The Savage City
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Formation of OPERATION NEWKILL: Interview with Robert Boyle (November 21, 2008); Churchill and Vander Wall, The COINTELPRO Papers, p. 158d; O’Reilly, Racial Matters, pp. 321–324; OPERATION NEWKILL files, various memos.
“Due to the fact” (NEWKILL memo): OPERATION NEWKILL files.
Machine gun linked to Curry and Binetti shooting: Ibid.; Daley, Target Blue, pp. 80–81; Seedman and Hellman, Chief, pp. 447–448; interview with Robert Boyle (November 21, 2008); McFadden, Robert D., “4 Seized in Bronx Holdup, Linked to Police Deaths,” New York Times, June 6, 1971; Montgomery, Paul L., “Evidence Seen Growing in Police Shooting Here,” New York Times, June 7, 1971; Van Gelder, Lawrence, “Roberts Links 2 Holdup Suspects to Police Shootings,” New York Times, June 12, 1971.
Pauline Joseph: OPERATION NEWKILL files; Daley, Target Blue, pp. 81–85; Seedman and Hellman, Chief, pp. 448–449; interview with Dhoruba Bin Wahad (September 16, 2008); interview with Robert Boyle (November 21, 2008); interview with Robert Daley (January 21, 2010).
757 Beck Street as headquarters for BLA cell: Ibid.
Bin Wahad indictments announced: Darnton, John, “7 Panthers Indicted in Slaying of a Party Official in Corona,” New York Times, July 30, 1971.
Bin Wahad arraignment before Judge Riccobono: “Black Panther Here Is Charged in the Shooting of 2 Policemen,” New York Times, July 31, 1971.
Robert Vickers incident: OPERATION NEWKILL memo; Clark, Alfred E., “Members of Black Army Sought in Bronx Street-by-Street Hunt,” New York Times, March 8, 1973.
Twymon Myers: Interview with Cleo Silvers (March 26, 2009); OPERATION NEWKILL memo.
JoAnne Chesimard aka Assata Shakur: OPERATION NEWKILL files; Daley, Target Blue, pp. 291–293; Seedman and Hellman, Chief, pp. 421, 424; Shakur, Assata, Assata, entire book.
Phillips working undercover for Knapp investigators: Interview with Mike Armstrong (August 12, 2009); Shecter with Phillips, On the Pad, pp. 233–286; The Knapp Commission Report, pp. 50–56.
Phillips’s use of word nigger: Shecter with Phillips, On the Pad.
Phillips’s cover is blown: Ibid.
“How the fuck did I ever agree to do a thing like this?”: Ibid.
Phillips’s testimony at Knapp Commission hearings: Interview with Mike Armstrong (August 12, 2009); Federici, William, and Paul Meskil, “Harlem Take Ran 70G Month: Payoff Cop Gives Knapp Lowdown,” Daily News, October 20, 1971; Burton, Anthony, “How to Be a Corrupt Cop & Live to Tell,” Daily News, October 20, 1971; Burnham, Davis, “Knapp Commission Hears of Police Bribes of Up to $1,500,” New York Times, October 21, 1971; “Excerpts of Testimony by Patrolman Phillips on Graft-Taking,” New York Times, October 20, 1971; “Excerpts from Testimony of Patrolman Phillips on System of Payoff to Police,” New York Times, October 21, 1971; “A Glossary of Terms Relating to Corruption,” New York Times, October 21, 1971; “Guarding the Guardians,” Time, November 1, 1971; Shecter with Phillips, On the Pad, pp. 287–295; The Knapp Commission Report, pp. 40–41; NBC News Report (Vanderbilt TVNA), October 19, 20, 1971; ABC News Report (Vanderbilt TVNA), October 19, 20, 1971.
“Thank God his dad’s gone”: Clines, Francis X., “The Witness: Policeman’s Son, a ‘Decent Lad,’ a Cool Grafter,” New York Times, October 22, 1971.
