The Courthouse Conspiracy

More than a hundred white men were indicted in federal court. Prosecutors say they banded together against Black citizens in a rural parish, including two named Black men. The charge is conspiracy to stop those citizens from enjoying their rights: to gather peacefully, to keep and bear arms, to vote, and to keep their lives and liberty. A jury convicted three of the men on some counts. The accused say the charges are legally empty: these are not rights the federal government protects against private citizens, so a federal court cannot punish them.