William Millings
Will Millen was a Black man held in the jail at Brighton, Alabama, in early August 1908. A mob took him from the jail and hanged him from a tree near the town, and his body was found in sight of the town's settled area. The town marshal said he had locked the jail and later found the door open and the lock undone, while the jailer said he had gone to sleep and knew nothing of the mob. The sheriff said he heard no disturbance, and a coroner's jury adjourned its inquest with more witnesses still to be examined.
Cause of death, as reported: Taken from custody and lynched. A coroner's jury investigated the hanging of Will Millen, taken from the Brighton jail by a mob, and adjourned pending further witnesses; the marshal said he had locked the jail and later found the door open and the lock unlocked.
Reported by: coroner's jury (medical examiner or coroner); town marshal; sheriff.