A Death in Texas
Dina Temple-Raston
A book-length account for readers who want more detail.
1998 · Jasper, Texas
James Byrd Jr.
The racist killing that helped change hate-crime law
Forty-nine-year-old James Byrd Jr. was murdered in Jasper, Texas, in June 1998 after three white men chained him to a pickup truck and dragged him along a road. The killing and subsequent trials exposed racial divisions and helped spur hate-crime reforms.
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The Story
When1998
WhereJasper, Texas
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Two Towns of Jasper
Whitney Dow and Marco Williams · PBS POV
A documentary perspective to explore alongside the written sources.
James Byrd Jr. — Part 1 — 163
True Crime Garage
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Where are they now?
1 itemsAbout these sources
Dated updates, not live custody records. Check the source date before treating information as current.
Axios · April 25, 2019
John William King’s execution in 2019
Dated reporting records King’s execution. The case involved three defendants; this update concerns King only.
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Nicknames & media names
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Blogs & Essays
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Blogs & essays
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Outside essays and reading guides reflect their authors’ perspectives. Compare claims with reported and primary sources.
Kirkus Reviews
A DEATH IN TEXAS
A review considers A Death in Texas and its account of James Byrd Jr.’s murder and the response in Jasper.
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Books
CONTINUE YOUR READING
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Books
1 itemsDina Temple-Raston
A Death in Texas
Reported nonfiction about the murder and Jasper’s response to it.
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Movies & TV
Movies
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TV & documentaries
1 itemsAbout these sources
Episodes, documentaries and title listings. Season and episode numbers follow the linked catalog and can differ by service. Air dates are separate from crime dates. Playback availability varies by service and region.
Whitney Dow and Marco Williams · PBS POV
Two Towns of Jasper
A documentary examining different perspectives in Jasper during the murder trials. PBS provides historical program information; viewing availability is separate.
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Audiobooks
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A Death in Texas
Search Audiobook Editions · paid linkDina Temple-Raston
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Fiction Work
Fiction Work
Browse all →Scripted stories and fictional inspirations. Scenes, characters, and dialogue can differ from the record.
No verified fictional adaptation or inspiration has been identified in this collection. Nonfiction coverage is listed in the other media sections.
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Podcasts
Podcasts
1 itemsAbout these sources
Audio episodes and oral histories. Personal recollections are attributed perspectives; some services require sign-in.
True Crime Garage
James Byrd Jr. — Part 1 — 163
Direct first episode in the show’s coverage of Byrd’s murder.
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Social Media
BRING YOUR PERSPECTIVE
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News & Reading
More Reading & Audio
2 sourcesExplore book records, previews, library audiobooks and selected documents. Access labels distinguish free material from library loans and paid subscriptions.
Library of Congress · Free Article
Race-Based Crimes | Explore | Drawing Justice: The Art of Courtroom Illustration | Exhibitions at the Library of Congress
Publicly accessible source material and historical context related to this story.
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Google Books · Catalog / Availability
A Death in Texas
Dina Temple-Raston. Related reading for James Byrd Jr.. Book information and any pages made available by Google Books; this is not a promise of full-text access.
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Reading Access Notes
Search reviewed 2026-09-16. Sources searched: Google Books, Internet Archive, Open Library, Library of Congress, Smithsonian Magazine, The Atavist Magazine, Google Books (case/title search), Scribd, Everand, OverDrive and hoopla (combined title search). Search indexing is incomplete; this is not an exhaustive list of the web. Access can change by edition, country and library membership. Library loans may require sign-in or a wait. Everand titles may need a paid subscription; a trial is not permanent free access. Scribd documents are third-party uploads, with uploader details noted where checked. We link to source pages and write our own descriptions rather than reproducing copyrighted books.
A separate Texas Monthly search was blocked by the publisher’s automated-access rules and could not be verified.
News & reporting
1 itemsLos Angeles Times · June 22, 1998
A Father’s Lament
Contemporary reporting on Byrd’s father and the aftermath. Subscription access may apply.
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Newspaper clippings
0 itemsFeatured newspaper clipping
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Internet Archive
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Court & Files
Court records & documents
1 itemsAbout these sources
Documents are labeled by type and scope. Allegations in filings are not findings of guilt. This collection is not the complete case file.
Court document
King v. Texas — brief in opposition
A state party’s filed brief concerning John William King. This is advocacy in a court filing, not an opinion by the Supreme Court. Contains graphic descriptions.
U.S. Supreme Court docket 18-8970 · April 24, 2019
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Positive Outcome
Positive Outcome
1 itemsAbout these sources
Documented laws, advocacy and reforms. Listing a change does not claim it is effective or universally supported.
Federal · enacted 2009
The federal law named for James Byrd Jr. and Matthew Shepard
The 2009 act strengthened federal hate-crime enforcement and added protected categories. Byrd and Shepard are distinct cases connected to the same law; the act is not a finding about the effectiveness of every resulting policy.
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Social Media
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