One of the defendants in a Seminary cross-burning case from October 2017 has been sentenced.
According to the DOJ, 38-year-old Louie Bernard Revette will spend 11 years in prison after admitting to building and burning a wooden cross near the home of a juvenile victim identified only as M.H., who lived in a predominantly African-American residential area of Seminary.
Revette and his co-defendant, Graham Williamson, burned the cross to threaten, frighten, and intimidate M.H. and other African-American residents because of their race and because they lived in and occupied residences in that area of Seminary, the DOJ stated.
“Those who instill fear and terror into our neighbors and our fellow citizens because of the color of their skin will face the full weight and force of the law from the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” said U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst of the Southern District of Mississippi. “There is absolutely no place in our society or our country for this type of behavior, and we will do all that we can to prevent these racist acts and bring to justice those who are intent on committing these crimes.”
“All Mississippians have the right to feel safe in their communities, but crimes like these only tear open wounds that are still healing,” said Michelle A. Sutphin, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Mississippi.
Williamson pled guilty to similar charges in August and will be sentenced in November.
