On This Day, March 31: William Calley sentenced for My Lai Massacre

Danielle Haynes
·3 min read
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William Calley, pictured in 1969, was convicted in 1971 for his role in the My Lai Massacre during the Vietnam War. File Photo courtesy of the U.S. Army
William Calley, pictured in 1969, was convicted in 1971 for his role in the My Lai Massacre during the Vietnam War. File Photo courtesy of the U.S. Army

March 31 (UPI) -- On this date in history:

In 1889, the Eiffel Tower was dedicated in Paris in a ceremony presided over by its designer, Gustave Eiffel, during the Universal Exhibition of Arts and Manufacturers.

In 1906, the Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States (later renamed the National Collegiate Athletic Association) was established.

In 1918, daylight saving time went into effect in the United States for the first time.

In 1948, the U.S. Congress passed the Marshall Aid Act, a plan to rehabilitate war-ravaged Europe.

Terri Schiavo, pictured here in an undated family photo, was a 41-year-old severely brain-damaged woman who got the nation involved in her right-to-die case. Schiavo died 14 days after doctors removed her feeding tube at her hospice in Pinellas Park, Fla., on March 31, 2005. UPI File Photo
Terri Schiavo, pictured here in an undated family photo, was a 41-year-old severely brain-damaged woman who got the nation involved in her right-to-die case. Schiavo died 14 days after doctors removed her feeding tube at her hospice in Pinellas Park, Fla., on March 31, 2005. UPI File Photo
File Photo courtesy of Britain's War Office
File Photo courtesy of Britain's War Office

In 1959, the Dalai Lama fled Chinese-occupied Tibet and was granted political asylum in India.

The Dalai Lama closes his hands in prayer before beginning a teaching of Buddha traditions March 30, 1991 at the Jade Buddha Temple in Houston. On March 31, 1959, the Dalai Lama fled Chinese-occupied Tibet and was granted political asylum in India. File Photo by Marc Morrison/UPI
The Dalai Lama closes his hands in prayer before beginning a teaching of Buddha traditions March 30, 1991 at the Jade Buddha Temple in Houston. On March 31, 1959, the Dalai Lama fled Chinese-occupied Tibet and was granted political asylum in India. File Photo by Marc Morrison/UPI

In 1968, U.S. President Lyndon Johnson announced he wouldn't seek re-election and simultaneously ordered the suspension of U.S. bombing of North Vietnam.

In 1971, U.S. Army Lt. William Calley was sentenced to life in prison for his part in the deaths of 22 Vietnamese civilians in what was called the My Lai Massacre. Public opinion polls and news reports indicated that most Americans believed the sentence was too severe; many said Calley was a scapegoat. His sentence was gradually reduced and he was paroled in 1974.

On March 31, 1968, U.S. President Johnson announced he wouldn't seek re-election and simultaneously ordered the suspension of U.S. bombing of North Vietnam. UPI File Photo
On March 31, 1968, U.S. President Johnson announced he wouldn't seek re-election and simultaneously ordered the suspension of U.S. bombing of North Vietnam. UPI File Photo
File Photo courtesy of the U.S. government
File Photo courtesy of the U.S. government

In 1991, the Warsaw Pact formally ended, with Soviet commanders surrendering their powers in an agreement between pact members and the Soviet Union.

The Eiffel Tower is illuminated in the colors of the French flag as a tribute to those killed in the recent terrorist attacks in Paris on November 19, 2015. On March 31, 1889, the Eiffel Tower was dedicated in Paris in a ceremony presided over by its designer, Gustave Eiffel, during the Universal Exhibition of Arts and Manufacturers. File Photo by David Silpa/UPI

In 1995, Major League Baseball players went back to work, ending the longest strike in league history. The lockout, which began Aug. 12, 1994, ended the rest of the 1994 season.

In 1998, the U.N. Security Council voted to impose an arms embargo on Yugoslavia after unrest in the Serbian province of Kosovo turned violent.

In 2005, Terri Schiavo, a 41-year-old Florida woman in a persistent vegetative state since 1990, died 14 days after removal of her feeding tube amid a legal struggle over her fate that reached the White House and Supreme Court.

In 2007, Pakistan successfully tested its Hataf-II Abdali ballistic missile, believed capable of carrying a nuclear warhead.

In 2017, mudslides killed more than 200 people after heavy rains in Colombia.

In 2019, rapper Nipsey Hussle died in a shooting outside his Los Angeles clothing store.

In 2021, the Biden administration reversed a Trump-era ban on transgender Americans serving in the U.S. military.

File Photo by Erin Schaff/UPI
File Photo by Erin Schaff/UPI