CRIME HUNTER: Was Black Panther the victim in 1969 cold case?
He was found stuffed in a barrel, shot nine times with his legs sawed off
Author of the article:Brad Hunter
Publishing date:Mar 20, 2021 • 10 hours ago • 3 minute read • comment bubbleJoin the conversation
Days of rage. Huey P. Newton of the Black Panther Party. Cleveland cops think a 1969 cold case could be connected to the radical group.
Days of rage. Huey P. Newton of the Black Panther Party. Cleveland cops think a 1969 cold case could be connected to the radical group.
Article content
During the racial and civil unrest of 1960’s America, not many people were neutral about the Black Panther Party.
Established in Oakland in 1966, the Panthers believed in “open carry” and kept watch on an epidemic of police brutality in American cities.
Beloved by white champagne socialists, the movement was characterized by its critics as exhibiting “defiant posturing over substance.”
Eventually the movement imploded from internal conflicts, a bloody fratricide and external persecution.
But the former radicals came up again this week as part of a Cleveland cold case homicide investigation detectives believe has ties to the Panthers.
This unidentified John Doe was shot nine times in Cleveland in 1969.
This unidentified John Doe was shot nine times in Cleveland in 1969. PHOTO BY HANDOUT /CLEVELAND PD
The Mistake on the Lake was no different from other American inner cities in the tumultuous 1960’s: Unrest was in the air, particularly in the black neighbourhoods on Cleveland’s east side.
On Aug. 29, 1969, a property owner dumped his teenage son off at a lot to tidy things up. One of the bits of junk lying around was a barrel the boy thought he’d use to burn trash.
Advertisement
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
Article content
Instead, he found a body inside.
The young black male had been shot nine times and his legs had been sawed off. Cops said the victim had been covered in some sort of caustic fluid. A coroner noted he had suffered blunt force trauma.
The straw that broke the camel’s back in Detroit was cops breaking up a party for two soldiers returning from the war in Vietnam. The scene was repeated again and again across the U.S.
The straw that broke the camel’s back in Detroit was cops breaking up a party for two soldiers returning from the war in Vietnam. The scene was repeated again and again across the U.S. PHOTO BY NO CREDIT /THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Cleveland investigators began the grim task of trying to identify their homicide victim but despite a number of intriguing clues, the case went nowhere.
The dead man was wearing a Waltham wristwatch and a gray metal ring with a blue stone on his fourth finger. He had a tattoo with the name “Sally” etched on the inside of his left forearm and it was discovered he had a medical condition that made his eyes bulge.
Detectives always believed the murder victim had a connection to Cleveland’s Black Panther Party.
Agents from the FBI’s Cleveland field office — who had informants inside the Panthers — were kept abreast of the group’s comings and goings. At least one source told them the dead man had a connection. Who he was, nobody knew.
As for his murder, it had all the earmarks of an organized, professional rubout.
But “Sally” was never found and for almost 52 years, the Cleveland John Doe has remained unidentified.
Enter The Porchlight Project, a non-profit that uses donations to help law enforcement solve cold cases through DNA and other forensic sciences.
American soldiers advance through a rice paddy during the Vietnam War. The war played a leading role in some of the unrest at home.
American soldiers advance through a rice paddy during the Vietnam War. The war played a leading role in some of the unrest at home.
“This is a piece of Cleveland history that remains untold,” said founder James Renner. “We’re excited to provide the means to finally give a name to this man so that we can learn how he came to be here and who may have wanted him dead.”
Advertisement
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
Article content
The Porchlight Project is fully funding Forensic-Grade Genome Sequencing and family records research by Othram Inc., with the hope of generating leads that could identify the victim.
“At the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner’s Office, we never give up hope that we may provide closure to families and bring criminals to justice even years after a death has occurred,” Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner Dr. Thomas Gilson told WKYC.
He added: “It would also be uniquely satisfying to me to see this case through to completion as the late Dr. Hirsch, the original coroner, was my teacher in forensic pathology.”
With cold cases, the past comes alive. This time it’s the tense summer of 1969 and the gruesome murder of a young man left nameless by time.
