Johnnie Robinson

From Bhamwiki
Revision as of 10:21, 15 September 2010 by Dystopos (talk | contribs)
Jump to navigation Jump to search
This article is about the teenager killed in 1963. For the Ramblers' drummer, see Johnny Robinson (drummer).
Johnny Robinson

Johnnie Robinson (born c. 1947 - died September 15, 1963 in Birmingham) was a teenaged victim of a police shooting during the violent aftermath of the bombing of 16th Street Baptist Church in September 1963.

Robinson was sixteen years old in 1963, and was living with his widowed mother and two siblings. The younger siblings had gone to live with an aunt after his father's death in a fight a few year's earlier. In 1960 Johnny was arrested on suspicion of burglary and grand larceny, and served some time in juvenile detention.

According to newspaper reports, police were responding to a 4:00 PM call of "racial disturbance" at a gas station on 26th Street North in which several black youths were throwing rocks at passing cars. Robinson, who lived at 622 28th Street North, had apparently joined other neighborhood kids in throwing rocks at cars carrying white kids who were driving around, waving Confederate battle flags, and throwing bottles. One car was painted with slogans such as "Negro, Go Back to Africa," and another was draped with a battle flag. When police arrived, the boys fled from the scene by running down an alley. According to some witnesses, since discredited, the police cars were targeted by rocks as well.

Officer Jack Parker of the Birmingham Police Department and head of the Fraternal Order of Police Birmingham Lodge No. 1, was riding in the back seat of the first patrol car to arrive. He was holding a police-issue shotgun pointed out the window. He testified that as the car pulled up and blocked the alley, he fired a warning shot into the ground to disperse the crowd. Earlier reports had it that the officer fired his warning shot in the air, shot at Robinson in self-defense as he threw rocks while he ran away, or that he took aim as the boy fled down an alley, ignoring commands to halt. The other officers with him added that the car may have come to an abrupt stop, or hit a bump, causing Parker to fire in error.

The coroner determined that Robinson died from shotgun pellets that entered from the back. Abraham Woods officiated at his funeral service, saying "Not only are we here for the funeral of Johnnie Robinson, but I think we can say we are here for the funeral of Birmingham."1.

The shooting investigation was sent to a Jefferson County Grand Jury, but no indictment was made. A Federal Grand Jury, given the case in 1964, also declined to indict. The case was reopened by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in November 2009. Investigating agent Dana Gillis is working to uncover the facts of the case, and believes that the shooting was murder. No criminal prosecution is likely, however, since Parker died in 1977.

Notes

  1. Gordon-1963

References

Retrieved from "http://bhamwiki.com/w/index.php?title=Johnnie_Robinson&oldid=67097"