Disasters in Death Introduction I. Roosevelt Collins, a black man in Alabama, was convicted of rape, sentenced to death, and executed in 1937. Roosevelt testified that the “victim” who was white had consented to sex, which caused a near-riot in the courtroom. The all-white jury deliberated for only FOUR minutes. Later interviews with several jurors revealed that although they believed the act was consensual, they also thought that he deserved death simply for “messin’ around” with a white woman. Even the judge, off the record, admitt ....