Researchers Aim to Bring Truth to Light for Racially Motivated Civil Rights Cold Cases

February 20, 2026

A DeKalb County, Georgia woman, Mary DeBardelaben, has discovered the truth about her grandmother Hattie's death in 1945 through records released by the Civil Rights Cold Case Review Board. The documents revealed that four law enforcement officers in Autaugaville, Alabama killed Hattie while searching for illegal whiskey, beating her to death in her own yard after she defended her nephew. A bipartisan bill authored by Senator Jon Ossoff has passed the Senate and awaits House approval to extend the review board's mandate, which was originally established by Congress in 2018 to investigate thousands of racially-motivated killings and civil rights violations.

Who is affected

Mary DeBardelaben (granddaughter seeking truth about her grandmother's death)
Hattie DeBardelaben (victim killed by law enforcement in 1945)
Families of victims of racially-motivated killings and civil rights violations from unsolved cases
Over 4,400 Black Americans killed in lynchings between the Civil War and the civil rights movement (according to the Equal Justice Initiative)
James Collier (Hattie's nephew who was beaten by officers)
Mary's father (who witnessed his mother's death and was traumatized)

What action is being taken

The Civil Rights Cold Case Review Board is excavating, releasing, and reviewing records with the FBI, Department of Justice, and National Archives
The review board is releasing cases and thousands of pages of records to families
Senator Jon Ossoff's bipartisan bill to extend the review board has passed the Senate and is awaiting passage in the U.S. House

Why it matters

This matters because it brings justice and closure to families who lost loved ones in racially-motivated killings that remained unsolved for decades, some dating back to the Jim Crow era. The truth-telling process helps the nation confront its history of racial violence, with over 4,400 Black Americans lynched between the Civil War and civil rights movement. As Professor Klibanoff stated, releasing these records and acknowledging the truth is essential for the country to come together as a people and properly understand how devastating events during the Jim Crow era affected different families.

What's next

The bipartisan bill to extend the Civil Rights Cold Case Review Board awaits passage in the U.S. House
Review board members hope to release more cases, giving other families answers
Mary DeBardelaben wants to have her grandmother Hattie's name added to the National Memorial for Justice and Peace in Montgomery, Alabama

Read full article from source: The San Diego Voice & Viewpoint