Commissioner Murphy response: ABC Television statement (Vanderbilt TVNA), October 21, 1971; Pace, Eric, “Murphy Defends Honesty of the Average Policeman,” New York Times, October 22, 1971; Daley, Target Blue, pp. 310–311; Lardner and Reppetto, NYPD, pp. 269–270, 271; Murphy and Plate, Commissioner, p. 178.
Kiernan/PBA response: Pace, Eric, “Inquiry Called ‘Knapp Circus’: Leaders of Police Groups at Meeting Here Are Critical of the Corruption Panel,” New York Times, October 23, 1971; Burnham, David, “Lindsay Defends Corruption Hearing: Tells P.B.A. Head the Inquiry Is in ‘Best Interest’ of Everyone on Force,” New York Times, October 26, 1971.
Totality of Knapp hearings (Droge, Logan, and Serpico): “Knapp Unit’s Head Defends Legality of Investigation,” New York Times, October 24, 1971; “Knapp Urges Permanent Body on Police Corruption to Succeed His Panel,” New York Times, October 25, 1971; “Knapp Witness to Tell of Lindsay Officials’ Apathy,” New York Times, October 30, 1971; Burnham, David, “Patrolman Says ‘All But 2’ of Colleagues Got Bribes,” New York Times, October 23, 1971; “Cops as Pushers,” Time, November 8, 1971.
“The whole fucking Harlem stinks”: Shecter with Phillips, On the Pad, p. 168.
“I didn’t know what to say”: Ibid.
New York Cops Talk Back: This study by Nicholas Alex of police attitudes in the years of racial unrest and the Knapp Commission hearings is one of the most revealing documents of its time. Alex interviewed forty-seven white cops, who spoke freely and openly on condition of anonymity. The study was a follow-up to a previous book-length study by Alex of African American officers entitled Black in Blue.
Foster and Laurie shooting: Whelton, Clark, “The Blood on Avenue B,” Village Voice, February 10, 1972; Kaufman, Michael T., “9 in Black ‘Army’ Are Hunted in Police Assassinations,” New York Times, February 9, 1972; interview with Robert Daley (January 21, 2010); interview with Gerald Lefcourt (January 25, 2010); Silverman, Al, Foster and Laurie, pp. 3–44; Daley, Target Blue, pp. 412–415; Seedman and Hellman, Chief, pp. 482–485.
“This is from the George Jackson Squad of the Black Liberation Army”: Daley, Target Blue, p. 417; Seedman and Hellman, Chief, p. 438; NEWKILL files contains a copy of the actual communiqué.
“Too many policemen have been killed”: Kaufman, Michael T., “Murphy Asks for Federal Help in Hunt for Policeman’s Killers,” New York Times, February 18, 1972.
Rise of “black army”: Arnold, Martin, “Murphy Suggests Roving Band May Have Killed 2 Policemen,” New York Times, February 4, 1972; Kaufman, Michael T., “Evidence of ‘Liberation Army’ Said to Rise,” New York Times, February 17, 1972.
Murphy defends his position: Gelsner, Lesley, “Murphy Defends Accusations of 9,” New York Times, February 11, 1972.
Injunction filed by Robert Bloom: Kaufman, Michael T., “5 Seeking to Curb Police Publicity,” New York Times, February 22, 1972; “A Justice Refuses Motion to Dismiss Panthers’ Charges,” New York Times, February 23, 1972; Lubasch, Arnold H., “‘Black Army’ Link Allowed in Court,” New York Times, February 29, 1972.
Whitmore final appeal overturned: Interview with Myron Beldock (January 27, 2009); interview with George Whitmore (April 3, 2009); “Whitmore Loses Bid for a Hearing,” New York Times, February 29, 1972.
Raab visits Whitmore at Green Haven: Interview with Selwyn Raab (April 22, 2009).
18. LONG TIME COMIN’
Raab and Beldock focus on Celeste Viruet: Interview with Myron Beldock (January 27, 2009); interview with Selwyn Raab (April 22, 2009).
“I’m not sure who came up with the idea first”: Interview with Myron Beldock (January 27, 2009).
The hunt for Celeste Viruet: Interview with Selwyn Raab (April 22, 2009); interview with Myron Beldock (January 27, 2009).
