Former Anniston Star editor Paul Rilling dies

ANNISTON, Ala. (AP) - Former Anniston Star editor Paul Rilling has died.

The east Alabama newspaper reports that the longtime journalist died Sunday at a health care facility in Anniston. He was 94.

Rilling worked as a writer and editor at The Star from 1973 until 1989. He taught and continued writing in retirement, producing a column about the paper’s news coverage.

In the 1960s, Rilling was director of the Atlanta region of the U.S. Office for Civil Rights, which was responsible for monitoring racial desegregation. He resigned because he believed it was clear that the Nixon administration wasn’t going to be as forceful as the Johnson administration in enforcing the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Rilling is survived by his life partner, Linda Voelkel.