Sundiata Acoli (born January 14, 1937,"Who is Sundiata Acoli?"
SundiataAcoli.org. as Clark Edward Squire) is an American political activist who was a member of the Black Panther Party and the

Black Liberation Army The Black Liberation Army (BLA) was a far-left, black nationalist, underground Black Power revolutionary paramilitary organization that operated in the United States from 1970 to 1981. Composed of former Black Panthers (BPP) and Republic ...

. He was sentenced to

life in prison Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment for a crime under which convicted people are to remain in prison for the rest of their natural lives or indefinitely until pardoned, paroled, or otherwise commuted to a fixed term. Crimes for ...

in 1974 for murdering a

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

state trooper. Acoli was granted parole in 2022 at the age of 85.

Early life

Acoli was born on January 14, 1937, in Decatur,

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

, and raised in Vernon, Texas. He graduated from High School in Texas aged 15, and graduated from Prairie View A&M University in 1956 with a degree in mathematics aged 19. After university, he became a computer analyst for

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil List of government space agencies, space program ...

working at Edwards Air Force Base in

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. In 1963 he moved to New York City, becoming involved in the

civil rights movement The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement throughout the Unite ...

, before moving again in the summer of 1964 to

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

, continuing that new Civil Rights activism. Acoli was radicalised by the assassination of Martin Luther King in April 1968 and that same year joined the

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater Ha ...

chapter of the Black Panther Party as its finance minister. He was arrested on April 2, 1969, in the

Panther 21 The Panther 21 is a group of twenty-one Black Panther members who were arrested and accused of planned coordinated bombing and long-range rifle attacks on two police stations and an education office in New York City in 1969, who were all acquitte ...

conspiracy case, in which members were accused of planned coordinated bombing and long-range rifle attack on two police stations and an education office in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

.Ron Christenson (ed.)
''Political Trials in History: From Antiquity to the Present''
New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Books, 1991, p. 351. A group called Computer People for Peace raised $50,000 bail for him but it was rejected by the judge. Acoli and the other defendants were ultimately acquitted of all charges in that case.

New Jersey Turnpike shooting

On May 2, 1973, at about 12:45 a.m.,Sullivan, Joseph F. (May 3, 1973).
Panther, Trooper Slain in Shoot-Out
, ''The New York Times'', p. 1. Acoli, along with Zayd Malik Shakur (born James F. Costan) and

Assata Shakur Assata Olugbala Shakur (born JoAnne Deborah Byron; July 16, 1947; also married name, JoAnne Chesimard) is an American political activist who was a member of the Black Liberation Army (BLA). In 1977, she was convicted in the first-degree murder ...

(born JoAnne Chesimard), were stopped on the New Jersey Turnpike in East Brunswick for driving with a broken

tail light The lighting system of a motor vehicle consists of lighting and signalling devices mounted to or integrated into the front, rear, sides, and in some cases the top of a motor vehicle. They illuminate the road ahead for the driver and increase t ...

by State Trooper James Harper, backed up by Trooper Werner Foerster in a second patrol vehicle. The vehicle was also exceeding the

speed limit Speed limits on road traffic, as used in most countries, set the legal maximum speed at which vehicles may travel on a given stretch of road. Speed limits are generally indicated on a traffic sign reflecting the maximum permitted speed - expre ...

. Recordings of Trooper Harper calling the dispatcher were played at the trials of both Acoli and Assata Shakur.Waggoner, Walter H. (February 14, 1977).
Jury in Chesimard Murder Trial Listens to State Police Radio Tapes
. ''The New York Times'', p. 83. The stop occurred south of what was then the Turnpike Authority administration building.Johnston, Richard J. (February 20, 1974). "Squires Jurors Hear Chase Tape". ''The New York Times'', p. 78.Kirsta, Alix (May 29, 1999), "A black and white case – Investigation – Joanne Chesimard". ''The Times''. Acoli was driving the two-door vehicle, Assata Shakur was seated in the right front seat, and Zayd Shakur was in the right rear seat. Trooper Harper asked the driver for identification, asked him to get out of the car, and questioned him at the rear of the vehicle. It is at this point, with the questioning of Acoli, that the accounts of the confrontation begin to differ (see the witnesses section of the Assata Shakur article). However, in the ensuing shootout, Trooper Foerster was shot twice in the head with his own gun and killed,Sullivan, Joseph E. (March 25, 1977).
Chesimard Jury Asks Clarification of Assault Charges
, ''The New York Times'', p. 50. Zayd Shakur was killed, and Assata Shakur and Trooper Harper were wounded. According to initial police statements, at this point one or more of the suspects began firing with automatic handguns and Trooper Foerster fired four times before falling mortally wounded. At Acoli's trial, Harper testified that the gunfight started "seconds" after Foerster arrived at the scene.Johnston, Richard J. (February 14, 1974).

