Jomo Joka Omowale papers, 1969-2008

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Summary

Creator:
Omowale, Jomo Joka and Human Rights Archive (Duke University)
Abstract:
Jomo Joka Omowale, born as Cleveland McKinley Davis and also known as Eric Thompson, was a Black man from North Carolina who spent much of his life imprisoned in New York and Virginia. He was a leader of the Attica prison uprising in 1971. Collection includes court transcripts, legal papers and correspondence, court documents, photographs, press coverage and clippings, and internal prison policies and procedures from Omowale's many years in various prisons. Cases include armed robbery in Virginia, the Attica uprisings and subsequent trials, three trials regarding a police shooting in Brooklyn, and a murder of a drug dealer in Virginia. Omowale was convicted in the final case, and his pursuit of parole in Virginia following the elimination of parole in the 1990s is another significant component of the collection. Other materials include prisoner poetry and writings, personal correspondence between Jomo and his family, prisoner poetry, Attica Brothers Legal Defense materials, and court documents regarding a White Panther Party trial in 1970. Also includes hundreds of identification photographs from New York.
Extent:
25 Linear Feet
Physical description:
Approximately 18,750 items
Language:
Material in English
Collection ID:
RL.00975

Background

Scope and content:

Collection includes legal documentation and court transcripts from Omowale's various trials, including Attica-related trials and the subsequent lawsuits brought by the Attica Brothers. Also represented are court cases from his armed robbery conviction in Virginia Beach; his repeated murder trials in New York regarding police shootings (and his lawsuits against New York following his acquittal from those shootings); and his murder conviction in Virginia in 1985. Also included are many materials from his wife and attorney, Elizabeth Gaynes, particularly regarding his legal defense in those trials as well as her attempts to gain his parole in Virginia in the 1990s and 2000s.

Other materials in the collection include personal correspondence between Omowale and Elizabeth Gaynes, as well as correspondence between him and other family members, in particular his daughter, Emani. Other correspondence exists between him and other Attica Brothers, regarding the Attica trials and the lawsuits that followed. Photographs, particularly of identification photographs of imprisoned people, are another significant component of the collection. The remainder of the materials are prison writings; publicity and press coverage of Jomo Joka Omowale's many court cases; news clippings about him, parole, and other related topics; and miscellaneous documents collected by Omowale during his time in prison.

Collection contains images of crime scenes, including deceased persons, and documentation of violence.

Acquired as part of Duke University's Human Rights Archive.

Biographical / historical:
Chronology List
Date Event
1942 April 10
Born as son of sharecroppers, Infield, North Carolina. Grew up in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
1961
Married Bobbi Lee Forman. They divorced in 1978.
1961-1963
Jailed for burglary, Princess Ann Jail, Virginia.
1968
Arrested in Virginia for robbery; escaped and went to New York.
1968
Arrested in New York for robbery, sent to Sing Sing Prison.
1970
Transferred to Auburn Prison, New York.
1970-1971
Involved in Black Panther Party in Auburn Prison; transferred to Attica Prison.
1971 September
Involved in Attica Prison riots: Controled the "D" Door. Was shot 6 times when police stormed the prison.
1971
Vincent Doyle took over Omowale defense in Attica trial and appointed Elizabeth Gaynes as counsel.
1973
Omowale accepted "Alfred plea" for time served and was released from New York. He returned to Virginia to complete his sentence there. He then returned to New York to complete his time for his initial sentence, and was paroled in New York.
1975
Governor of New York pardoned Omowale for his involvement in the Attica Prison riots.
1976
Married Elizabeth Gaynes.
1978 April 2
Involved in a shooting in Brooklyn, NY, which ended with the death of two police officers and Dalou, an aquaintance of Davis. Davis was also shot. He was arrested for the murders and was severely beaten en route to the hospital, requiring reconstructive surgery on his face. His vision was permanently impaired.
1978-1980
Omowale was tried 3 times for the murders of the policemen and Dalou. The first 2 trials ended with hung juries, and he was acquitted the third time and released.
1983
Omowale and Gaynes separated. He moved to Virginia Beach, where he was involved (with 2 others) in an attempted robbery of drug dealer Robert Stith. Stith was killed during the robbery. Davis was wounded in the leg. He fled to Washington and then went on to New York.
1984-1985
Omowale was a fugitive on the FBI's 10 Most Wanted list. His co-defendents entered guilty pleas.
1985-1986
Omowale was captured and tried for murder and robbery. He was sentenced to prison, to be eligible for parole in 10-11 years.
1990s-2007
Repeatedly denied parole under Virginia's law eliminating parole.
2008
Paroled. Moved to North Carolina to live near his children.
2017 November 17
Died. Buried in Halifax County, North Carolina.
Acquisition information:
The Jomo Joka Omowale Papers were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book Manuscript Library as a gift in 2011.
Custodial history:

Acquired as part of the Human Rights Archive (Duke University).

Processing information:

Processed by Meghan Lyon, February 2011

Encoded by Meghan Lyon, February 2011

Materials may not have been ordered and described beyond their original condition.

Accessions in this finding aid: 2011-0026, 2011-0081

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Contents

Using These Materials

Using These Materials Links:

Using These Materials

Restrictions:

Collection is open for research.

Terms of access:

The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to Duke University. For more information, consult the copyright section of the Regulations and Procedures of the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library.

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Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Jomo Joka Omowale Papers, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University.

Permalink:
https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/m1xs8m