05/06/2026
It's hard to accept that Stanley Nelson --one of Louisiana's greatest journalists who dug into the most brutal Ku Klux Klan murders to find answers for the victims' families--has been gone for a year.
The LSU Cold Case Project was created in 2009 to help Stanley with his work. Stanley later became an adjunct professor at LSU's Manship School to help run the project and guide students who are carrying on his work.
After he died on June 5, 2025, The New York Times, the Washington Post and NPR all published appreciations of what he had done. Listen to the piece by NPR's Joe Shapiro to feel how vital Stanley and his work were.
RIP, our friend.
Stanley Nelson, the editor of a small-town weekly newspaper in Louisiana, exposed secrets about unsolved murders by the Ku Klux Klan. Nelson died this week at the age of 69.
