Lynching victim's body exhumed in Florida

The body of the black kid in Florida who died after a severe beating on his first day in a state-run "boot camp" penal institution is being exhumed. Teen who died after boot camp beating to be exhumed for autopsy by David Royse St. Petersburg Times/AP 03/03/06. Royse reports

The family is disputing the conclusion of Bay County's medical examiner, Dr. Charles Siebert, that the boy died from hemorrhaging caused by the usually benign condition of sickle cell trait, and not from the 30-minute altercation. He was kneed, struck and dragged by guards on his first day at the Bay County Sheriff's Office Boot Camp for juvenile offenders. Anderson eventually was taken to a Pensacola hospital where he died the next day, Jan. 6.

The ordeal was captured by a camp security camera and later broadcast nationally. ...

Anderson died hours after he collapsed while doing push-ups, sit-ups, running laps and other exercises that were part of his admission to the camp. He entered the camp for a probation violation for trespassing at a school after he and his cousins were originally charged with stealing their grandmother's car from a church parking lot.

The security video shows as many as nine guards kneeing, hitting and dragging Anderson around the exercise yard. The sheriff's office has said the guards were trying to get Anderson to participate after he became uncooperative. No one has been charged or fired. Because of the controversy, Bay County Sheriff Frank McKeithen said he plans to close the camp in May. It is one of five in the state, run by counties under state supervision.

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