegedly committed robberies to fund a drug habit. Matthews never responded. An early suspect in the murders, Willie James Hemphill, who has a long criminal history, lived less than a mile from where Armstrong found this gun in 2011. Whoever killed four innocent people in the Tardy Furniture store on that fateful day in 1996 was familiar with armed violence and kind of liked it. When we finally found Hemphill, living in Indianapolis, he had some very surprising things to say about the case. The prosecutors had said repeatedly at trial that the only suspect seriously investigated was Flowers. In the Dark has previously reported that Hemphill was an initial suspect in the days after the July 1996 murders in Winona, Mississippi. Submit an Obituary. Goldberg doesn't remember the alibis Presley or Gamble gave, but he said following up on those wouldn't have been his job. "I think we pretty much ruled him out from the get-go," Matthews testified. Obituaries Section. Then why havent the defense attorneys who have represented Mr. Only now, a new name has surfaced. It was June 21 just an hour before the U.S. Supreme Court would overturn Curtis Flowers' conviction and reporters for In the Dark had intercepted Hemphill at a courthouse in Indianapolis. Presley and Gamble made three runs to Boston during the summer of 1996: once after their June crime spree, once after the pawn shop murders and once immediately after the furniture store murders in Winona. Willie James Hemphill in Georgia Fulton County arrested for U/S VGCSA POSS* BLOG; CATEGORIES. Eight persons linked to this address. Flowers, who had been fired from the store 13 days before the murders, reportedly owed a small amount of money to one of the owners. Asked if she remembered where she was when the murders happened, she recalled the morning clearly. It was Geraldine. Flowers has remained imprisoned the entire time, for more than 20 years. Prior to his death, Doyle came across as a passive man working hard to stay out of trouble. In 1996, four people were killed execution-style inside Tardy Furniture, which faces one of the busiest streets in the small town of Winona. View Tommy Hemphill results including current phone number, address, relatives, background check report, and property record with Whitepages. This narrative turn places In The Dark firmly, disappointingly, and alarmingly in the mainstream of the True Crime genre. After learning that Willie James Hemphill was an initial suspect in the murders at Tardy Furniture, reporters for In the Dark wanted to find out if he'd ever broken the law before. Hallmon told APM Reports that he became a prosecution witness in spring 2001 after being arrested on multiple drug charges. Willie James Hemphill, age 37, Justice, IL Search Report. It hurts my feelings.. In the sixth trial, inmate Odell Hallmon testified that Flowers told him about carrying out the Tardy murders, helping lead to Flowers conviction. And in the first Flowers trial, in 1997, he testified that "there were numerous suspects" in the early days of the investigation. The similarities between the crimes were striking. 0 Reputation Score Range. 1 hr 4 min . Robert Reid Hemphill's brother, James Calvin Hemphill, was born in Due West, South Carolina, on May 18, 1850. By the end of the two episodes devoted to the Flowers case, they had all abandoned Curtis as a suspect. When In The Dark spoke to Woods, she denied the two were together. Information APM Reports obtained from the Montgomery County Sheriffs Department through a public records request shows Hemphill was held for 11 days in jail. Jessie Mae Hemphill [1]1923-2006 Blues musician, singer, songwriter, guitarist, percussionist Blues musician and vocalist Jessie Mae Hemphill [2] was a paradox. WINONA Renowned pathologist Dr. Michael Baden said evidence he reviewed of the 1996 Tardy Furniture slayings suggests more than one personcarried out the quadruple murder. Willie James Hemphill was confronted in an Indianapolis courthouse last week, 23 years after police deemed him an initial suspect but later pursued leads against Flowers. Following that arrest, Hemphill committed crimes nearly continuously for the next three decades. - Law enforcement had interviewed a different suspect with a violent criminal history, Willie James Hemphill - a fact which was not disclosed to the defense. Wiilie Hemphill passed away in Bryan, Texas. Injustice flourishes in the darkness, and the sun is now blazing in the heavens (at least for Curtis Flowers). He testified in multiple trials that the other images in the photo lineup were just "filler pictures," chosen "at random" based on some resemblance to Flowers. Their names are Michael Lee Boies , Crystal Davis , and six others. The fourth and fifth trials ended with hung juries. So, if Curtis Flowers isnt guilty, who is? All times AEDT (GMT +11). "I haven't heard anything about them," John Johnson, the investigator for the District Attorney's office, had said when questioned about the Alabama suspects at the sixth Flowers trial. State investigator Matthews told the jury he didnt check Hemphills alibi, ruling him out by conversation alone. Can Marcus Presleys affidavit be trusted? What are we supposed to think? Username. But this week she told journalist Madeleine Baran that she was wrong. "I don't know nothing about it.". He told the Commonwealth, I think these (APM Reports) folks are just coming up with anything they can to discredit the case. Presley and Gamble had developed a simplemodus operandi. Quantico National Cemetery. If youve listened toIn the Darkor watchedWrong Manon the Starz channel, you either came away convinced that Curtis Flowers didnt kill four people in cold blood back in 1996 or you werent paying attention. Hours after the killings, authorities interviewed Flowers, who said he had been babysitting the children of his girlfriend, Connie Moore, and also gone to his sister's home and a nearby store. Where were you?, Hemphill: I was in your p***y. There is little doubt that Hemphill has done terrible things. He attended Erskine College, where he earned a A.B. After finding the weapon, Armstrong wondered how the gun had wound up under the house his mother was renting on Knox Street, only 700 feet or so from the furniture store. Their reporters know better than anyone that Hemphill wouldnt get a fair trial. View More. It wasn't that day." Shortly after the killings, police arrested Hemphill, then 24, who was wearing a pair of the Grant Hill Fila shoes. "If he's guilty, he's guilty.". The truths going to come out.. "He would have just told me everything and anything at that point," Goldberg said. NEWSPAPERS. The ugly facts of Hemphills past werent ugly enough for the podcast In The Dark emphasized its clear disdain of him. Evidence that prosecution witnesses may have given false testimony could potentially get Flowers' conviction overturned, said Bennett Gershman, a former prosecutor who now teaches law at Pace University. On July 19, the Clarion Ledger did just that, finding wires, broken concrete blocks, parts of childrens toys and a plastic dog bone. Fleming had said six times since 1996 she saw Flowers running from the store on the morning of the murders. You can send your sympathy in the guestbook provided and share it with the family. Law enforcement witnesses had testified under oath in Flowers sixth trial that Presley was never a suspect. Willie James McDaniel Funeral services for Willie James McDaniel will be held at 12:00 p.m., Wednesday, January 26, 2022, at Hemphill Star Church in Boyce, La. The host, Madeleine Baran, carefully noted that only some of evidence seemed to point in Hemphills direction, even though a flimsy case was enough to almost execute the man her show just found innocent. He's shown a fearlessness about committing brazen attacks and thefts in daylight with high risks and low payoff, in places close to where he's lived and where people are more likely to recognize him. WIILIE HEMPHILL OBITUARY. At the time of his first known arrest, in 1990, he was an 18-year-old high school dropout bouncing back and forth between his mother's house in Memphis, Tennessee, and Winona, where his grandmother lived. Illuminating Journalism from American Public Media. Psychologist John R. Goff tested Flowers, concluding his IQ was 75. Search by Name. Flowers parents have long believed in his innocence, visiting him in prison.