The Trial of Patrolman Thomas Shea: The Police Killing of Clifford Glover
Jun 2017 · Seven Stories Press
Ebook
284
Pages
About this ebook
The true story behind Audre Lorde's 1975 poem "Power"--a masterly, gripping and true account of the tragedy of the early-morning shooting of a child and the trial of a policeman for murder that followed. Was it a case of mistaken identity or race hatred--or both?
It happened on the morning of Saturday, April 28, 1973, in Queens, New York, at around 5:00 a.m. In the pre-dawn dark, ten-year-old Clifford Glover was walking with his stepfather, Add Armstead, toward the auto salvage yard where Armstead worked, as they did most Saturdays. Patrolman Thomas Shea and his partner, Walter Scott, drove by in an unmarked car. The cops were on the lookout for a pair of armed robbers dressed similarly to Clifford Glover and Add Armstead, and stopped to give chase. The child and his stepfather, who was carrying his wages from the day before, ran, afraid they were going to be robbed. Shots were fired. Armstead flagged down a passing patrol car, not realizing that Clifford was lying on the ground, mortally wounded, the gun that killed him still in the hand of Patrolman Shea, who would become the first New York City cop in fifty years to be charged with committing murder while on duty.
A policeman who shot down a ten year old in Queensstood over the boy with his cop shoes in childish bloodand a voice said "Die you little motherfucker" and there are tapes to prove it. (from "Power" by Audre Lorde)
It happened on the morning of Saturday, April 28, 1973, in Queens, New York, at around 5:00 a.m. In the pre-dawn dark, ten-year-old Clifford Glover was walking with his stepfather, Add Armstead, toward the auto salvage yard where Armstead worked, as they did most Saturdays. Patrolman Thomas Shea and his partner, Walter Scott, drove by in an unmarked car. The cops were on the lookout for a pair of armed robbers dressed similarly to Clifford Glover and Add Armstead, and stopped to give chase. The child and his stepfather, who was carrying his wages from the day before, ran, afraid they were going to be robbed. Shots were fired. Armstead flagged down a passing patrol car, not realizing that Clifford was lying on the ground, mortally wounded, the gun that killed him still in the hand of Patrolman Shea, who would become the first New York City cop in fifty years to be charged with committing murder while on duty.
A policeman who shot down a ten year old in Queensstood over the boy with his cop shoes in childish bloodand a voice said "Die you little motherfucker" and there are tapes to prove it. (from "Power" by Audre Lorde)
About the author
THOMAS HAUSER is a New York City author. A graduate of Columbia College and Columbia Law School, he clerked for a United States district judge before beginning a five-year stint as a litigator on Wall Street in 1971. In 1977, he began to write, and since then he has penned 45 books on everything from professional boxing to Beeethoven. His first book, Missing (1982), was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize, Bancroft Prize, and National Book Award, and inspired the Academy Award-winning film of the same name starring Sissy Spacek and Jack Lemmon. He is arguably best known for his biography of Muhammad Ali, Muhammad Ali: Life and Times (1992), which is considered by many to be the definitive book on the subject. He has written for the New York Times, the New Yorker, New York magazine, and many other publications. His most recent book is The Baker's Tale: Ruby Spriggs and the Legacy of Charles Dickens, published in 2015.
Rate this ebook
Tell us what you think.
Reading information
Smartphones and tablets
Install the Google Play Books app for Android and iPad/iPhone. It syncs automatically with your account and allows you to read online or offline wherever you are.
Laptops and computers
You can listen to audiobooks purchased on Google Play using your computer's web browser.
eReaders and other devices
To read on e-ink devices like Kobo eReaders, you'll need to download a file and transfer it to your device. Follow the detailed Help Center instructions to transfer the files to supported eReaders.
