George W. Sams Jr. (born c. 1946) was a member of the Black Panther Party convicted in the 1969 murder of New York Panther

Alex Rackley Alex Rackley (June 2, 1949 – May 20, 1969) was an American activist who was a member of the New York chapter of the Black Panther Party (BPP) in the late-1960s. In May 1969, Rackley was suspected by other Panthers of being a police informant. He ...

, which resulted in the

New Haven Black Panther trials In 1969-1971 there was a series of criminal prosecutions in New Haven, Connecticut, against various members and associates of the Black Panther Party. The charges ranged from criminal conspiracy to first-degree murder. All charges stemmed from t ...

of 1970. Sams turned

state's evidence A criminal turns state's evidence by admitting guilt and testifying as a witness for the state against their associate(s) or accomplice(s), often in exchange for leniency in sentencing or immunity from prosecution.Howard Abadinsky, ''Organized C ...

in return for a reduced charge of second-degree murder. He testified that, acting under direct orders from national party leader

Bobby Seale Robert George Seale (born October 22, 1936) is an American political activist and author. Seale is widely known for co-founding the Black Panther Party with fellow activist Huey P. Newton. Founded as the "Black Panther Party for Self-Defense", ...

, he arranged for the kidnapping of Rackley to Panther headquarters in New Haven, where Rackley was tortured for two days then transported to the marshlands of

Middlefield, Connecticut Middlefield is a town in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 4,217 at the 2020 census. The town includes the village of Rockfall in the northeast section. History Middlefield, in Middlesex County, is so named becau ...

, where he was shot by Warren Kimbro and Lonnie McLucas on Sams' orders. According to Hugh Pearson, who wrote the book ''The Shadow of the Panther: Huey Newton and the Price of Black Power in America'': Neither Kimbro nor McLucas corroborated Sams' testimony regarding Seale's involvement. Sams and Kimbro were convicted of murder, and Lonnie McLucas was acquitted on all charges except

conspiracy to commit murder Conspiracy to murder is a statutory offence defined by the intent to commit murder. England and Wales The offence of conspiracy to murder was created in statutory law by section 4 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 and retained as ...

, but a jury deadlocked on the charges against Seale and Black Panther leader

Ericka Huggins Ericka Huggins ( Jenkins; born January 5, 1948) is an American activist, writer, and educator. She is a former leading member of the political organization, Black Panther Party (BPP). She was married to fellow BPP member John Huggins in 1968. ...

, and the charges against both were dropped. Members of the Black Panther party accused Sams of being an FBI informant.

In popular culture

* Terayle Hill portrays Sams in the film ''

Judas and the Black Messiah ''Judas and the Black Messiah'' is a 2021 biographical film, biographical crime film, crime drama (film and television), drama film about the betrayal of Fred Hampton (played by Daniel Kaluuya), chairman of the Illinois chapter of the Black Pan ...

''. The film depicts Sams as an FBI informant and that his testimony against Bobby Seale was done under orders of the FBI in order to keep Seale imprisoned.

References

*
Bobby Seale's Shadow
'

Gadfly Online ''Gadfly Magazine'' was a periodical that was created in February 1997 and launched as a full-size print publication in January 1998. The publisher is the Rutherford Institute. The magazine is based in Charlottesville, Virginia. At the Utne Reade ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sams, George W. Jr. 1946 births Living people American people convicted of murder Members of the Black Panther Party COINTELPRO targets People convicted of murder by the United States federal government Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by the United States federal government