He was found stuffed in a barrel, shot nine times with his legs sawed off
Author of the article:Brad Hunter
Publishing date:Mar 20, 2021 • 10 hours ago • 3 minute read • comment bubbleJoin the conversation
Days of rage. Huey P. Newton of the Black Panther Party. Cleveland cops think a 1969 cold case could be connected to the radical group.
Days of rage. Huey P. Newton of the Black Panther Party. Cleveland cops think a 1969 cold case could be connected to the radical group.
Article content
During the racial and civil unrest of 1960’s America, not many people were neutral about the Black Panther Party.
Established in Oakland in 1966, the Panthers believed in “open carry” and kept watch on an epidemic of police brutality in American cities.
Beloved by white champagne socialists, the movement was characterized by its critics as exhibiting “defiant posturing over substance.”
Eventually the movement imploded from internal conflicts, a bloody fratricide and external persecution.
But the former radicals came up again this week as part of a Cleveland cold case homicide investigation detectives believe has ties to the Panthers.
This unidentified John Doe was shot nine times in Cleveland in 1969.
This unidentified John Doe was shot nine times in Cleveland in 1969. PHOTO BY HANDOUT /CLEVELAND PD
The Mistake on the Lake was no different from other American inner cities in the tumultuous 1960’s: Unrest was in the air, particularly in the black neighbourhoods on Cleveland’s east side.
On Aug. 29, 1969, a property owner dumped his teenage son off at a lot to tidy things up. One of the bits of junk lying around was a barrel the boy thought he’d use to burn trash.
Advertisement
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
Article content
Instead, he found a body inside.
The young black male had been shot nine times and his legs had been sawed off. Cops said the victim had been covered in some sort of caustic fluid. A coroner noted he had suffered blunt force trauma.
The straw that broke the camel’s back in Detroit was cops breaking up a party for two soldiers returning from the war in Vietnam. The scene was repeated again and again across the U.S.
The straw that broke the camel’s back in Detroit was cops breaking up a party for two soldiers returning from the war in Vietnam. The scene was repeated again and again across the U.S. PHOTO BY NO CREDIT /THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Cleveland investigators began the grim task of trying to identify their homicide victim but despite a number of intriguing clues, the case went nowhere.
The dead man was wearing a Waltham wristwatch and a gray metal ring with a blue stone on his fourth finger. He had a tattoo with the name “Sally” etched on the inside of his left forearm and it was discovered he had a medical condition that made his eyes bulge.
Detectives always believed the murder victim had a connection to Cleveland’s Black Panther Party.
Agents from the FBI’s Cleveland field office — who had informants inside the Panthers — were kept abreast of the group’s comings and goings. At least one source told them the dead man had a connection. Who he was, nobody knew.
As for his murder, it had all the earmarks of an organized, professional rubout.
But “Sally” was never found and for almost 52 years, the Cleveland John Doe has remained unidentified.
Enter The Porchlight Project, a non-profit that uses donations to help law enforcement solve cold cases through DNA and other forensic sciences.
American soldiers advance through a rice paddy during the Vietnam War. The war played a leading role in some of the unrest at home.
American soldiers advance through a rice paddy during the Vietnam War. The war played a leading role in some of the unrest at home.
“This is a piece of Cleveland history that remains untold,” said founder James Renner. “We’re excited to provide the means to finally give a name to this man so that we can learn how he came to be here and who may have wanted him dead.”
Advertisement
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
Article content
The Porchlight Project is fully funding Forensic-Grade Genome Sequencing and family records research by Othram Inc., with the hope of generating leads that could identify the victim.
“At the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner’s Office, we never give up hope that we may provide closure to families and bring criminals to justice even years after a death has occurred,” Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner Dr. Thomas Gilson told WKYC.
He added: “It would also be uniquely satisfying to me to see this case through to completion as the late Dr. Hirsch, the original coroner, was my teacher in forensic pathology.”
With cold cases, the past comes alive. This time it’s the tense summer of 1969 and the gruesome murder of a young man left nameless by time.