, ''The New York Times'', p. 86. Retrieved June 17, 2008. At this trial, Harper said that Foerster reached into the vehicle, pulled out and held up an automatic pistol and ammunition magazine, and said "Jim, look what I found", while facing Harper at the rear of the vehicle.Johnston, Richard J. H. (March 9, 1974). "Jury Deliberations Begin in Murder Trial of Squire", ''The New York Times'', p. 64. At this point, Assata Shakur and Zayd Shakur were ordered to put their hands on their laps and not to move; Harper said that Assata Shakur then reached down to the right of her right leg, pulled out a pistol, and shot him in the shoulder, after which he retreated to behind his vehicle. Questioned by prosecutor C. Judson Hamlin, Harper said he saw Foerster shot just as Assata Shakur was felled by bullets from Harper's gun. In his opening statement to a jury, Hamlin said that Acoli shot Foerster with a .38 caliber automatic pistol and then used Foerster's own gun to "execute him". According to the testimony of State Police investigators, two jammed semi-automatic pistols were discovered near Foerster's body.Sullivan, Joseph F. (February 24, 1977), "Chesimard Attorney Acts to Call Kelley; Wants F.B.I. Director and Others to Testify on Program Aimed at Harassing Activists", ''The New York Times'', p. 76, column 1. In Shakur's version of events, she says she was shot and wounded with her hands up and couldn't have killed Foerster. Acoli said at the time that he was hit by a bullet, blacked out and couldn't remember what happened. Acoli then drove the car (a white

Pontiac LeMans The Pontiac LeMans is a model name that was applied to subcompact- and intermediate-sized automobiles marketed by Pontiac from 1961 to 1981 (1983 in Canada) model years. Originally a trim upgrade based on the Tempest, it became a separate mod ...

with

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

license plates)—which contained Assata Shakur, who was wounded, and Zayd Shakur, who was dead or dying— down the road. The vehicle was chased by three patrol cars and the booths down the turnpike were alerted. Acoli then exited the car and, after being ordered to halt by a trooper, fled into the woods as the trooper emptied his gun. Assata Shakur then walked towards the trooper with her bloodied arms raised in surrender. Acoli was captured after a 36-hour manhunt—involving 400 people, state police helicopters, and bloodhounds.Sullivan, Joseph F. (May 4, 1973). "Gunfight Suspect Caught in Jersey", ''The New York Times'', p. 41. Zayd Shakur's body was found in a nearby gully along the road.

Prison

A jury convicted Acoli of first-degree murder in 1974 and sentenced him to life without the possibility of parole until after 25 years served. With prison credits, his first opportunity for parole was pushed up to 1993 but he was denied and has been continuously denied parole seven more times until the New Jersey Supreme Court finally granted his request on May 10, 2022, after they decided that Acoli is no longer a threat to society.https://www.njcourts.gov/attorneys/assets/opinions/supreme/a_73_20.pdf?c=Zn2 Upon entering New Jersey State Prison he was subsequently confined to a new and specially created Management Control Unit (MCU) created for him and other politically associated prisoners. He remained in MCU almost five years.Joy James
''Imprisoned Intellectuals: America's Political Prisoners Write on Life, Liberation, and Rebellion''
Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, September 1, 2004. In September 1979, Acoli was transferred to Marion, Illinois, federal prison. In July 1987 he was transferred to the federal penitentiary at Leavenworth, Kansas. In the fall of 1992, Sundiata Acoli was denied parole. He was up for parole again in 2012. On September 29, 2014, a New Jersey state appeals court officially granted Acoli's request for parole,"Sundiata Acoli, Man Who Murdered State Trooper, To Be Released On Parole"
, ''Huffington Post'', September 29, 2014. though the state of New Jersey appealed this ruling. A higher court reversed this ruling in February 2017. On November 21, 2017, the appeals board denied parole, and Acoli was not scheduled to be eligible to apply again until 2032 when he would have been 94 years old. However, the New Jersey Supreme Court ordered that he be made eligible to apply for parole again sooner, and he was finally granted parole in May 2022 at the age of 85.

Popular culture

Sundiata Acoli is hailed in the song "Sunshine" by hip hop music artist

Yasiin Bey Yasiin Bey (; born Dante Terrell Smith, December 11, 1973), previously and more commonly known by his stage name Mos Def (), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and actor. His hip hop career began in 1994, alongside his siblings in the s ...

alongside Mumia Abu Jamal and

Notes

References

External links

Article Written by Sundiata Acoli

Sundiata Acoli Speaks
{{DEFAULTSORT:Acoli, Sundiata 1937 births American people convicted of murdering police officers American prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment Living people Members of the Black Panther Party Members of the Black Liberation Army People convicted of murder by New Jersey Prairie View A&M University alumni Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by New Jersey People from Decatur, Texas People from Vernon, Texas