{"id":9109,"date":"2015-02-06T11:27:18","date_gmt":"2015-02-06T19:27:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=9109"},"modified":"2015-02-06T11:29:21","modified_gmt":"2015-02-06T19:29:21","slug":"former-kkk-secretary-sentenced-10-months-prison-lying-grand-jury-news-video","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=9109","title":{"rendered":"Former KKK Secretary Sentenced to 10 Months in Prison for Lying to Grand Jury (News Video)"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Pamela<\/a>
Pamela Morris (Source: FaceBook Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

ALABAMA<\/strong> – The former secretary of a chapter of the Ku Klux Klan in Ozark, Alabama was sentenced to 10 months in prison for lying to a federal grand jury about a cross-burning incident involving her son and others, officials announced Friday.<\/p>\n

U.S. District Court Judge L. Scott Coogler<\/strong> also gave Pamela Morris<\/strong> three years of supervised release for committing perjury during a grand jury\u2019s investigation into a racially motivated cross-burning.<\/p>\n

Morris, 47, previously admitted during her plea hearing on June 12, 2014, that she lied to a federal grand jury investigating a cross-burning committed by Steven Joshua Dinkle<\/strong>, Morris\u2019s son and the Exalted Cyclops (president) of the local KKK, and Thomas Smith,<\/strong> another KKK member.<\/p>\n

\u201cActs that target individuals and communities for violence based on race have no place in our society,\u201d said Acting Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta of the Civil Rights Division.<\/strong>\u00a0 \u201cNor can we tolerate those who lie under oath to obstruct the pursuit of justice.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Cross Burning Incident Involved the Following Facts, according to authorities:<\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  • On May 8, 2009<\/strong>, Dinkle and Smith burned a six-foot tall cross at the entrance to a black neighborhood in Ozark to threaten and intimidate residents.<\/li>\n
  • Several witnesses observed and were frightened by the cross, including a young man returning from choir practice as the defendants set the cross ablaze.<\/li>\n
  • In sworn testimony before the grand jury, Morris made several false statements, including denying that she had been the secretary of the Klan or involved with the KKK at all.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    In pleading guilty, officials said Morris admitted that she had been an officer of the KKK and that her testimony denying any connection to the organization was false.<\/p>\n

    She further acknowledged that she knew Dinkle had committed the cross-burning.\u00a0 In addition, Morris admitted that she testified falsely to prevent the grand jury from learning about other KKK members who had information relevant to the investigation.<\/p>\n

    Dinkle is currently serving a 24-month sentence imposed on May 15, 2014, for his conviction on hate-crime and obstruction-of-justice charges related to the cross-burning.\u00a0 Smith, Dinkle\u2019s co-conspirator, was sentenced to five years of probation on Aug. 19, 2014.<\/p>\n

    \u201cMs. Morris blatantly lied to the grand jury in an attempt to protect herself and to protect a cross burner,\u201d said U.S. Attorney George L. Beck Jr.<\/strong>\u00a0“Ms. Morris lied after she swore to the grand jury that she would tell the truth.\u00a0 For our system of justice to protect the rights of all, those who testify before the grand jury must provide accurate and honest information. \u00a0If someone fails to tell the truth while under oath, we will prosecute them.”<\/p>\n