Assata Shakur | |
|---|---|
 Photograph taken in 1977 | |
| Born | JoAnne Deborah Byron July 16, 1947[a] New York City, U.S. |
| Known for | Convicted of murder, one of the FBI's "Most Wanted Terrorists", friend of Afeni Shakur and Mutulu Shakur and often described as their son Tupac Shakur's "godmother" or "step-aunt"[1] |
| Criminal status | Escaped/At large |
| Spouse |
Louis Chesimard
(m. 1967; div. 1970) |
| Children | 1 (Kakuya Shakur) |
| Allegiance | Black Liberation Army (1970/1–1981) Black Panther Party (1970) |
| Conviction(s) | 1977
|
| Criminal penalty | Life sentence |
Reward amount | $1,000,000 |
Capture status | Fugitive |
Wanted by | FBI |
| Escaped | November 2, 1979 |
| This article is part of a series about |
| Black power |
|---|
 |
Assata Olugbala Shakur (born JoAnne Deborah Byron; July 16, 1947),[a] also known as Joanne Chesimard, is an American political activist who was a member of the Black Liberation Army (BLA). In 1977, she was convicted in the murder of state trooper Werner Foerster during a shootout on the New Jersey Turnpike in 1973. She escaped from prison in 1979 and is currently wanted by the FBI, with a $1 million FBI reward for information leading to her capture, and an additional $1 million reward offered by the New Jersey attorney general.[3]
Born in Flushing, Queens, she grew up in New York City and Wilmington, North Carolina. After she ran away from home several times, her aunt, who would later act as one of her lawyers, took her in. She became involved in political activism at Borough of Manhattan Community College and City College of New York. After graduation, she began using the name Assata Shakur, and briefly joined the Black Panther Party. She then joined the BLA.
Between 1971 and 1973, she was charged with several crimes and was the subject of a multi-state manhunt. In May 1973, Shakur was arrested after being wounded in a shootout on the New Jersey Turnpike. Also involved in the shootout were officers Werner Foerster and James Harper and BLA members Sundiata Acoli and Zayd Malik Shakur. Harper was wounded, and Zayd Shakur and Foerester were killed. Between 1973 and 1977, Shakur was charged with murder, attempted murder, armed robbery, and kidnapping in relation to the shootout and six other incidents. She was acquitted on three of the charges and three were dismissed. In 1977, she was convicted of the murder of State Trooper Foerster and of seven other felonies related to the 1973 shootout. Her defense had argued medical evidence suggested her innocence since her arm was injured in the shootout.
While serving a life sentence for murder, Shakur escaped in 1979, with assistance from the BLA and members of the May 19 Communist Organization, from the Clinton Correctional Facility for Women in New Jersey and was granted political asylum in Cuba in 1984. Shakur has lived in Cuba since, despite US government efforts to have her returned. She has been on the FBI Most Wanted Terrorists list since 2013 as Joanne Deborah Chesimard and was the first woman to be added to this list.[4][5]
Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).
- ^ "Cuba still harbors one of America's most wanted fugitives. What happens to Assata Shakur now? - The Washington Post". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 28, 2016.
- ^ "Most Wanted Terrorists". Federal Bureau of Investigation. Archived from the original on June 11, 2008. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
- ^ "Joanne Chesimard Reward Poster" (PDF). Official Site of the State of New Jersey.
- ^ "Joanne Chesimard First Woman Named to Most Wanted Terrorists List". Federal Bureau of Investigation. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
- ^ "JOANNE DEBORAH CHESIMARD". Federal Bureau of Investigation.