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Around the state

Race killing to be reviewed

By wire services
Published April 28, 2005

JACKSONVILLE - Gov. Jeb Bush on Wednesday asked the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to reinvestigate the 1964 slaying of a black woman.

Bush asked the FDLE to determine whether there is enough evidence to support criminal charges against three white men who were indicted in the slaying of Johnnie Mae Chappell, allegedly confessed, but never were tried. Charges eventually were dropped.

The governor's request was met with skepticism by the victim's son. "We don't need another investigation. We need to move forward and prosecute," said Shelton Chappell, youngest of Johnnie Mae Chappell's 10 children, who lives in Miami.

Johnnie Mae Chappell was shot in March 1964 as black protesters demanding equal rights demonstrated at hotels and restaurants in downtown Jacksonville.

The four suspects were indicted, but only one went to trial. A jury convicted the confessed shooter, J.W. Rich, of manslaughter, and he spent three years in prison.

TALLAHASSEE - Florida's fourth-, eighth- and 10th-graders had the same average FCAT writing scores as last year.

Fourth-graders had an average score of 3.7, and eighth- and 10th-graders averaged 3.8 on the test that is graded on a scale of 1 to 6.

The Board of Education sets 3.5 as the goal for schools to meet as it issues grades based on FCAT writing, reading and math tests.

The percentages of test takers who scored 4 or above rose slightly in all three grades.

[Last modified April 28, 2005, 01:17:11]