Rosalynn Carter was never a lawyer. But the former first lady used her powerful posts to address injustices imposed as part of the racist Jim Crow system that prevailed in Georgia courts as her husband climbed the political ladder.
The most personal of those cases for Rosalynn and Jimmy Carter involved Mary Prince Fitzpatrick, who met the Carters in Georgia’s Governor’s Mansion and went to Washington as White House nanny to their daughter Amy, with a felony murder conviction still on her record and the president of the United States as her parole officer.
The Carters were certain that Mary Fitzpatrick, who reverted to her maiden name, Prince, was wrongfully convicted, and they stuck by her until she ultimately was exonerated.
Read this story now for free
To continue reading, sign up for our newsletter and get unlimited access to WABE.org
You can select your preferences for news and local content. We will never share your email address. Learn how your newsletter sign-up will support WABE and Public Media
