Amiri Baraka

Released
Full name:Amiri Baraka
Date of birth:07. 10. 1934
Date of death:09. 01. 2014
Age:79† Deceased
Gender:Male
Race:Black
Era:1960s
State:New Jersey
Time Imprisoned:
13 Days
Support
Black Nationalism Black Liberation Black Power
Amiri Baraka

Biography

Everett LeRoi Jones — later the poet and playwright Amiri Baraka — was arrested and beaten by Newark police during the July 1967 Newark rebellion and charged with unlawfully carrying two revolvers. An all-white jury convicted him in November 1967, and in January 1968 Judge Leon Kapp imposed the maximum sentence, reading Baraka's poem "Black People!" aloud in court as justification — a move that drew national protest from writers and civil-liberties advocates. The New Jersey Appellate Division reversed the conviction on April 21, 1969 and ordered a new trial.

Cases

Essex County Jail
Charges: Unlawful possession of two revolvers; resisting arrest (Newark rebellion, July 1967)
Arrested: Jul 14, 1967
Incarcerated: Jul 14, 1967
Released: Jul 22, 1967
Sentence: Arrest detention: held 8 days after the July 14, 1967 arrest, then released on bail July 22, 1967 (pre-trial). Verdict as recorded: Yes — convicted November 6, 1967; conviction reversed on appeal April 21, 1969
Judge: Leon W. Kapp
Convicted: Yes
Institution State: New Jersey
Essex County Jail
Charges: Criminal contempt of court (summary contempt
Sentenced: Nov 6, 1967
Sentence: 30 days in the Essex County Jail, imposed November 6, 1967 by Judge Leon W. Kapp immediately after the verdict; reversed on appeal Charges as recorded: Criminal contempt of court (summary contempt during the 1967 Newark weapons trial)
Judge: Leon W. Kapp
Convicted: Adjudged guilty of criminal contempt November 6, 1967; reversed on appeal (State v. Jones, 1969)
Institution State: New Jersey
Essex County Jail
Charges: Unlawful possession of two revolvers — post-conviction incarceration (sentence vacated on appeal)
Arrested: Dec 4, 1968
Sentenced: Jan 4, 1968
Incarcerated: Jan 4, 1968
Released: Jan 9, 1968
Sentence: 2½ to 3 years plus a $1,000 fine; jailed at sentencing on January 4, 1968 and released on $25,000 bail January 9, 1968 pending appeal. Conviction reversed April 21, 1969 — the full sentence was never served. Verdict as recorded: Convicted November 6, 1967; reversed on appeal April 21, 1969
Judge: Leon W. Kapp
Convicted: Yes
Institution State: New Jersey

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