The White Caps of Sevier County, Tennessee were a violent vigilante group formed in approximately 1892 by citizens who wished to rid the area of anyone they deemed immoral. The whitecapping movement dates as early as 1837 as secret societies were formed in predominantly rural areas of the United States with the goals of enforcing community standards and traditional behavior. White Caps attempted to force a person out of town by first leaving a note of warning, often times accompanied by hickory withes. If this threat did not work, members would resort to physical attacks including whipping. The White Caps of Sevier County were popular between 1892 and 1896 and faced little consequence from local law enforcement. In this atmosphere of tolerance, the beatings gradually increased in severity until local residents Laura and William Whaley were brutally murdered in front of their infant child in December 1896. While the organization had murdered previously, this gruesome event turned public opinion against the White Caps, and the group rapidly declined.

Donald Franklin Paine was born in Knoxville, Tennessee in 1939. He earned his B.A. (1961), M.A. (1963), and LL.B. (1963) from the University of Tennessee. Immediately after graduation, Paine served in the Army as a Captain in the Judge Advocate General's Corps. He was discharged in 1966 and returned to Tennessee, where he authored the Tennessee Law of Evidence (1974). Paine practiced law with Paine, Tarwater, and Bickers in addition to researching Tennessee's legal history. He was a Reporter to the Supreme Court Advisory Commission on Rules of Practice and Procedure, wrote a monthly column for the Tennessee Bar Journal, and lectured for the Tennessee Law Institute, the University of Tennessee College of Law, and the Tennessee Judicial Conference. Paine also served as President of the Knoxville Bar Association (1983) and of the Tennessee Bar Association (1986-1987). Paine died in Knoxville on November 18th, 2013.