Slavery Revisited

New York: The capital of American slavery

by Robert A. Waters

Douglas Harper is a Pennsylvania historian and author.  His website about slavery in the northern states draws heavily on original source material.  While researching northern slavery, Harper writes: “I kept running into people, most of them born and raised in ‘free’ states, who had no idea there ever were slaves in the North.”  Much of the information in this story comes from Harper’s work, and from Mac Griswold’s book, The Manor: Three Centuries At a Slave Plantation on Long Island.

Yes, Virginia, northern slavery not only existed but flourished.  In fact, slavery still survived in some northern states long after Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation called for freeing slaves in the South.

Dutch and English slavers brought Africans to America soon after its discovery.  Not to be denied, New England ship captains quickly began sailing to Africa where they purchased slaves from tribal leaders.  These Africans were shipped to northern ports and sold to the highest bidder.  By 1790, the population of America was four million, 19% of which were slaves, most in northern states.

In “The Hidden History of Slavery in New York,” Adele Oltman, writes: “On display [at the New-York Historical Society] is The Trading Book of the Sloop of Rhode Island, which left the Port of New York in 1748 for West Africa under the direction of Capt. Peter James…Early in the voyage, around Sierra Leone, James distributed two New World commodities that had come through the Port of New York: tobacco and rum…In return he loaded up on cloth, guns and other manufactured goods from Europe. Later, as he sailed along the Gold Coast (today’s Ghana), he traded those goods for slaves, a few at a time.

“James’s book registered the deaths of thirty-eight slaves on the journey home. But even with the loss, the trafficking in slaves was profitable. A table provides a graphic illustration of just how lucrative the business was. In 1675 the average selling price of a slave in dollars in Africa was $354.89, and in New York it was $3,792.66 (that's a 969 percent markup, for those econometricians keeping score). A hundred years later the trade was still profitable, although with a more modest return of 159 percent.”

Uncle Tom’s Cabin portrayed Southern slave-holders as brutal.  But brutality is where you find it, as these true stories show.

After a New York City slave uprising in 1712, Harper writes that “a special court convened by the governor made short work of the rebels. Of the twenty-seven slaves brought to trial for complicity in the plot, twenty-one were convicted and put to death. Since the law authorized any degree of punishment in such cases, some unlucky slaves were executed with all the refinements of calculated barbarity. New Yorkers were treated to a round of grisly spectacles as Negroes were burned alive, racked and broken on the wheel, and gibbeted alive in chains.”

The following example could come straight from the files of ISIS: “As in other Northern colonies, blacks in New York faced special, severe penalties for certain crimes. An example from Poughkeepsie illustrates one of them: A young slave, about twenty years of age...[burned] his master’s barn and outbuildings, and thus destroyed much grain, together with live-stock. He was detected by the smoke issuing from his pocket, (into which he had thrust some combustibles,) imprisoned, tried, and on his confession, condemned to be burned to death. He was fastened to a stake, and when the pile was fired, the dense crowd excluded the air, so that the flames kindled but slowly, and the dreadful screams of the victim were heard at a distance of three miles. His master, who had been fond of him, wept aloud, and called to the Sheriff to put him out of his misery. This officer then drew his sword; but the master, still crying like a child, exclaimed, ‘Oh, don’t run him through!’ The Sheriff then caused the crowd to separate, so as to cause a current of air; and when the flame burst out fiercely he called to the sufferer to ‘swallow the blaze;’ which he did, and immediately he sunk dead.”

In the early-to-mid 1800s, most northern states abolished slavery, but not all.

After Lincoln’s armies invaded the Confederacy, the U. S. president issued the Emancipation Proclamation.  Intended for the South, the Proclamation was never intended for the northern states.  For example, even though the War Between the States ended in April, 1865, slave-owners in Delaware kept slaves until the 13^th Amendment was ratified in December, 1865.  That was three full years after the Proclamation.  

One thorny question remains: if ending slavery was truly the major motive for the war, why did Northerners continue to own slaves while demanding that the South relinquish theirs?

