52: The Socialite & The Gardening Shears: The Murder of Idella Thompson

In 1948, a Delta Mississippi socialite named Ruth Thompson Dickins, hacked her mother to death with gardening shears. She blamed the murder on a “negro” man she claimed attacked her as well. But a jury of 12 white men didn’t believe her, in Mississippi, in 1949. That fact alone is incredible. But with her prominent family, wealthy and aggressive “cotton man” husband and the backing of the elite white people of her town and county, the governor of Mississippi was finally badgered into suspending her sentence after she served only six years. Sponsor: AwayTravel.com | MyLola.com Promo: Going West: True Crime Podcast I’ll be in New Orleans for CrimeCon this year! It’s June 7-9th. To buy your ticket, use promo code FRIEDCRIME19. I hope to see y’all there! Written, hosted and produced by Erica Kelley Original Graphic Art by Coley Horner Original Music by Rob Harrison of Gamma Radio https://southernfriedtruecrime.com https://www.facebook.com/southernfriedtruecrime https://www.patreon.com/southernfriedtruecrime https://whatamaneuver.net/collections/southern-fried-true-crime (merch shop) @southfriedtruth (Twitter) @southernfriedtruecrime (Insta)