Beldock, Raab, and crew travel to Puerto Rico: Ibid.
Encounter with hotel café busboy: Ibid.
Interview with Celeste Viruet: Ibid.
Frederick Douglass quote: Bin Wahad often used another famous Douglass quote in his writing and as a guiding principle in his life: “Power concedes nothing without demand. It never has and never will.”
Napier murder trial in Queens: Siegel, Max H., “Girl, 12, Describes Killing of a Black Panther Here,” New York Times, March 25, 1972; McQuiston, John T., “Hung Jury Ends Panther 4 Trial,” New York Times, June 15, 1972; interview with Dhoruba Bin Wahad (September 16, 2009).
Bin Wahad pleads guilty to Napier charges: McFadden, Robert D., “4 Black Panthers Plead Guilty to a Lesser Charge in Slaying,” New York Times, May 22, 1973.
Curry and Binetti attempted murder trial: Fosburgh, Lacey, “A Black Panther on Trial Here in Attempt to Slay 2 Policemen,” New York Times, November 4, 1972; Fosburgh, Lacey, �
�Patrolman Tells of 1971 Shooting,” New York Times, November 7, 1972; Proctor, William, “Friends Link Moore to Gun, Cop Shooting,” Daily News, November 10, 1972; Pearl, Mike, “Gun Is Key in Panther Case,” New York Post, December 10, 1972; “Woman Faces New Grilling in Trial of Panther Moore,” New York Post, November 11, 1972; Pearl, Mike, “Machinegun Trial: The Summations,” New York Post, December 6, 1972; Pearl, Mike, “Machinegun Trial Going to Jurors,” New York Post, December 7, 1972; “Moore Jury Still Out,” New York Post, December 8, 1972; “Panther Jury Is Deadlocked,” Daily News, December 9, 1972; McQuiston, John T., “Case on 2 Policemen Shot Here Ends in Mistrial,” New York Times, December 10, 1972; “New Trial Set for Panther,” New York Post, January 2, 1973; Proctor, William, “Panther Trial Opens,” Daily News, January 3, 1973.
“Here [were] two damaged white people” (juror Frank Treu): Passin’ It On, PBS documentary.
“One of the other jurors says”: Ibid.
Third Curry and Binetti trial: Interview with Dhoruba Bin Wahad (September 16, 2008); Fosburgh, Lacey, “Panther Convicted of Attack on Police,” New York Times, March 8, 1973.
Bin Wahad sentencing: Fosburgh, Lacey, “Panther Gets Life Term in Attack on 2 Policemen,” New York Times, April 27, 1973.
Grass eaters and meat eaters: Interview with Mike Armstrong (August 12, 2009); The Knapp Commission Report on Police Corruption, p. 65; Levitt, NYPD Confidential, p. 8; Cannato, The Ungovernable City, p. 477.
Phillips charged in double murder: Kirkman, Edward, “Phillips Indicted in ’68 Killing of Two,” Daily News, March 21, 1972; Shecter with Phillips, On the Pad, pp. 301–325; interview with Mike Armstrong (August 12, 2009).
“It was around three in the afternoon”: Shecter with Phillips, On the Pad, p. 304.
Riot in front of Mosque Number Seven: Interview with Randy Jurgensen (February 12, 2010); interview with Sonny Grosso (April 13, 2009); Jurgensen and Cea, Circle of Six, pp. 12–20; Grosso, Sonny, and John Devaney, Murder at the Mosque, pp. 6–7, 11, 12; Levitt, NYPD Confidential, pp. 12–13.
“I thought I was shot”: Interview with Randy Jurgensen (February 12, 2010).
Murder at the mosque: The killing of Patrolman Phillip Cardillo was never solved and remains an open case.
Phillips murder trial before Judge Murtagh: Schultz, Ray, “The Anatomy of a Murder Trial: The People v. William Phillips,” New York Times Magazine, December 17, 1972; Shecter with Phillips, On the Pad, pp. 332–362.
Warden allows Whitmore to watch TV in hospital ward: Interview with George Whitmore (April 3, 2009).