“Let Nothing Tear Us Apart”

The Internet’s original cybersleuth, Todd Matthews, is to be featured in a documentary film that will publicize missing persons and the unidentified dead, but the project needs $40,000 for completion.  This website explains how you can help.

Todd, who now works for the Department of Justice, has been featured on national television, in People Magazine, and in books about the unidentified dead.

He has been my friend for many years, since I visited him in his hometown of Livingston, Tennessee.  Todd is a champion of the underdog whose life has been dedicated to helping others.  He learned early on that publicity and an online army of volunteers can do as much or more than law enforcement to find identities of those sad remains that no longer have names.

The first person who emails me and tells me they’ve made a contribution to the documentary film fund will receive a free copy of my latest book, The Kidnapping and Murder of Little Skeegie Cash: J. Edgar Hoover and Florida’s Lindbergh Case.  The book will be signed by both me and my co-author, Zack C. Waters. (NOTE: WE HAVE A WINNER.  THANKS, KAREN.)

“Let Nothing Tear Us Apart” will bring much-needed publicity to the cause.   

The Day Reason Died



“A bloody spectacle…”
by Robert A. Waters

At the Boston terror trial, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev’s attorney admitted his client set off the pressure cooker bombs that killed three people and injured hundreds more.  But just wait, the lawyer said, my client had a reason.  

Before we get an explanation, however, a parade of victims file into court to recount the horror of that afternoon.

One fine spring day, while people are having fun in arguably the country’s most iconic city, a deafening blast rocks the landscape.  Then another.  In the courtroom, photos and videos show excruciating scenes of mutilation, blood (real blood, not movie blood), evisceration.  Jurors gasp when they hear the explosions, but after the smoke clears, there’s more—whimpers drifting into the sad sky mixed with shrieks that must confound the heavens.

In court, wounded souls drag prosthetic limbs to the stand and tell their stories, trying to make sense of the senseless.  A father describes how he had to make a decision: should he tend to his mangled son whose light was already flickering, or should he help his daughter whose leg had been blown to smithereens?

There’s the cop who administered CPR to a woman whose lower body had been blown off.  “From the waist down,” he said, “it’s really tough to describe.  It was complete mutilation.” As strangers worked to save her life, the woman mouthed to a friend that her legs hurt.  Seconds later, her hand went limp.

Then there was the graduate student who traveled seven thousand miles only to die on a bloody foreign street.

While viewing destruction on an unimaginable scale, the gallery of spectators wept.  But somewhere out there, in the midst of death, the lawyer says there’s a reason.  After jurors hear Tsarnaev’s motive, they’ll want to let him live out his life.

The prosecutor informed jurors that the bomb was “designed to tear people apart and create a bloody spectacle.”  That’s obvious.

But why?

I can’t wait to hear Tsarnaev’s explanation.

True Quotes

“History is the version of past events that people have decided to agree upon.”  Napoleon Bonaparte.

“Every man must do two things alone; he must do his own believing and his own dying.”  Martin Luther.

“Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past.”  George Orwell.

“People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf.” George Orwell.

“How can you expect a man who’s warm to understand one who’s cold?” Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn.

“[We] made a great mistake in the beginning of our struggle, and I fear, in spite of all we can do, it will prove to be a fatal mistake. We appointed all our worst generals to command our armies, and all our best generals to edit the newspapers.” Robert E. Lee.

“Anyone who clings to the historically untrue — and — thoroughly immoral doctrine that violence never solves anything I would advise to conjure up the ghosts of Napoleon Bonaparte and the Duke of Wellington and let them debate it. The ghost of Hitler would referee. Violence, naked force, has settled more issues in history than has any other factor; and the contrary opinion is wishful thinking at its worst. Breeds that forget this basic truth have always paid for it with their lives and their freedoms.” Robert A. Heinlein.

“If freedom of speech is taken away, then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter.” George Washington.

“By gnawing through a dike, even a rat may drown a nation.” Edmund Burke.

“Giving money and power to government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys.” P. J. O’Rourke.

“History is written by the winners.” Alex Haley.

