Police brutality incident in Detroit
The Algiers Motel incident (also called the Algiers Motel murders) occurred in Detroit, Michigan, United States, throughout the night of July 25–26, 1967, during the racially charged 12th Street Riot. At the Algiers Motel, approximately one mile east of where the riot began, three civilians were killed and nine others abused by a riot task force composed of the Detroit Police Department, the Michigan State Police, and the Michigan Army National Guard. Among the casualties were three black teenage boys killed, and two white women and seven black men wounded. The task force was searching the area after reports were received that a gunman or group of gunmen, possibly snipers, had been seen at or near the motel.
One death has never been explained as the body was allegedly found by responding officers. Two deaths have been attributed to "justifiable homicide" or "self-defense". Charges of felonious assault, conspiracy, murder, and conspiracy to commit civil rights abuse were filed against three officers. Charges of assault and conspiracy were also filed on a private security guard. All were found not guilty.
Background.
Riot.
The 12th Street Riot began in the early morning hours of Sunday, July 23, 1967. The Detroit Police Department at the time was 93% white, of whom 45% working in black neighborhoods were considered to be "extremely anti-Negro" and an additional 34% were "prejudiced". The riot began after police raided a black-owned business that hosted a "blind pig" (illegal bar), during a party to celebrate the safe return of two black Vietnam War veterans. Police had expected a small number of patrons; however, there were 85 or more patrons inside. As the dozens of partygoers were being loaded into police vans, a mob of people formed around the scene. One of the sons of the blind pig's owner jumped on the roof of a car and threw a bottle at the police, and the mob followed suit. In the ensuing violence, numerous businesses were looted or burnt down as the riot spread to other districts of Detroit. At first, police officers were ordered to hold back from responding to the rioting, to prevent an escalation in violence. A curfew was imposed and many people in Detroit stayed home or took shelter. Detroit Fire Department (DFD) personnel were held back from the fires by looters throwing objects at them or by snipers. Michigan Army National Guardsmen were activated by the Michigan government and were patrolling the streets and guarding several large businesses. Michigan State Troopers and United States Army paratroopers were also deployed to patrol the streets.
Algiers Motel.
The Algiers Motel at 8301 Woodward Avenue near the Virginia Park district was a black-owned business, owned by Sam Gant and McUrant Pye. It was one of three motels in Detroit owned by Gant and Pye, the others being the Alamo, at Alfred and Woodward, and the Rio Grande, on West Grand near Grand River. Prior to Gant and Pye's purchase in 1965, the motel's white owner had barred black people from staying at the motel. The Algiers was considered by the police to be a center of illegal drugs and prostitution and was raided regularly by the vice squad. It was located close to the then-headquarters of General Motors (GM) and executives of the firm were regular customers. To the rear of the motel, a three-story detached home, known as the Manor House or Annex, was also rented to clients. Its street address was 50 Virginia Park Street, and it was accessible from Virginia Park and through a driveway from Woodward. The motel itself was laid out in the shape of a "U", with its office, pool and cabana rooms to the left and a two-story wing of rooms to the right around its parking lot. The Manor House could be seen from Woodward Avenue.
Motel guests.
After the riot started, the Dramatics singing group left a concert on Saturday, July 22 and they all checked in at the Algiers. Three of the members—Ron Banks, Larry Demps and Michael Calhoun—left before the 25th, leaving Roderick Davis, Larry Reed and the band's valet Fred Temple at the motel. On the evening of July 25, the Motel Annex was occupied by several people who had taken refuge from the rioting:
Incident.
Shooting of the motel.
On July 25, 1967, police and National Guardsmen were protecting the Great Lakes Mutual Life Insurance building one block north. Security guard Melvin Dismukes was guarding a store across the street from the Algiers. After midnight, shots were heard and Guardsman Ted Thomas reported gunfire in the vicinity of the Algiers Motel. A large contingent of Detroit police officers, State Troopers, and Guardsmen were ordered to investigate. They observed people in the windows of the Algiers' annex building, and consequently shot out those windows and stormed the building through its three entrances.
According to testimony, three of the black youths—Cooper, Clark, and Forsythe—and the two white women, Hysell and Malloy, were listening to music in a third-floor room of the annex. Cooper pulled out a starter pistol and shot blanks in the air, drawing return fire from the various authorities outside. Alarmed and frightened, the occupants fled to other rooms as law enforcement personnel rushed into the annex.
Death of Carl Cooper.
Carl Cooper was the first youth shot to death in the incident. Cooper had been in a third-floor room but his dead body was found in a first-floor room, A-2. He was killed by law enforcement personnel when they first entered the building: according to later testimony, he may have been mistaken for an armed rioter. Alternatively, several law enforcement witnesses later testified that Cooper was already dead when they entered the building. The shooting was never fully explained and no one was ever arrested for Cooper's death.
His injuries were consistent with buckshot wounds from the type of shotguns the Detroit Police Department used. In their testimony about the entering of the annex, Guardsmen, State Troopers and Detroit police officers each testified they were not the first to enter, stating that Cooper was already dead when they arrived, leaving responsibility for the death unexplained. In the federal conspiracy trial, the defense would attempt to show that Cooper was killed by occupants of the motel before the police arrived but this was denied by those occupants. They testified that at least one policeman shot into the rooms first and checked for persons later.
