Verdict in mock trial of Bushwhacker William Quantrill surprises even his portrayer

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Verdict in mock trial of Bushwhacker William Quantrill surprises even his portrayer
Friday, October 25, 2013 | 8:39 p.m. CDT; updated 9:58 p.m. CDT, Friday, October 25, 2013
BY LANDON WOODROOF
COLUMBIA — Confederate guerrilla William Quantrill may have once whistled Dixie, but he never faced the music.

Until Thursday night at the Missouri Theatre. There, the man who led the raid that burned Lawrence, Kan., to the ground, resulting in the deaths of more than 150 civilians, finally stood trial.

For the rest: http://www.columbiamissourian.com/a...lliam-quantrill-surprises-even-his-portrayer/
 
lol I'm guessing the verdict may have been different had this been done somewhere other than Missouri.

"Kill any man or boy big enough to hold a gun," Quantrill is reported to have said.
Over the next four hours, more than 150 civilians were slaughtered.
The motive was revenge"

Not guilty by reason of being on our side! Pretty much how these trials would have gone down in real life for both sides which is probably why the choice was mostly just to move on and try to live together.
 
Frank James was put on trial for murder in Missouri. There were several ex-Confederates in the all male jury, and Frank was acquitted. Joe Wheeler was tried for murder in Alabama (as an accessory) in the early 1870s and acquitted. There was a lot of that going around.
 
Frank James was put on trial for murder in Missouri. There were several ex-Confederates in the all male jury, and Frank was acquitted. Joe Wheeler was tried for murder in Alabama (as an accessory) in the early 1870s and acquitted. There was a lot of that going around.

Frank was such a celebrity by the time he handed his gun to the Governor and he knew how to play the public very well. The whole trick was not getting extradited to Minnesota because they would have hung him for Northfield.

Here's a recent book I liked on the gang and the Northfield raid.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/0061989479/?tag=civilwartalkc-20
 
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Frank was such a celebrity by the time he handed his gun to the Governor and he knew how to play the public very well. The whole trick was not getting extradited to Minnesota because they would have hung him for Northfield.

Here's a recent book I liked on the gang and the Northfield raid.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/0061989479/?tag=civilwartalkc-20
A long time ago I read up on the James Gang, but nothing lately. It always surprises me how they stay in the public mind. The Brad Pitt portrayal was scary indeed.
 
I hate to bring in present (sort of history) but a key element in Claus von Stauffenberg's armistice / peace proposal to the allies was that German Courts would be responsible for trying those accused of war crimes. Which, of course, was unacceptable. That, also, by the way, was a condition of the Japanese surrender - until Hiroshima.
And I really don't recall any of those vicious Yankee generals murdering (ok killing) unarmed civilians. Am I wrong there?
 
And I really don't recall any of those vicious Yankee generals murdering (ok killing) unarmed civilians. Am I wrong there?

Well, when we're talking about Quantrill, we're kind of talking about a different war. In some places out west the fighting wasn't much like what we traditionally think of as Civil War battles. It was more local and personal and often just on the level of guerrilla bands hitting back and forth. Out there the fighting had started before the war and horrible things happened on both sides. What happened in Lawrence was more notable for the scale of the attack rather than the nature of it or which side did it.
 
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Well, when we're talking about Quantrill, we're kind of talking about a different war. In some places out west the fighting wasn't much like what we traditionally think of as Civil War battles. It was more local and personal and often just on the level of guerrilla bands hitting back and forth. Out there the fighting had started before the war and horrible things happened on both sides. What happened in Lawrence was more notable for the scale of the attack rather than the nature of it or which side did it.


I couldn't agree with you more about the wars in the west. The issue was opened by the defense in this trial if you read the description.....

"How can we say Quantrill is guilty of these crimes if Gen. Lane is not, if Gen. Sherman is not, if Gen. Custer is not?" asked Troy Stabenow, the lead defense attorney and a federal public defender in real life, during closing arguments."

I am not going to go into "you're another" arguments, it is just that IMHO the prosecutor in the trial was ignorant of the facts and did not go thru this enormous hole that the defense opened up.
 
Verdict in mock trial of Bushwhacker William Quantrill surprises even his portrayer
Friday, October 25, 2013 | 8:39 p.m. CDT; updated 9:58 p.m. CDT, Friday, October 25, 2013
BY LANDON WOODROOF
COLUMBIA — Confederate guerrilla William Quantrill may have once whistled Dixie, but he never faced the music.

Until Thursday night at the Missouri Theatre. There, the man who led the raid that burned Lawrence, Kan., to the ground, resulting in the deaths of more than 150 civilians, finally stood trial.

For the rest: http://www.columbiamissourian.com/a...lliam-quantrill-surprises-even-his-portrayer/

Enjoyed this. Thanks for posting.
 
"How can we say Quantrill is guilty of these crimes if Gen. Lane is not, if Gen. Sherman is not, if Gen. Custer is not?" asked Troy Stabenow, the lead defense attorney and a federal public defender in real life, during closing arguments."

Oh yeah, the defense was full of spit. I didn't realize you were referring specifically to that.
 
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