Deep Delta Justice was a fascinating read about civil rights law and the South in the 1960s. It begins with the case of Gary Duncan, who stops at the side of the road to intervene in an interaction between his young cousin and some white children, which leads to racially-motivated charges and a case that eventually goes to the Supreme Court. Note that Gary Duncan and his case are not the key focus in this book, however. Instead, we are treated to a history of various counties in Louisiana, key (white supremacist) political leaders who unfortunately had a huge impact at that time in their efforts to stop desegregation, and the civil rights lawyers who fought against these injustices. Van Meter is able to create an interesting and educational account of the time by drawing on historical records and personal accounts from some of the people whose stories are told. A very worthwhile, fascinating, and educational read.

Thanks to the author, Brown Little and Company, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an e-galley.

The excellent research done in this account makes this court case that changed the course of Southern social injustice compelling reading. To think that if you were black, you could be charged with “cruelty to juveniles” for putting your hand on the arm a a young white man to stop a fight. The case is brought to life and shows exactly what the climate and culture of the era were like. If you liked Just Mercy, you’ll want to read this.

Gary Duncan stops when he sees four white boys picking on his younger relative and a friend on the side of the highway in Plaquemines parish. Knowing that racial tensions have been running high, he decides to pull over and make sure that everything is okay. When he learns that the four boys have been bothering his family member, he gently touches one of them on the elbow and asks them to leave them alone. The boy runs home and tells his family that Gary assaulted him. Gary is soon thrown into a battle for his liberty as he begins a legal battle that lasted over 3 years for a gesture that lasted a few seconds. Matthew van Meter profiles Gary and his defense lawyer, Richard Sobol, as they take on the bigotry that was rampant in Louisiana. This book also profiles the civil rights movement as a whole in the state of Louisiana as we learn about the process of desegregating schools and overcoming the obstacles to help black people vote.

There is great detail in this book about not only the legal cases but Richard and Gary’s lives. The civil rights movement is explained thoroughly and you can tell that the author researched this work meticulously. The writing was heavy with legal terms at times which sometimes made it a bit difficult to follow. I really enjoyed the full scope that van Meter provided about the civil rights battle as a whole during the late 1960s in Louisiana as well as the update at the end about all of the people involved in the case. This gave me intense insight into some of the injustices black people were facing less than sixty years ago. As horrific as the treatment of Gary Duncan was, I feel like I learned a lot from this book and it’s an important read to gain perspective.

<i>An intervention on the side of the road turned into a junky, Jim Crow misdemeanor - unjust but less egrigious than hundreds of others that year all over the south and the nation. That case...changed American law.</i>

in 1966, in Plaquemain, Louisiana, Gary Duncan, a 19-year-old black man spotted his young cousins in what looked to be a confrontation with three white boys. In his attempt to stop a possible fight, he touched one of the white teens. He had no idea that this encounter would have such a profound effect, not only on him, but the country as a whole.

Gary was arrested and convicted of Cruelty to Juveniles. Despite the Civil Rights Act of 1964, segregation was still rampant in many parts of the United States but especially in the south and Plaquemine was no exception. Gary's lawyer, a young idealistic northerner who had come to Louisiana to help black defendants, appealed the conviction on the grounds that it violated Duncan's right to a jury trial. At the time it was understood that the right to a jury trial referred only to the federal court. However, Sobel knew there was a a push to apply the Bill of Rights to the states so, despite the rather long odds against winning, Richard decided to demand a a trial by jury in Gary's case. The appeal went all the way to the Supreme Court eventually overturning the conviction. Although it eventually became clear that there were limitations to the application of Duncan v. Louisiana, it 'opened the way for changes in criminal procedure that have affected the outcome of millions of cases'.

Deep Delta Justice by Matthew Van Meter is non-fiction but, despite the subject matter, it is no dry tome, accessible only to lawyers and academics. In fact, it is as compelling and unputdownable as any novel. It is well-written and well-researched using both primary and secondary sources including interviews with Gary and his family. Although the court case is the main focus of the book, Van Meter also looks at the political climate in Plaquemine at the time including the leading political figures and the pushback against lawyers like Sobel, as well as outlining some of he major civil rights issues like voter suppression, public funding for private schools, and racial inequalities within the justice system, issues that still challenge the legal system to this day.

<Thanks to Netgalley and Little Brown and Company for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review</i>