Died in jail or a lockup
Nevlin Porter
Nevlin Porter, a Black man, was held in the Oktibbeha County jail in Starkville, Mississippi, in May 1879. Around midnight on May 3, about 121 masked men went to the sheriff's home and obtained the jail keys, then confined the jailer in a cell. The group took Porter and another Black man, Johnson Spencer, from the jail. A coroner's inquest jury found that Porter died at the hands of that group in the early morning of May 4, 1879.
Cause of death, as reported: Taken from custody and lynched. A coroner's inquest jury found Porter died at the hands of a masked group that took him from the Oktibbeha County jail after the sheriff handed over the keys.
Reported by: coroner's inquest jury, Oktibbeha County, Mississippi (medical examiner or coroner).