Abuse of motel guests.
The occupants of the motel annex were rounded up in the first-floor hallway and lined up against the wall. The various officers present hit each of the persons in turn, threatening to kill them unless they told the officers who had the gun and was sniping from the motel. Two 18-year-old women, Juli Hysell and Karen Malloy, were both forcibly stripped naked and harangued as "nigger lovers". Several of the men were shown a knife on the floor and told to pick it up, so they could be killed in "self-defense". In turn, each of the black youths in line were taken into rooms and intimidated with threats or gunshots and told to stay still and quiet or be killed. The policeman who had escorted the occupant then returned to the hallway, making some comment about the death of the individual. First, per conflicting reports, an officer took one of the youths into a room and fired a shot into the wall, to make the prisoners believe he was dead in a simulated execution. He then asked Guardsman Ted Thomas if he wanted to kill one. Thomas then took an occupant into a room and shot into the ceiling. Auburey Pollard was then taken to room A-3 by Officer Ronald August. August would later admit to Pollard's killing, stating it was in self-defense. A spent cartridge found next to Pollard was a .300 Savage, a type used for sporting rifles and not issued to police officers. Pollard had extensive injuries to his head. Witnesses described how he had been beaten on the head with a rifle, with force enough to break the rifle. The remaining occupants then admitted that Cooper had a starter pistol and had used it earlier.
The sound of gunshots was then heard outside the motel and the police officers left. Two remaining officers escorted the remaining prisoners out of the motel annex and told them to run home or they would be killed too. The death of the third youth, Fred Temple, occurred at that time or later. Several of the prisoners who were allowed to leave recalled Temple still being alive when they left the motel. Temple's body was later found in room A-3. He had been shot by Officer Robert Paille, who later testified it was in self-defense during a struggle over his gun.
Aftermath.
Discovery of corpses.
The officers did not report the deaths to the Detroit Police Homicide Bureau as required. The next day, on July 26, 1967, Charles Hendrix, whose security firm provided security for the Algiers, found the bodies in the annex and reported the deaths to the Wayne County Morgue, which then called the Detroit Police Homicide Bureau. Detectives Edward Hay, Lyle Thayer, a photographer and several patrolmen arrived around 3 a.m. The scene was examined and the bodies removed. A knife was found next to the body in A-2, but no gun was found and the cartridges and shell casings were left. The investigator's activities, including the flashes from the camera and the presence of police on the roof of the building, were noticed by Guardsmen stationed nearby and they shouted a challenge to identify themselves. The detectives left the scene to return at a later time, feeling it was not safe to stay on scene that night.
Press reports.
The deaths were reported to the press as having happened in an exchange of gunfire with snipers. However, the "Detroit Free Press" interviewed the witnesses of the events, who all claimed to have been unarmed and that the dead men were not snipers. The deaths were reported to Congressman John Conyers and the NAACP and motel witnesses appeared in a press conference held by Conyers on the conduct of the military and police. The US Department of Justice began an investigation under assistant District Attorney Robert Murphy, who interviewed witnesses. The witnesses' accounts were delivered to Detroit prosecutors on July 29. The "Free Press" investigated the story and retained a pathologist, Dr. Robert Sillery, to examine the bodies. His conclusions were that all three had been killed inside the home and all had been shot twice, shot from slightly behind and at close range, and in defensive postures.
Five days after the incident, "The Detroit News" reported the story of one of the survivors, Robert Lee Greene, stating that one of the National Guard warrant officers murdered the men.
Charge of Melvin Dismukes.
Security guard Melvin Dismukes, who was black, was the first to be charged. He was arraigned for the felonious assault of James Sortor and Michael Clark in the first-floor hallway of the annex. He was freed on $1,500 bail. Dismukes's trial took place in May 1968. He was found not guilty of the charge of felonious assault. The all-white jury returned the verdict in 13 minutes.
Investigations.
Officer Ronald August, Officer Robert Paille, and Officer David Senak, confessed to taking part in the killings of Pollard and Temple and were charged with murder. Each spent one night in jail and was released on $5,000 bail. August had given a statement to detectives that the three were dead when he arrived, but asked for that statement back and submitted a second statement asserting he had shot Pollard in self-defense. At the pretrial examination, Guard Warrant Officer Ted Thomas identified August as the shooter of Pollard and 23-year-old Vice Patrolman David Senak as the officer who did the questioning and beating. Senak had allegedly taken part in the killing of two men earlier in the riot before arriving at the Algiers Motel. Paille's initial confession was ruled inadmissible and August claimed self-defense. Senak appeared as a witness and testified that he had not seen August or Paille fire their weapons. One of the motel survivors, Michael Clark, gave conflicting evidence that August and Paille had taken him into a room and threatened him when Hersey falsely wrote Senak and Thomas had actually done so. Judge DeMascio ruled that August could be indicted for the murder of Pollard,