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Revision as of 05:10, 11 November 2006 by 70.23.177.216 (talk)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)The Zebra murders were a number of connected murders performed by a black supremacist serial killer ring that took place in San Francisco, California in 1973 and 1974 and left 15 people dead and either eight (Howard) or nine (Scheeres, Court TV) wounded. They were dubbed the Zebra murders because of the radio channel used by the San Francisco Police ("Z") exclusively for this case.
The Death Angels
The Zebra murders were the work of the Death Angels, a group within the extremist black nationalist group, the Nation of Islam. According to the NOI's beliefs, the white race was created by a black mad scientist named Yakub, who, some say, wanted a race of inferiors to rule over. Furthermore, the Death Angels believed that they could earn "points" towards Paradise when they died if they killed as many whites as possible. The NOI's teachings presented whites not as human beings, but variously as "blue-eyed devils," "white devils," and "grafted snakes."
Candidates would be invited to secret meetings at the NOI-owned Black Self-Help Moving and Storage; to attain the status of Death Angel, each man was expected to kill either nine white men, five white women or four white children. After attaining this goal, a pair of black wings would be attached to his photograph and pinned up in an upstairs room of the self-help building. Although killing was their main goal, death angel candidates would often use machetes to torture victims over long periods, and women were also the victims of rape.
Reaction to the Murders
The murders brought panic to the city. People would try to find safety in numbers whenever they would go out, and as much as possible, avoid going out at night. In reaction, an increased police presence was ordered throughout the city.
The police were baffled by the lack of motive in the killings. Brutality and an apparent lack of remorse on the part of the gunmen marked the attacks. The common denominator in all the killings was that all the killers were black, and all the victims were white.
Based on what was initially known about the killings, there was a common pattern. The gunman walked up to his victim. The victim was shot repeatedly at close range, and the killer fled on foot, in a hit-and-run shooting. Another link to the shootings was the killers' preference for a 32-caliber pistol, based on the slugs recovered from the victims and the shell casings that littered the crime scenes.
As a result, a special task force was formed to try to solve and stop the murders, led by Detectives Gus Coreris and John Fotinos (1925-2006). Police Chief Donald Scott assigned the "Z" frequency for their exclusive use. Since the letter Z is known in common phonetic use as "Zebra" they became known as the Zebra task force, and the murders became known as the Zebra murders.
The Killings Resume
On April 1, 1974, two Salvation Army cadets were walking toward Mayfair market just two blocks away from the Salvation Army School for Officers' Training Center when a black man who was following them overtook them, wheeled around, fired four shots at them, and fled. One cadet, Thomas Rainwater, died; the other cadet, Linda Story, survived. Two cops arrived at the scene within 15 seconds and although a manhunt was initiated in an effort to find the killer, it proved to be futile. They suspected that the Zebra killers had struck again, because of the 32-caliber shell casings found on the sidewalk.
Easter Sunday, two other people, Ward Anderson and Terry White, were wounded while waiting for a bus.
April 16, 23-year old Nelson T. Shields IV, heir to a wealthy Du Pont executive, accompanied a friend who lived in the Ingleside district to buy a rug. They went back to the friend's house on Vernon St., and while Shields was working at the back of the station wagon they had borrowed to transport the rug, he was shot repeatedly. A witness later testified that she saw a black man rushing up Vernon St. at the time of the shooting. The police again suspected that it was a Zebra murder because of the .32-caliber shell casings found at the scene.
Reaction to the Second Wave
Once again the new wave of killings brought the city to a state of shock as people took the same precautions as they had when the first wave took place.
The city also took a beating economically as tourists stayed away. Streets were deserted at night even at North Beach, a neighborhood known to have a seven-nights-a-week nightlife.
Police decided to take drastic measures. Inspector Gus Coreris gambled, dictating generic suspect "descriptions" to SFPD artist Hobart “Hoby” Nelson, who drew two sketches, based on them. The sketches were then distributed to the media and to SFPD officers, none of whom knew the sketches were generic imaginings. Police then fanned out, stopping and questioning 500 young men who resembled the description of the killer: a black man with a short Afro and a narrow chin.
This action by the police provoked criticism from the African-American community. Acting on a suit sponsored by the NAACP and the ACLU, U.S. District Judge Alfonso J. Zirpoli ruled that the widespread profiling of African-Americans was unconstitutional, and the operation was suspended.
Arrest and Conviction
When Anthony Harris, an employee at the Black Self-Help Moving and Storage in Market Street, and Death Angel candidate, saw the sketches in the newspaper, his active imagination concluded that one of the sketches was of him. Seeing the reward as a way of helping his family, gaining immunity from prosecution, and securing a new identity, he called the police and told them about the "Death Angels."
Harris revealed the existence of the group to the police, and told them of a homicide which did not make the papers; it was that of a homeless man who they kidnapped from Ghirardelli Square. They brought the man to Black Self Help and took turns removing his limbs and hacking him to pieces. Harris told the detectives that they dumped the body into San Francisco Bay. He told his story in such detail that the police were convinced of its veracity.
Harris provided the police with names, dates, addresses and details — enough information to issue warrants against the suspects.
On May 1, simultaneous raids during the pre-dawn hours were made, resulting in the arrests of Larry Craig Green and J.C.X. Simon in an apartment building at 844 Grove Street. More suspects were arrested at Black Self-Help. No one offered resistance when arrested.
Of the seven arrested that day, four were released for lack of evidence.
Mayor Alioto announced the news of the raids and announced that the killings were perpetrated by the Death Angels. Almost at once, local black leaders denounced the arrests because of its apparent racist undertones. Black Muslim leader John Muhammad denied the allegations of a Black Muslim conspiracy to kill Caucasians.
See also
Howard, Clark. Zebra: The true account of the 179 days of terror in San Francisco (New York: Richard Marek Publishers, 1979). Cohen, Bennett, and Sanders, Prentice Earl. Zebra Murders: A Season of Killing, Racial Madness, and Civil Rights (New York: Arcade Publishing, 2006).
- Nation of Islam
- Shankill Butchers/ Lenny Murphy similar religious/racial serial killer ring
- San Francisco Chronicle
- Crime Library Profile
- Domestic Terrorism: The Nation of Islam and the Zebra Murders, by Nicholas Stix
Notes and references
- Time Magazine. "Fear in the Streets of San Francisco", published April 29, 1974. Retrieved August 28, 2006 from . Also found in Court TV Crime Library, retrieved August 28, 2006.