James Byrd Jr.

James Byrd Jr. is documented in the ColdCaseIndex database as a homicide case in Jasper, Texas. The events are dated to June 7, 1998. The victim is recorded as 49 years old and male. The last known information on record places the case at June 7, 1998, Jasper, TX.

Within the ColdCaseIndex taxonomy, James Byrd Jr. is filed under Homicide with a status of Conviction. A homicide entry documents a killing in which the perpetrator has not been identified, has not been convicted, or where the case is otherwise historically notable. The record is cross-referenced under the themes homicide, hate crime, Texas, conviction, civil rights, racial violence, which connect it to related cases across the database.

The James Byrd Jr. case ended in a criminal conviction. It is retained in this index as a historically significant case — one whose investigation, prosecution, or aftermath shaped forensic practice, criminal law, or the public understanding of violent crime.

Primary jurisdiction for the James Byrd Jr. case rests with local law enforcement in Jasper, supported by Texas state investigative authorities. The case sits within a wider national picture: the U.S. homicide clearance rate has fallen from roughly 90% in the 1960s to about 54% today, and more than 346,000 homicides recorded since 1965 remain unsolved. ColdCaseIndex documents individual cases like this one to keep them publicly visible and searchable.