The Marcus-Nelson Murders: The movie begins with a disclaimer: “What you are about to see is a dramatization of one of the most controversial and bitterly debated police investigations preceding the Supreme Court’s landmark Miranda decision of 1966. Name changes, compressions of time and composites of certain characters have been made to present this most significant story.” The movie was viewed by the author at PCM.
The Marcus-Nelson Murders was generally praised for its realism and seriousness, though TV critic John J. O’Connor of the New York Times attacked the movie as “fiction covered with a layer of fact…. Mr. Mann’s social indictment is highly questionable. The bad guys, policemen and prosecutors consumed with ambition, are either sadistic or slimy…. [Mann’s] indictment is so broad that it disintegrates into a scenario for white hats and black hats. Without a strong measure of precision, old fashioned liberal ‘guilt’ isn’t enough.” O’Connor, John J., “C.B.S.’s 3-Hour Movie Examines Justice,” New York Times, March 8, 1973.
Whitmore’s feelings about The Marcus-Nelson Murders: Interview with George Whitmore (April 3, 2009).
Airing of The 51st State: The segment on the Whitmore case, approximately fifteen minutes in length, was devastating. Celeste Viruet is interviewed in shadows, using a translator. She notes that after giving the police her version of events—a version that contradicts that of Elba Borrero—she was never questioned again by investigators or prosecutors. The 51st State (episode no. 177), which aired January 1973, was viewed by the author at PCM.
D.A. Gold reopens case: Oelsner, Lesley, “Whitmore Rape-Robbery Case Reopened by District Attorney,” New York Times, December 23, 1972.
Beldock receives call from D.A.’s office: Interview with Myron Beldock (January 27, 2009).
“Selwyn was pretty certain it was going to be a dismissal”: Ibid.
Riot at Green Haven prison: Interview with George Whitmore (April 3, 2009); interview with Joseph “Jazz” Hayden; Darnton, John, “Clash Among Inmates Reported at Green Haven State Prison,” New York Times, September 16, 1972; Darnton, John, “Security Is Tight at Green Haven,” New York Times, September 17, 1972. According to some accounts, the riot was touched off by one inmate absconding with another inmate’s pet bird. Jazz Hayden happened to be at Green Haven at the same time as Whitmore (though they didn’t know each other). When the riot broke out, Hayden wound up in the middle of things; he was hit in the face and rushed to hospital with a broken jaw.
Whitmore brought from Green Haven to NYC: Interview with George Whitmore (April 3, 2009).
Whitmore set free: Interview with George Whitmore (April 3, 2009); interview with Myron Beldock (January 27, 2009); interview with Selwyn Raab (April 22, 2009); Ross, Edwin, and Marcia Kramer, “9-Year Legal Nightmare Ends; Whitmore Freed,” Daily News, April 11, 1973; Oelsner, Lesley, “Whitmore Wins Freedom on Gold’s New Evidence,” New York Times, April 11, 1973; “Justice Uncoiled,” Time, April 23, 1973.
“I never expected to see the day”: Interview with George Whitmore (April 3, 2009).
EPILOGUE
Lindsay runs for president: Cannato, The Ungovernable City, pp. 501–515; Fun City Revisited, PBS documentary.
Remnants of the BLA: Interview with Sonny Grosso (April 13, 2009); interview with Randy Jurgensen (February 12, 2010); Clark, “Members of Black Army Sought in Bronx Street-by-Street Hunt,” New York Times, March 8, 1973; Tanenbaum and Rosenberg, Badge of the Assassin, pp. 452–454; Muntaqim, Jalil, On the Black Liberation Army, pp. 2–18.
Killing of Twymon Myers: Interview with Sonny Grosso (April 13, 2009); interview with Randy Jurgensen (February 12, 2010); McQuiston, John T., “Fugitive Black Militant Is Killed in Bronx Shootout with Police,” New York Times, November 15, 1973.