“I think that there are certain crimes which the law cannot touch, and which therefore, to some extent, justify private revenge.” Arthur Conan Doyle (Sherlock Holmes quote from “The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton.”)

“Political correctness is tyranny with manners.” Charlton Heston.

“Be wary of strong drink. It can make you shoot at tax collectors... and miss.” Robert A. Heinlein.   

How Long Before California Executes Multiple Murderer?

Kermit Alexander Seeks Justice

“In the past 29 years, I’ve missed my mother everyday…”
by Robert A. Waters

It has long been my opinion that capital punishment is a social contract between a nation’s populace and government.  Throughout much of history, families of murder victims took their own revenge.  When civilized societies formed, governments took the role of avenger.  Today it’s called justice, but it’s the same thing.  When states do not administer justice, what recourse do families have?  Recently, Kermit Alexander, a former NFL star, sued the state of California, demanding that his mother’s killer be executed.  This lawsuit is long overdue.

At 5:30 A.M., on August 31, 1984, Ebora Alexander, still wearing her nightgown and slippers, was making coffee in her kitchen.  Within seconds, she lay dead.  Ebora had been shot three times in the head.

Her daughter, Dietra, 23, screamed when she heard the commotion.  Ebora’s killer then ran into her bedroom and shot her between the eyes.

Two of Ebora’s grandchildren, Damon Bonner, 8, and Damani Garner, 10, died in their beds, brutally slaughtered by the same gunman.

The murdered members of the family were innocent victims of a botched hit—the killers had mistaken Ebora’s home for that of their intended target.

Ebora Alexander lived in Watts, always a powder-keg ruled by drugs and gangs.  Her son, Kermit Alexander, who had played for ten years in the NFL, begged her to move out.  But Ebora wanted to be near her friends, so she remained in her long-time home.

Kermit’s first impulse was to find the murderers and kill them.  He bought a gun and, like the police, searched for the killers.  NBC News reported that “the ex-athlete—who was a first-round draft pick in 1963 and spent 10 years in the pros—says the only reason he didn’t become a killer himself is because then-Mayor Tom Bradley made him promise to give up his hunt and let the legal process run its course.”

When the shooter, Tiequon Cox, a member of the Rollin 60 Crips Gang, was identified by police, Alexander assumed that justice would be served.  Cox was tried and convicted, and sentenced to death.  His cohort, who did not pull the trigger, received a life sentence.

For 31 years, Alexander has waited.  “It galls me,” he said. “The people of California have said over and over again that they want this kind of punishment for the worst criminals.”

Two years ago, Kermit wrote in the San Francisco Chronicle that “on Aug. 31, 1984, Cox murdered my mother, sister and two nephews during an early morning home invasion. Cox, a for-hire killer, went to the wrong address and mistakenly killed my family—four acts of murder committed on an innocent family in exchange for $3,500.

“In the past 29 years, I have missed my mother every day. Yet my family’s murderer continues to live, even though the jury found him guilty and then unanimously recommended the death penalty.”

I’d like to see a parade of other families of victims join Aexander’s lawsuit.  Maybe that would convince California’s anti-capital punishment governor, Jerry Brown, that justice should finally be served. 

Armed Bandit Dies in Attempted Holdup

Pharmacist outguns robber…
by Robert A. Waters

Working behind the counter at Good Family Pharmacy in Pinch, West Virginia, pharmacist Don Radcliff noticed a strange man walk in.  The man’s head was covered with a hoodie, and his face masked by a white bandana.  Since the weather was freezing outside, Radcliff didn’t feel comfortable with the man’s unusual attire.

Attempting to crack a joke, Radcliff asked the man if he was there to rob the store.  The man didn’t respond, and that suddenly struck Radcliff as strange.  “He didn’t say anything,” Radcliff said.  “He didn’t reply.  He didn’t laugh or joke with me.  He didn’t pull his hood or mask down and that gave me an uneasy feeling.”

Surveillance videos inside the store recorded what happened next.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wOq7iUFiXR4

The masked man, later identified as Terry Gillenwater, reached into his pocket and pulled out a handgun.   Radcliff later said:  “As soon as I saw [Gillenwater’s] gun, I went for mine.  You can’t hesitate and I didn’t.  I tried to close the distance between us because there was another student and an employee there and I definitely didn’t want them between us in a gunfight.  If there was going to be a gunfight, it was going to be between me and him.”

