The FBI is defending its decision to exhume the body of Emmett Till against criticism printed in Chicago newspapers that they are using the body as a trophy.
"They are misinformed about what we are trying to do. There have been allegations that we are 'showboating' the body when we really should be apologizing to the family for waiting 50 years to conduct the autopsy," said Robert J. Garrity Jr., special agent in charge of the Jackson field office.
Garrity faxed letters to the Chicago Sun-Times and Chicago Tribune Friday stating "It is the FBI's absolute obligation to pursue justice…even in the face of dissension. The investigation has now progressed to a point where the exhumation and examination of Till's remains are essential."
The investigation is expected to yield forensic evidence to use in a court of law. District Attorney Joyce Chiles requested the assistance of the FBI in the investigation last year.
The murder took place nine years before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 gave the FBI authority to investigate cases of abused civil rights.
Till was visiting his uncle in Money from Chicago. He disappeared after reportedly whistling at a white woman in a store. His body was found three days later in the Tallahatchie River.
A statute passed in 1994 gave the FBI. authority to investigate the murder of travelers from out of state.
The U.S. Justice Department reopened the 50-year-old murder case after a documentary by New York director Ken Beauchamp revealed new leads.
Since that time, Garrity says the FBI has been looking for residents of Money who had a connection with the killing and following up on eyewitness accounts from the night of Aug. 28, 1955.
On May 5, the Cook County, Ill., medical examiner made a request to autopsy Till's body, which is buried in the Chicago suburb of Alsip. No autopsy or conclusive cause of death was pronounced when Till was buried.
Garrity's letter also states "In any homicide investigation, it is essential to establish the identity of the victim and the cause of death… The examination of Till's body will also reveal details about his death which will corroborate or disprove statements made by various person."
DNA tests done on the body will be matched by swabs taken from family members. The tests hope to verify the identity of the body which his mother was only able to identify by a ring on Till's finger.
Authorities from the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology and the Smithsonian will be present at the autopsy, which is expected to take place within the upcoming weeks,
Roy Bryant and J.W. Milam were acquitted for the murder. Later that year, both men confessed to the murder in a Look magazine interview.
Both men have since died, leaving the FBI to investigate whether anyone else was involved in the conspiracy.
It is important to Garrity that the public understands there was no other recourse to take in a homicide investigation than an exhumation.
He insists the autopsy will be done with sensitivity and respect.
"Whether or not this case results in an indictment will not be because the FBI didn't try," said Garrity.