Capture of Assata Shakur: Kaufman, Michael T., “Woman Captured in Shoot-Out Called ‘Soul’ of Black Militants,” New York Times, May 3, 1973; Gupte, Pranay, “Joanne Chesimard Pleads Not Guilty in Holdup Here,” New York Times, July 21, 1973; Chambers, Marcia, “Mrs. Chesimard Wins Acquittal,” New York Times, December 29, 1973.
Phillips found guilty of double murder and attempted murder: Clark, Alfred E., “Jury Convicts Phillips of 2 Brothel Murders in 1968,” New York Times, November 22, 1974.
“I could never, never spend the rest of my life in fucking jail”: Shecter with Phillips, On the Pad, p. 313.
Phillips, the prison years: Interview with Sean Gardiner (June 11, 2009); Gardiner, Sean, “Freeze Frame on a Bad Cop,” Village Voice, August 8, 2006; Gray, Geoffrey, “Crooked Cop, Now Jailhouse Lawyer, Seeks Parole at 74,” New York Sun, March 28, 2005; Gray, “Spitzer to Appeal Decision on Phillips Parole Hearing,” New York Sun, April 5, 2005; Gray, “Time and Time Served,” New York Times, February 5, 2007.
Armstrong support of Phillips: Mike Armstrong, former lead counsel for the Knapp Commission, has always contended that he does not believe Phillips committed the murders for which he was convicted, though Phillips believes Armstrong could have done more to advocate on his behalf. Interview with Mike Armstrong (August 12, 2009); interview with Geoffrey Gray (November 19, 2009); interview with Ido Mizrahy (November 19, 2009); Gardiner, “Freeze Frame on a Bad Cop,” Village Voice, August 8, 2006.
“Most of these guys were in diapers when I was testifying”: Gardiner, “Freeze Frame on a Bad Cop,” Village Voice, August 8, 2006.
Phillips before state parole board: Transcript of Parole Board hearing, Sept
ember 21, 1999, NY State Division of Parole.
Phillips’s 2007 parole hearing: Transcript of hearing, September 19, 2007, NY State Parole Board.
Phillips released from prison: Gregorian, Dareh, “Freedom for ’68 Slay Cop,” New York Post, September 23, 2007; interview with Geoffrey Gray (November 19, 2009); interview with Ido Mizrahy (November 19, 2009); Lueck, Thomas J., “Officer Jailed for 32 Years Wins Parole,” New York Times, September 23, 2007.
Bin Wahad first hears of COINTELPRO: Interview with Dhoruba Bin Wahad (September 16, 2008).
Robert Boyle meets Bin Wahad in prison: Interview with Robert Boyle (November 19, 2009); interview with Dhoruba Bin Wahad (September 16, 2008).
Lawyers Boyle and Elizabeth Fink begin investigation: Interview with Robert Boyle (November 19, 2009).
U.S. government forced to release files on Bin Wahad: Kifner, John, “Ex-Panther in Prison Says Evidence Was Concealed,” New York Times, April 3, 1989; interview with Dhoruba Bin Wahad (September 16, 2009); interview with Robert Boyle (November 19, 2009).
Judge McQuillan statement: People v. Bin Wahad, statement of Justice Peter J. McQuillan, March 15, 1990.
Bin Wahad charges reversed: Sullivan, Ronald, “After 17 Years, Panther Conviction Is Upset,” New York Times, March 16, 1990; Sullivan, Ronald, “Court Erupts as Judge Frees an Ex-Panther,” New York Times, March 23, 1990; interview with Dhoruba Bin Wahad (September 16, 2008); interview with Robert Boyle (November 19, 2009).
Bin Wahad lawsuit of state and federal governments: Feur, Alan, “Defiant Ex-Panther Sues Defiant New York Police,” New York Times, December 4, 2000; Weiser, Benjamin, “City Agrees to Settle Suit by Former Panther Leader,” New York Times, December 8, 2000.
Bin Wahad in Africa: Interview with Dhoruba Bin Wahad (September 16, 2009); Passin’ It On. On the DVD version of the film there is an interview “extra” with Bin Wahad in Ghana.
“I don’t know if I ever thought”: Interview with Dhoruba Bin Wahad (September 16, 2009).
“I used to drive through Africa”: Ibid.