The pharmacist fired three rounds from his .45-caliber pistol.  Each bullet struck home.  The first round hit Gillenwater in the chest while the second hit the robber’s gun, disabling it.  Radcliff’s final round struck the robber in the abdomen.  Gillenwater fell to the floor, mortally wounded.

While Radcliff attempted to treat the robber’s wounds, pharmacy staff dialed 911.  Gillenwater, however, died on his way to the hospital.

Investigators concluded that Gillenwater’s intent was to steal prescription drugs.  He had a history of drug abuse, and had recently entered a treatment center after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute Oxycontin.  Kanawha County Prosecutor Chuck Miller stated that “Mr. Gillenwater had done some preliminary efforts to case the pharmacy.  He had done some search[es] on his iPhone with respect to drugs in the pharmacy.”

Miller later told reporters that “it took a great deal of courage for Mr. Radcliff to pull his weapon and fire in the face of a weapon being pointed at him that was fully loaded with a round in the chamber.  That takes a lot of nerve, but he was completely justified in doing so.”

The pharmacist, who had a concealed carry permit, will not be charged with any crime.

Notes about my blog…

A few days ago, my blog, “Kidnapping, Murder and Mayhem,” surpassed 1 million page views.

Influenced by Laura James’ outstanding blog, “CLEWS,” I wanted an online outlet to publish short true crime stories, as well as narratives about any other subject that struck me.  I decided to stay away from political discussion since there are thousands of websites that cater to every nuance of the political spectrum.  Two exceptions were the gun issue (I’m obviously pro-gun) and the death penalty (in certain narrow instances, I’m obviously pro-death penalty).

Here are a few facts about my blog.

I refuse to allow any advertisements since I loathe pop-ups and side-ads that distract from the content.  In fact, I refuse to read the content of websites that have distracting ads.

I get many comments from readers, and I generally publish them whether the reader agrees with me or not.  But I personally do not use profanity either in speech or prose and will not publish comments that contain foul language.  I am exceedingly grateful to readers of my blog and always feel blessed when hearing from them.

I enjoy writing reviews about good books that I’ve read.  For the last two decades, I’ve read almost no novels.  To me, real life trumps fiction every time.

In my blog, I publish only material that appeals to me.

I’m interested in American history, particularly the history of my native Florida; the War Between the States; World War I; and World War II.  I also enjoy learning more about unsolved cases.  Some of these include the kidnapping of Dorothy “Dee” Scofield from my hometown of Ocala, Florida; the abduction of Amber Hagerman from Texas; and the kidnapping of Jennifer Kesse from Orlando.  The brazen, senseless murder of Linda Raulerson, a convenience store clerk in Lake City, Florida, is another case I’d like to see solved.  I’ve written two blogs about the Canadian kidnapping and murder of Sharin’ Morningstar Keenan, and her killer Dennis Melvyn Howe.  How a career criminal who had never been out of jail for more than a few weeks at a time could escape police and remain undetected for more than 30 years leads me to believe that Howe died shortly after his escape, but I have no proof of that.

So a huge THANKS to those who have clicked into my blog, and particularly those who read it on a regular basis.  I hope to continue writing it for many more years.

Family Needs Solution to Sharon Marie Gill’s Unsolved Murder

25 years and counting…
by Robert A. Waters

Unknown to forty-two-year-old Sharon Marie Gill, a two-man crime-wave lived just yards away from her new home in Deep Creek, Florida.  She and her husband, Percy, were missionaries who planned to retire in the Sunshine State.  Sharon and daughter Krista, 17, had moved south a few months ahead of Percy (who was still working in Detroit) to get their new house ready.

On the afternoon of Wednesday, March 21, 1990, the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office responded to a call from Krista.  The distraught teen sobbed into the phone that she’d returned home from school and found her mother dead.  A report from the sheriff’s office stated that “[Sharon Gill] was found partially nude, stabbed multiple times, lying in a pool of blood on the master bathroom floor of her residence.”  In addition to having sustained 38 stab wounds, Sharon had been brutally raped.

