Violence is no stranger in Sabine County
I ain’t afraid of your Yahweh,
I ain’t afraid of your Allah,
I ain’t afraid of your Jesus,
I’m afraid of what of what you do
In the name of your god.
— Holly Near
I’ve tried my best to find out the name of the self-described “minister of the gospel” who showed up at a rally for Beto O’Rourke in Hemphill Saturday, toting an AR-15 on a shoulder strap along with a pistol stuck in a hip holster.
Fortunately, whatever god he bows down to didn’t tell him to mow down the crowd of 40 or 50 people in attendance, though I’m pretty sure he wasn’t the only one in attendance packing heat. There were some back-row brethren (and sisters, too) who might have been more inclined, but I digress. I only saw the event via video feed.
Don’t get me wrong, I am a true believer in the true God. I would not typically doubt the honesty of anyone who also professes to believe but this preacher’s sermon of actions spoke so much louder than his words, I simply could not hear him.
Watching this scene, you have to wonder if O’Rourke gets a knot in the pit of his stomach at times like this wondering to himself, “Is this the moment? Is this when it happens?”
Yet he soldiers on. Later Saturday in Port Arthur he would face the Proud Boys, a rowdy group of hooligans, who tried to deny him entry to an event in that working class town. They were unsuccessful, but not for want of trying.
My first thought about that day of campaign was, “Dang, Greg Abbott must really be afraid he is going to get beat.”
Still, the scene in Port Arthur left me with a different feeling than the one in Hemphill. The Proud Boys were looking for coverage, to be played on the news stations.
I’m not saying that the Proud Boys (shouldn’t they really be called the Shameful Boys?) in all their foolishness aren’t capable of murderous mischief because they are, but it is the back-row brethren like those in Hemphill who are capable of the real violence.
But you may not know the whole story about Sabine County and Hemphill or perhaps you’ve just forgotten. It was Christmas Day, which is difficult to forget but some years back, 1987. You’d think, though, that murder on Christmas Day would be unforgettable.
I’m guessing the people who live Sabine County remember the name Loyal Garner Jr. quite clearly. They should teach about Garner’s death in the school house but of course they won’t. Some might be afraid it indicates the solid truth of Critical Race Theory.
We can’t have that.
For those who don’t remember, Garner, a truck driver from Florien, La, who was driving through Sabine County early on that Christmas morning. They were stopped by deputies for being black, er, I mean for suspicion of drunk driving.
Oddly, they were never given a field sobriety test or breath test or even blood test. They were just taken to jail.
Garner had never been in jail before — he didn’t have any record at all — so he can be forgiven for believing that procedures might work as he had seen on TV. He wanted a phone call to his wife. He wanted someone to know where he was.
The duly hired police chief at the time, Thomas Ladner, declined the request. So, Garner and his friends began clanging on jail bars with metal cups.
None of them knew what they were doing was a capital crime, punishable by death. At least it was Christmas morning 1987, maybe that law is no longer being applied.
Ladner convicted Garner right then and there, though. He took a nightstick, or leaded blackjack or something and didn’t even offer so much as a final meal.
Ladner. Beat. Loyal. Garner. To. Death.
Ladner and two other men — former Sabine County deputy James Hyden and former deputy Bill R. Horton — were charged.
The first trial, as can happen in East Texas, was a pure sham and the three lawmen were found not guilty. I don’t believe there is any truth to the rumor that they were all toasted and given cigars by the town council but they weren’t branded as villains, either.
The state couldn’t bear such injustice though and sent special prosecutor Jack Skeen of Gregg County to really try the men for murder — the first charge had been that they violated Garner’s civil rights.
So far as I am aware, though, the town of Hemphill — white folks, anyway — backed “their” blue all the way. At least in Sabine County at the time, Black Lives didn’t matter one little bit.
Fortunately, justice prevailed even in the face of stupidity and racism. All three were found guilty.
All three men went to prison, but all finished serving their sentences long ago. Horton died in 1995. I could find no information on the others.
O’Rourke made some mention Saturday of coming back to Hemphill in a year if elected so people could tell him if he was doing a good job. I think he was serious about that promise, but I would strictly advise against it.
Time moves slowly in Hemphill, but the movement of attitudes is downright glacial. The back-row brethren don’t speak much but, even through a video, I could sense the violence within them. Let’s avoid another tragedy, please.
If you found this newsletter helpful, please consider supporting the effort through subscribing. It is free.
Phil Latham writes another newsletter on Substack, “American Slave Stories,” which aims to keep the memory of those who were enslaved alive. If interested, you may subscribe at $5 per month.