Joseph Dumas

On May 5, 1962, Constable Henry Sauls, the white subject, fatally shot Joseph Dumas, the 19-year-old African-American victim, during a traffic stop. According to witnesses, the subject shot the victim in the back while the victim was standing still with his hands in the air. This matter was presented to the local grand jury in 1962, but the grand jury declined to indict the subject on any criminal charges. The subject was tried in federal district court under 18 U.S.C. § 242 and acquitted in September 1962.