Writing this book has been a labor of love over several years. Along the way, I have been blessed by the advice and encouragement of scores of great people. Some are mentioned in the book, many are not. Be assured, I am thankful to you all, although I must immediately single out my wife and inspiration, Louise, who has been my constant and wise consultant.
Although I had ideas about this book relatively soon after finishing the Cherry trial, it was my friend, the Pulitzer Prize–winning author Rick Bragg, who sat me down in my law office and sketched out how best to put it together. For advice, I have also often turned to another Pulitzer winner, Diane McWhorter, who has likely forgotten more than I will ever know about civil rights history in Birmingham.
Over the years, my fellow lawyer Kirk Wood would constantly needle me with: “When you going to finish that book?” Finally, recognizing that my day job was getting in the way of my writing, he introduced me to Steve Townsend, a gifted journalist whose additional reporting was invaluable to getting this project off the ground.
Kirk also connected me with my literary agent, Lois de la Haba. From our first meeting, she let me know she saw something special and timely in the story. Lois lent her creativity to help build the manuscript and, along with her associate Marilyn Myers, offered advice for specific changes. If there is a patron saint of this book, it is Lois. It was she who introduced me to my collaborator, Greg Truman, an incredibly talented storyteller with insight into how best to weave many facets of a story into a single body of work. My gratitude and respect for him as a writer is eclipsed only by the enduring friendship that we developed.
All Points Books Editorial Director Adam Bellow and the team at St. Martin’s and All Points have been models of patience, efficiency, and professionalism. Adam is rightly revered in the publishing world and I have benefited immensely from his astute guidance.
Back home in Birmingham, my longtime legal assistant Tyler Florence has been multi-tasking and laboring hard on my behalf for years. Bending Toward Justice might not have been completed for another ten years had it not been for Tyler.
Many of the prosecution team are still plying their trade in the South. I am privileged to have worked with them. Robert Posey, Jeff Wallace, Don Cochran, Bill Fleming, Ben Herren, Bob Eddy, Robin Beardsley, Amy Gallimore, Bill Smith, Andy Sheldon, Steve Paterson, and Norma Silverstein also helped me compile this story.
Rob Langford and Caryl Privett deserve special recognition for having the foresight and courage to re-open the bombing investigation, and I need to salute the vision of former Jefferson County District Attorney David Barber and former Alabama Attorney General, now Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals judge, Bill Pryor. Their actions allowed me to stay on the bombing cases when they were taken from federal control and placed in state hands.
I am also lucky to have led a U.S. Attorney’s office of rare talent. I am particularly indebted to my old team of Bud Henry, Joe McLean, John Ernest, and Mike Rasmussen, Jim Lewis, Will Chambers, Cindy Kelly, China Davidson, and Stephanie Braswell.
I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge the early investigative work by the many FBI agents and personnel who did so much immediately following the bombing to try and bring the perpetrators to justice. And of course, to construct our case, I had to climb onto the shoulders of Bill Baxley and his team of lawyers and investigators, headed by Bob Eddy, who prosecuted Robert Chambliss in 1977. Along with my old boss, Senator Howell Heflin, another great public servant, Bill serves as an inspiration and example for my service in the Senate.
I am a United States Senator today because of the thousands of folks in Alabama and across the country who contributed to my campaign. I am indebted to every one of them, and thankful beyond expression to my core campaign team: Giles Perkins, Doug Turner, Kent Haney, Nancy Ellisor, Joe Trippi, Thomas Rossmeissl, Wade Perry, Beau Bowden, Jess Vaughn, Garrett Stephens, Trey Forrest, Chris Mosley, and Bennet Murray. When Giles started formulating my campaign, he was a two-year survivor of pancreatic cancer. As of this writing, he is a three-and-a-half-year survivor. He is a remarkable human. When a history of Alabama politics is written in coming decades, Giles Perkins will be credited for initiating overdue change.
Special recognition also goes to my law partner, Greg Hawley. We were young turks when we first met in the ’78 Heflin campaign. We finally established a practice together in 2013. Along with partner Chris Nicholson, longtime friend Cissy Jackson, and Tyler, the law firm kept humming along while I pursued my campaign.
Finally, this story begins and should end with Denise McNair, Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Morris Wesley, Carole Robertson, and their families. More than any other event from the civil rights era, the girls’ deaths galvanized the conscience of a President, the Congress, and the American public. An important part of the history that is often overlooked is the fate of the “fifth little girl,” Sarah Collins Rudolph, who has lived with her injuries and the horror of the day for most of her life. With the support of husband, George, Sarah’s faith has sustained her.
The girls’ families deserve a special place in history. They have made enormous personal sacrifices so we could all be enlightened and enriched. I am thankful that some of them lived long enough to see some manner of final justice for their children.