John Wesley Wilder

John Wesley Wilder, 32, was shot five times and killed by Ruston Police Officer Edward Nugent outside a cafe on Jones Street around 2 a.m. on July 17, 1965. Nugent said he stopped to question Wilder and another Black man, Billy Williams, after hearing shouting from the group; when Wilder allegedly refused to give his name and a struggle followed, Nugent drew his pistol and fired. The Ruston Police Department said Wilder had attacked Nugent while resisting arrest, and a coroner's inquest — which the coroner said was based on interviews with unidentified officers and three Black witnesses — ruled the shooting justifiable self-defense; no charges were ever filed. Wilder's brother Emzie disputed the official account, saying witnesses described only about 15 bystanders present, far fewer than police suggested, and warned he would seek help from the NAACP and CORE if Ruston authorities failed to act. A 1965 civil suit by Wilder's family did not succeed. The FBI reopened the case in 2008 under the Emmett Till Act; after three years, during which the Bureau was unable to locate some potential witnesses and others could not recall the incident, the case was closed again in 2011 without further action.

Ruston, LA · Lincoln County

• 1965: Case opens — victim reported missing or found.
• Documented milestones (renewed investigation, media coverage, family advocacy) to be added as sourced.
• Present: case remains unresolved. No named suspect has been convicted.

• Victim identity and the July 17, 1965 date and circumstances, per the DOJ's public case file and PBS FRONTLINE's “Un(re)solved” case summary.
• Officer Edward Nugent was never charged; a coroner's inquest ruled the shooting justifiable self-defense, and the DOJ's 2011 review closed the case without further action.

• Whether Wilder actually attacked Nugent, as police claimed, was disputed by his family and community witnesses at the time.
• The exact number of bystanders present, and what they told investigators, was never made fully public.

• U.S. Department of Justice — Notice to Close File
• Type Investigations — “A Death Ruled ‘Justifiable’: The Killing of John Wesley Wilder”
• Project Cold Case
• Murder Accountability Project
• NamUs