NAACP President: Black Leaders, Too, Should Be Accountable in Maryland Jail Death

A young black man suspected in the death of a white police officer turns up dead in his jail cell, an apparent victim of strangulation. Echoes of racism and revenge killing reverberate through Prince George's County, which has a history of tension between black residents and white law enforcement officials. The suspicion among many blacks -- based on historical precedent -- is that a white jail guard killed Ronnie White, 19, to avenge the death of Prince George's Cpl. Richard S. Findley, 39, who was run down last week by a pickup truck allegedly driven by the accused.

But even if that proves true, the fact remains that the county's new black leadership campaigned on a pledge to change the system and, at the very least, put an end to vigilante justice by law enforcement officers.

"The leadership has to be held accountable, regardless of their race," June Dillard, president of the county chapter of the NAACP, told me yesterday.