Investigators learned that she had been speaking on the phone with her travel agent when she heard a knock at the door.  Before hanging up, Sharon informed the agent that she thought landscapers had arrived.

A few yards behind the Gill home, another family of transplants resided.  Shawn Edward Malsky and his brother Scott hailed from Massachusetts—each had been in and out of trouble since their early teens.  In Florida alone, Shawn had been arrested 30 times.  In one case, he was convicted of injecting heroin into his girlfriend’s 4-year-old daughter.  According to the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, “Malsky landed behind bars again Oct. 31 after he allegedly shot heroin into preschooler Rylee Nantell and put a lighted crack pipe in her mouth.  He reportedly told Rylee that smoking crack would give her energy, a sheriff’s report states.”  Shawn is currently serving out a 16 year sentence for that crime.  He had previously served prison time for crimes such as forgery, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, grand theft, and burglary.

Shawn Malsky is the older brother of Scott Christopher Malsky, who is currently serving a life sentence for raping and killing Pauline Farrington, an elderly Port Charlotte widow.  Scott was also convicted of abducting, raping, stabbing, and setting on fire a 14-year-old girl.  He is currently serving a life sentence for murder.

Immediately after Gill’s murder, investigators took a close look at the Malsky brothers, particularly Shawn.  He was arrested and charged with her murder.  However, after spending two years in jail awaiting trial, he was released.  Investigators cited a lack of evidence, although to this day they continue to view him as a suspect.

In November, 2014, WBBH TV reported that “Sharon [Gill], 42, was stabbed multiple times in her home on Rampart Blvd. in Deep Creek on March 21, 1990.

“One very strong suspect, Shawn Edward Malsky, was eventually arrested for this murder.

“Malsky was living in the same neighborhood with his grandparents at the time.  The charges were eventually dropped against Malsky because of an alibi.

“Cold Case detectives have recently discredited the alibi.  Detectives are currently re-examining all evidence and witness testimony.”

Although it’s been 25 years since Sharon Gill’s murder, the family still grieves her loss.  Family members have stated that DNA is available, but that no match has been made to any suspect.

If you have information about this case, please call the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office Cold Case Unit at 941-575-5361 or after hours call 941-639-2101, or email them at coldcase@ccso.org.

When Will Pamela Butler’s Killer be Executed?

Justice overdue…
by Robert A. Waters

The federal government has a poor record of carrying out executions.  Only three men have been put to death since 1988: Timothy McVeigh, terrorist mass murderer; Juan Raul Garza, mass killer; and Louis Jones, rapist, kidnapper, and killer.

Hell impatiently awaits another 59, including Keith Duane Nelson.

The U. S. Court of Appeals published a summary of his crimes: “On October 12, 1999… ten-year-old Pamela Butler was rollerblading in the street near her residence in the same area.  Nelson parked his vehicle at the side of the street and lay in wait.  As Pamela skated near the slightly ajar door of the truck, Nelson quickly jumped out of the truck, grabbed her around the waist, and threw her into the truck.  Pamela’s sister, Penny, observed the kidnapping and saw her sister struggling with Nelson in the cab of the truck.  Several witnesses also observed the kidnapping, one of whom gave chase in his own vehicle.  Although Nelson eluded him, the witness was able to write down the license plate number of the truck—Missouri plate number 177-CE2.  Several other eyewitnesses verified the truck license plate number.

“Later that evening, the custodian of the Grain Valley Christian Church in Kansas City, Missouri, and his wife saw a suspicious white truck with Missouri license plate number 177-CE2 parked in the church lot.  The custodian’s wife wrote down the plate number and noticed an afghan in the front seat of the truck.  They contacted the police after seeing the kidnapping story on the ten o’clock news and informed them of the location of the truck.  When the police arrived at the church, the truck was gone.

“The truck was found abandoned the next day in Kansas City, Missouri.  A police dog that had been provided with some of Pamela’s clothing was dispatched to Nelson’s mother’s house and alerted to an afghan found inside the residence.  That same day a large manhunt for Nelson commenced.  On October 14, a civilian employee of a police department spotted Nelson hiding under a bridge.  After he was spotted, Nelson went into the river and attempted to get away.  When he made it back to shore, he was surrounded by railroad workers who detained him until the authorities arrived.  After the authorities arrived, an onlooker shouted, “Where is the little girl?”  Nelson turned to an officer and stated, “I know where she’s at, but I’m not saying right now.”  His capture was broadcast live on television.  The next day the police found Butler’s body in a wooded area behind the Grain Valley Christian Church.  That discovery was broadcast on local television, and the United States Attorney held a live press conference from the discovery site.  Subsequent investigation revealed that Pamela had been raped and then strangled to death with wire.  The DNA in seminal fluid obtained from Pamela’s underpants matched Nelson’s DNA.”

A few days before snatching Pamela, Nelson had attempted to abduct Michanne Mattson, 20.  The pretty medical student fought for her life, refusing to enter his truck even though she had been handcuffed.  After hand-to-hand combat that seemed to go on forever, Mattson escaped.

Nelson, a career criminal who had recently been released from prison, was tried in federal court because of the Lindbergh Law—the kidnapping took place in Kansas but the murder was committed in Missouri.

KMBC.com reported that Nelson’s execution has been delayed because the government claims it has a “lack of funds to pay for the [appeals] of poor people charged with federal crimes.”

(Imagine that—the U.S. government can spend $175,000 “to determine if cocaine makes Japanese quail engage in sexually risky behavior,” but they summarily delay executions because, as KMBC.com reports, “federally funded lawyers don’t have the money to pay for travel and witness fees.”)

Pamela’s mother, Cherri West, figures it’s time for the Feds to quit playing around and execute this monster.  “This has gone on long enough,” she said.

I agree.

Tim Tebow

Still making news…
by Robert A. Waters

Larry Flynt has a bounty on Tim Tebow.  If you can catch the former quarterback and practicing Christian in a flagrant sex act, you’ll win a cool million dollars.  Flynt, owner of Hustler magazine, seems to think everyone is as twisted as he is.  So he’s prepared to pay big bucks to prove that Tebow is a hypocrite.

In another round of recent news, Patrick Schmidt, a writer for SI.com, took issue because someone wore a Tim Tebow New York Rangers jersey to a Pittsburgh Penguins game.  In fact, Schmidt wrote an entire column describing his outrage, including this gem: “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a cross-sport jersey in my lifetime, but I suppose there is a first (and last) time for everything.  It is hard to disagree…about it being the worst jersey on the planet.”

I mean, really!  Who cares?  On a scale of one to a million (with one million being the least obnoxious thing going on in sports), I’d rank a Tebow “cross-sport jersey” at one million.  Schmidt needs to get a life.

In case you missed it, there’s other news about Tebow.

The Tim Tebow Foundation, in partnership with CURE, has opened an orthopedic hospital in Davao City, Phillipines.  His foundation reports that “the Tebow CURE Hospital in the Philippines will provide life-changing surgeries for hundreds of children with curable disabilities each year.”  All medical treatments are free to patients.

In 2012, Tebow opened his first Timmy’s Playroom, which is for children battling life-threatening illnesses.  The brochure advertising this innovative approach to medical rehabilitation reads: “Through allowing children to take their minds off of their medical treatments, a Timmy's Playroom provides them with a place to smile, draw, create, play video games, and enjoy a positive atmosphere.”  Nearly a dozen more Timmy’s Playrooms have opened since 2012.

In addition to Tebow’s CURE Hospital and Timmy’s Playrooms, the former football star has launched the W15H (WISH) program and an Orphan Care program.

Tebow spends much of his time making a difference in the lives of children.  His latest project is to fund 45 prom nights in the United States, Uganda, and Kenya for special needs teenagers.

And yet some reporter has nothing better to do than criticize a “cross-sport jersey” with Tebow’s name on it.

How about an article on all the good works Tim Tebow is doing?