A second man has been charged in a federal hate crime. multiple news outlets report a court filing which accuses Graham Williamson of building a large wooden cross near the home of an African American family in Seminary, Mississippi and lighting it on fire.
Williamson is the second person to be charged in the case which another Mississippi man, Louie Bernard Revette, pleaded guilty to back in April of 2019.
READ MORE: Mississippi man pleads guilty to cross burning
In his plea, Revette admitted that he traveled to what he knew to be a predominantly African-American residential area of Seminary and then left the area, to later recruit a co-conspirator to build a cross to burn near the home of a juvenile victim identified as M.H. The co-conspirator along with Revette constructed the cross using materials from in and around Revette’s residence, placed the cross near M.H.’s home, and lit it on fire.
Revette also admitted that he built and burned the cross to threaten, frighten, and intimidate M.H. and other African-American residents because of their race and color, and because those individuals lived in and occupied residences in that area of Seminary, Mississippi. Revette acknowledged that he knew burning crosses have historically been used to threaten, frighten, and intimidate African-Americans.
Revette faces a maximum total sentence of 20 years in prison and a $500,000 fine. His sentencing has been scheduled for August 20th. If convicted, Williamson will also face similar sentencing.
