. . . or click on the link here for Audio Player – News reports + CBS World News Roundup – February 25, 2000 – Gordon Skene Sound Collection.
Fifteen years ago, on February 25, 2000, after three days of deliberations, a jury of 8 whites and 4 blacks in Upstate New York delivered a verdict in the Amadou Diallo case. Diallo, a 22-year old immigrant from Guinea was shot some 41 times by 4 plain clothes Police officers outside his apartment in the Bronx on February 4, 1999.
To everyone’s astonishment, the verdict was acquittal to the Police Officers involved. All 4 were charged with second degree murder in the case. Diallo, unarmed was stopped outside his apartment building and was reaching for his wallet when one of the officers fired. It was followed by 40 more shots, 19 of which hit Diallo, killing him.
The verdict touched off a storm of controversy regarding New York Police, racial profiling and police brutality. Protests were organized all over the country and a wrongful death suit was filed by the Diallo family shortly after.
But other news also happened that day. In Los Angeles, a rogue Police Officer who exposed corruption in the LAPD was himself sentenced to five years in prison for his own crime of stealing Cocaine.
And the Dow dropped 243 points, bringing the average well below 10,000, closing at 9862 and its slowest finish since a year ago April.
And that’s a little of what went this 15 years ago as reported by CBS Radio news.
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