Arthur Stanley Dearman, the retired editor and publisher of The Neshoba Democrat, died Saturday in Florida, the newspaper reported. He was 84.

Dearman edited the Democrat from 1966 to 2000.

Dearman was a legend in Mississippi journalism, known particularly for his career-long crusading work that led to a conviction in the 1964 abduction and slayings of civil rights workers Andrew Goodman, Michael Schwerner and James Chaney in Neshoba County.

Dearman’s insistence on pursing justice in the case was cited as a key factor in the 2005 conviction of Edgar Ray Killen for manslaughter.

The University of Mississippi’s Meek School of Journalism and New Media in 2007 honored Dearman with the Samuel Talbert Silver Em Award, the school’s highest honor in journalism.

Services will be Tuesday at 11 a.m. from McClain-Hays Chapel with Dr. Dan Howard officiating, the newspaper said.


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Co-editor of Mississippi Today since November 2015. USA TODAY reporter and editor, 1986-2015. The Clarion-Ledger reporter, 1977-83; on team that earned 1983 Pulitzer Prize For Distinguished Public Service. Ole Miss journalism degree, 1977. Contact: fred@mississippitoday.org