Reputed Klansman appeals to U.S. Supreme Court

JACKSON, Mississippi (AP) -- A reputed Ku Klux Klansman convicted of kidnapping two black men 43 years after the abductions wants the U.S. Supreme Court to decide if the statute of limitations had passed.

James Ford Seale was convicted in June 2007 of abducting two 19-year-olds who authorities say were beaten, weighted down and thrown into a Mississippi River backwater in 1964.

Seale was serving a life sentence when his conviction was thrown out last year by a panel of three 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals judges. The entire 5th Circuit overturned the panel's decision on June 5.

Seale's attorneys filed a motion Friday asking for the Supreme Court to decide the issue.

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.