White supremacist James Harris Jackson reportedly shared the reason why he killed a black homeless man – to stop white women from dating black men.
During an exclusive interview from Rikers Island with the New York Daily News , the 28-year-old Army veteran spoke about his upbringing with “typical liberal” parents, being afraid of being killed in custody and regretting not having the chance to kill more African-American men.
Jackson traveled from Baltimore to New York on March 17 and stayed at The Hotel at Times Square. Initially, he stalked a black man, but got “spooked.” Then at 11:30 pm EST, he began berating 66-year-old Timothy Caughman as he sifted through garbage collecting cans. It wasn’t long before Jackson stabbed Caughman several times in the back with a 26-inch sword. Jackson quickly fled the scene and ran into the bathroom of a local diner to wash off the blood. Caughman stumbled into the Midtown South precinct and was taken to Bellevue Hospital where he died from his injuries.
Jackson hoped that by killing multiple black men, white women would be too scared to entertain interracial relationships. “ ‘Well, if that guy feels so strongly about it, maybe I shouldn’t do it,’” he said.
In a twisted form of regret, Jackson admitted he didn’t know Caughman was a senior citizen and would’ve preferred to kill “a young thug” or “a successful older black man with blonds … people you see in Midtown. These younger guys that put white girls on the wrong path.”
His initial plan was thwarted after he became “depressed.” “I saw it was too late. It’s irreversible,” he said, adding, “I didn’t want to put my family through any more pain.”
Jackson turned himself into police the next day and is being charged with murder as a hate crime, but oddly didn’t understand why.
“I don’t hate anyone,” he said.