Harris v. South Carolina

Mr. Justice Murphy and Mr. Justice Rutledge join.

On Sunday morning, April 28, 1946, Edward L. Bennett and his wife were killed in their store in Aiken *69County, South Carolina. Bennett’s last words were, “A big negro shot me and robbed me.” Petitioner, Harris, age twenty-five, a slightly built Negro, was subsequently indicted in the Court of General Sessions for Aiken County and found guilty of the murder of the Bennetts. The jury’s verdict required imposition of the death sentence. The Supreme Court of South Carolina denied the claim that a confession introduced at the trial was obtained under…