On This Day, Feb. 5: White supremacist convicted of killing Medgar Evers

UPI Staff
·3 min read
Police investigate the home of Medgar Evers, field secretary for the NAACP, who was shot to death by a sniper early June 12, 1963, outside his home in Jackson, Miss. On February 5, 1994, white supremacist Byron De La Beckwith was convicted of the 1963 killing of Mississippi civil rights leader Medgar Evers. UPI File Photo
Police investigate the home of Medgar Evers, field secretary for the NAACP, who was shot to death by a sniper early June 12, 1963, outside his home in Jackson, Miss. On February 5, 1994, white supremacist Byron De La Beckwith was convicted of the 1963 killing of Mississippi civil rights leader Medgar Evers. UPI File Photo
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Feb. 05 (UPI) -- On this date in history:

In 1631, British clergyman Roger Williams, who founded the colony of Rhode Island, arrived in Salem, Mass., seeking religious freedom.

In 1918, a German U-boat torpedoed the SS Tuscania, sinking the liner as it transported thousands of U.S. troops to Europe. More than 200 died, the rest were rescued by other ships in the convoy.

In 1919, screen legends Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks and D.W. Griffith formed United Artists.

In 1937, President Franklin D. Roosevelt proposed expanding the Supreme Court to up to 15 justices, prompting accusations he was trying to "pack" the court. He dropped the plan later that year.

On February 5, 2007, U.S. astronaut Lisa Marie Nowak was arrested after she drove from Houston to Orlando, Fla., to confront another naval officer. File Photo courtesy of the Orlando Police Department
On February 5, 2007, U.S. astronaut Lisa Marie Nowak was arrested after she drove from Houston to Orlando, Fla., to confront another naval officer. File Photo courtesy of the Orlando Police Department

In 1945, U.S. troops led by Gen. Douglas MacArthur returned to Manila, liberating the Philippine capital from Japanese authority.

File Photo by US Army/UPI
File Photo by US Army/UPI
The SS Tuscania was torpedoed and sunk on February 5, 1918, as it carried U.S. troops to Europe. File Photo courtesy Wikimedia
The SS Tuscania was torpedoed and sunk on February 5, 1918, as it carried U.S. troops to Europe. File Photo courtesy Wikimedia

In 1971, Apollo 14 astronauts Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell were on the moon for 4 hours. They were the fifth and sixth astronauts to walk on the moon since Apollo 11 in 1969.

In 1989, the last Soviet troops left Kabul, ending a nearly decadelong involvement in a war between Afghanistan's communist government and Muslim rebels. All troops left the country by within weeks of the vacating the capital.

President Richard Nixon (2nd-R) awards the moon-voyaging astronauts of Apollo 14, Edgar Mitchell (L), Stuart Roosa (2nd-L) and Alan Shepard (C) with NASA’s Distinguished Service Medal at a White House dinner on March 1, 1971. Shepard and Mitchell walked on the moon February 5, 1971. File Photo by John Full/UPI
President Richard Nixon (2nd-R) awards the moon-voyaging astronauts of Apollo 14, Edgar Mitchell (L), Stuart Roosa (2nd-L) and Alan Shepard (C) with NASA’s Distinguished Service Medal at a White House dinner on March 1, 1971. Shepard and Mitchell walked on the moon February 5, 1971. File Photo by John Full/UPI

In 1994, white supremacist Byron De La Beckwith was convicted of the 1963 killing of Mississippi civil rights leader Medgar Evers.

In 2003, making a case for U.N.-endorsed military action in Iraq, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell accused the Saddam Hussein regime of deceiving U.N. weapons inspectors and having ties with the al-Qaida terrorist network.

President Franklin Roosevelt waiting in his car outside the White House ca. 1936. On February 5, 1937, Roosevelt proposed expanding the Supreme Court to up to 15 justices. File Photo by Library of Congress
President Franklin Roosevelt waiting in his car outside the White House ca. 1936. On February 5, 1937, Roosevelt proposed expanding the Supreme Court to up to 15 justices. File Photo by Library of Congress
File Photo by Ezio Petersen/UPI
File Photo by Ezio Petersen/UPI

In 2007, U.S. astronaut Lisa Marie Nowak, a naval officer, was arrested on several charges, including attempted kidnapping, after she drove from Houston to Orlando, Fla., to confront another officer she viewed as a romantic rival for a fellow astronaut. Nowak eventually pleaded guilty to lesser charges, avoided prison and was forced to leave the Navy.

A man jumps down off of a damaged Soviet-era tank in Kabul, Afghanistan, on September 2, 2009. On February 5, 1989, the last Soviet troops left Kabul, ending a nearly decadelong involvement in a war between Afghanistan's communist government and Muslim rebels. File Photo by Mohammad Kheirkhah/UPI
A man jumps down off of a damaged Soviet-era tank in Kabul, Afghanistan, on September 2, 2009. On February 5, 1989, the last Soviet troops left Kabul, ending a nearly decadelong involvement in a war between Afghanistan's communist government and Muslim rebels. File Photo by Mohammad Kheirkhah/UPI

In 2023, Beyoncé set a new record for most Grammy wins of all time with her 32nd award.

File Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI
File Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI