Edmund Perry, a

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater Ha ...

resident, was shot to death by Lee Van Houten, a 24-year-old plainclothes policeman, on June 12, 1985 when he was 17 years old. The case briefly generated a firestorm of protest in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

when it was revealed that Perry was an honor student and was enrolled to attend Stanford on a scholarship; however, Van Houten said that Perry and his brother had attempted to mug him, and the shooting was ruled justifiable.

The incident

Lee Van Houten, a 24-year-old plainclothes policeman, was on assignment in the Morningside Park section of

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

on the night of June 12, 1985, when he said he was assaulted by two men who attempted to mug him. According to Van Houten, he was approached from behind and yanked to the ground by his neck, where two black men beat him and demanded that he give them money. He drew his gun from his ankle holster and fired three times, hitting Edmund Perry in the abdomen. The other attacker fled, and was later identified as Jonah Perry, Edmund's brother.

Reaction

At the time of his death, Perry was a recent graduate of Phillips Exeter Academy in Exeter, New Hampshire, Exeter, New Hampshire, one of the most prestigious university-preparatory school, preparatory schools in the United States. The revelation of this fact led to significant press coverage, much of it unfavorable to the police. The front-page headline of the ''New York Post'' the next day was "COP KILLS HARLEM HONOR STUDENT". The ''Village Voice'' suggested that Perry was shot because he was "too black for his own good", and ''The New York Times'' wrote that "...the death of Edmund Perry raises painfully troubling questions". However, 2 witnesses backed up Van Houten's version of events, and the media firestorm was short-lived. Van Houten was cleared of any culpability in the shooting. Jonah Perry, an alumnus of the Westminster School (Connecticut), Westminster School in Simsbury, Connecticut, was later put on trial for assaulting Van Houten. He was found not guilty. The NYPD settled a wrongful death claim for $75,000 in 1989. Veronica Perry, the mother of both boys and their sister Nicol, died in the city six years later on October 22, 1991, of a heart attack aged 44.

In popular culture

Perry's experiences at Exeter and the circumstances surrounding his death formed the basis of the best-selling 1987 book ''Best Intentions: The Education and Killing of Edmund Perry'', written by Robert Sam Anson. On January 6, 1992, NBC aired the TV movie ''Murder Without Motive: The Edmund Perry Story'', directed by Kevin Hooks. Perry was portrayed by Curtis McClarin. Spike Lee's movie ''Do the Right Thing'' is dedicated to Edmund Perry, among others. The first-season episode of ''Law & Order'', Poison Ivy (Law & Order episode), "Poison Ivy" was inspired by Perry. Various Michael Jackson biographers have concluded his 1987 song "Bad (Michael Jackson song), Bad" and its music video were inspired by Edmund Perry. In the music video Michael's character is peer-pressured by his friends when he returns home from his honors high school and rebuffs his bullies by singing the song. This reflects the main lyrical theme of anti-bullying and standing up for oneself. Adrienne Rich's poem Yom Kippur 1984 contains a line about the killing of Edmund Perry: "young scholar shot at the university gates on a summer evening walk, his prizes and studies nothing, nothing availing his Blackness."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Perry, Edmund 1967 births 1985 deaths African-American history in New York City People from Harlem Phillips Exeter Academy alumni African Americans shot dead by law enforcement officers in the United States 1985 in New York City Race-related controversies in the United States New York City Police Department corruption and misconduct Incidents of violence against boys

The incident

Reaction

In popular culture

References

Further reading

External links