On Friday, Republican Governor Rick DeSantis honored four men, known as the “Groveland Four,” with a monument following a pardon last year.
Charles Greenlee, Walter Irvin, Samuel Shepherd, and Earnest Thomas were all accused of raping 17-year-old Norma Padgett and attacking her husband in Groveland, Florida, in 1949. Irvin, Shepherd, and Greenlee were arrested and brutally beaten while in custody. Two of the three men were coerced to confess, though Irvin refused. Meanwhile, Thomas was killed before he could be arrested. He was taken and lynched by an angry mob who was led by then-Lake County Sheriff, Willis McCall.
The three men were then convicted by an all-white jury, and both Shepherd and Irvin were sentenced to death. However, Greenlee was sentenced to life since he was 16 at the time.
During Friday’s event, DeSantis called the conviction of the four a “miscarriage of justice” and that a pardon “brought justice to the historical record.”
The memorial, located in Tavares, FL, outlines the crimes committed against the young men by the justice system.
While the three men who were sentenced have all passed away, their families were present for the dedication.
“I think we haven’t reached the end of the road, but we have come a long way,” said Carol Greenlee, the daughter of Charles Greenlee, who was present at the monument ceremony. Her father was just 16-years-old when the all-white jury sentenced him to life in prison.
“Give me hope that we will make that final push for exoneration,” Greenlee added.
