Man Charged with Burning Cross in Driveway

A recent cross burning at the home of a Panama City mixed-race couple does not signal the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan; it was the symptom of something understandable to anyone who’s ever been afraid of losing someone.

LB Williams, a 50-year-old black man, his wife of nearly seven years Donna Williams, who is white, and their bi-racial daughter found a cross burning in their driveway Nov. 4. Their grandchild was home too.

“When I saw that cross burning, I was scared to death,” Donna Williams said. “I was terrified…we all were.”

They called police and reported it. {snip}

“It started out as a hate crime [investigation] based on the information that we had at the time,” said Sgt. Jeff Becker with the Panama City Police Department.

It was odd though; the investigator told Donna Williams that whoever left this symbol of hate and fear to burn in the driveway probably didn’t want to damage the lawn or burn down the house.

Two days later, Donna found a note taped to the front door and the side entrance of the house. She paraphrased:

“They were watching us, I assumed me and the kids, and that I better not leave that [N-word],” Donna Williams said. The note was signed “KKK.”

{snip}

“When did the KKK start supporting black and white, interracial marriages?” she asked.

Police thought so too. On Monday, LB Williams admitted to setting the fire and posting the notes, according to the arrest affidavit charging him with two felonies: domestic violence stalking and exhibits that intimidate. He did it, he said, so she wouldn’t proceed with the divorce she filed for.

{snip}