JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The city of Jacksonville will set up a historical marker, commemorating the life of 35-year-old Johnnie Mae Chappell.
Chappell, a Black woman, was killed in 1964. The bill to create the monument marker was approved by the council unanimously in September. In 2005, the Florida Legislatures set up the "Johnnie Mae Chappell Parkway" sign on New Kings Road.
However, city officials said the historic marker will be place directly where Chappell was killed.
Chappell was walking to the store to buy ice cream for her 10 children. However, she misplaced her wallet and spent time re-tracing her steps to find it. Four white men drove past her, but one of them fired a gun from out the window, hitting Chappell. According to detectives, the men intentionally went to a Black neighborhood to "get" a Black person.
Chappell's family never saw justice.
History shows evidence to Chappell's case was mishandled or it disappeared. One person went to prison for manslaughter, but served three out of the 10 years. An all white jury concluded the men were on a joyride and the gun went off by accident. Charges against the other three suspects were dropped.
The detectives who were looking into Chappell's case believed their Chief of Detectives buried the case. The Department of Justice looked back into her case in 2008, but they closed it in 2015. Councilman Rahman Johnson said Chappell's story brought one of the council members to tears. He said her story hits close because it was a story his mother shared with him growing up.
"We are literally doing the work to say, not only are we recognizing and saying her name, but we're talking about the incident," Johnson said. "And when we do, because that history is the history of all of us and when we recognize it, we can make the change we need."
There isn't a specific timeline when the historical maker will be set up. When that happens, Johnson said there will be a ceremony to commemorate Chappell's life.