Three Racist Teens Who Went ‘Hunting for Black People’ and Killed Black Man Sentenced to Prison

The three teenagers killed James Craig Anderson in June of 2011 when they decided to go “hunting for black people.” Anderson was run over by a truck driven by one of the teens.

Deryl Paul Dedmon, 22, will serve 50 years in prison, John Aaron Rice will serve 18-and-a-half years, and Dylan Wade Butler will serve seven years after all three were convicted of a hate crime for the murder.

Surveillance footage from the hotel parking lot in Jackson where the crime was committed caught Dedmon backing up his Ford truck before running Anderson over near the curb.

Anderson’s sister, Barbara, spoke at the sentencing, expressing how upset she was that her brother’s life was taken “at the hands of these strangers with eyes full of hatred.”

The three teens targeted black people that they thought were homeless or drunk because they would be less likely to tell police, prosecutors said.

In addition to Anderson, there were other victims assaulted by the group of teens, beginning in April of 2011 and continuing until Anderson’s death in June of the same year.

Dedmon apologized for his callous act at sentencing.

“I want to tell the Anderson family how truly sorry I am,” Dedmon said.

Before handing down their sentences, U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves spoke about the race crime perpetrated by kids.

“The sad thing is these … hunts were instigated by our children, these kids,” the judge said. “The victims were targeted because of their race. These three defendants and others made a joint decision to act on racial hatred.”

Seven others involved in the harassment are yet to be sentenced.

Joseph Paul Dominick, William Kirk Montgomery, Jonathan Kyle Gaskamp, Sarah Adelia Graves, Shelbie Brooke Richards, John Louis Blalack and Robert Henry Rice all face prison time either for their involvement in previous assaults, Anderson’s death, or both.