American History Tellers - The 1968 Chicago Protests - The Trial of the Chicago 8 | 2

Episode Date: January 30, 2019

A special series with Legal Wars. In 1969, the war in the streets became a war in the courtroom. The trial of the Chicago 8 pitted the federal government against eight prominent anti-war activists. The charges: Conspiracy to incite a riot. But the case was about more than just who threw the first punch at the DNC protests the year before. It was a battle for the soul of American culture, and both sides planned to win...by any means necessary.Check out Legal Wars for more stories behind America’s most famous courtroom battles.Support us by supporting our sponsors!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Wondery Plus subscribers can binge new seasons of American History Tellers early and ad-free right now. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts. The United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois Eastern Division is housed in the Federal building in Chicago's Loop. It's plain black steel and glass stretching 30 stories into the sky. On the 23rd floor, hundreds of prospective jurors sit in silence as a judge addresses the room. It's jury selection time for the Chicago 8, and things are not going well for the defense. Those accused are charged with conspiring to cross state lines to incite a riot,

with teaching the making of incendiary devices, with committing acts to impede law enforcement officers in their lawful duties. Objection. Is it possible to recite the charges in a less dramatic fashion? Your honor sounds like Orson Welles reading the Declaration of Independence. Overruled. May I proceed, Mr. Kunstler? Lead defense attorney William Kunstler sits down. Dejected. Yes, Your Honor. Now, where were we? Ms. Peterson, what is your current marital status?

I'm married, Your Honor. Kunstler turns to his co-counsel, Leonard Weinglass. Now he's ignoring all our questions. On purpose. He is Judge Julius Hoffman. He's a 74-year-old Republican. And he prides himself on quick and efficient jury selection. But Kunstler wants these jurors to answer real questions. Like, do you

have any hostile feelings towards persons whose lifestyle differ considerably from your own? Do you know who Jefferson Airplane, Country Joe and the Fish, Phil Oakes, or the Fugs are? Do you consider marijuana habit-forming? In other words, how likely are you to be biased against the eight counterculture radicals about to go on trial? But the judge isn't having it. Normally, for such a high-profile case, the court would spend several days carefully selecting 12 jurors and two alternates. Next, your age. 21, Your Honor. Thank you. That'll be all.

Judge Hoffman gets the job done in one day. You're dismissed. When it's over, defense co-counsel Leonard Weinglass stares at the jury in disbelief. Ten women, two men, mostly middle-aged. Jesus Christ. Typically, Bill Kunstler has a lot more faith in the system than his clients do. He voted for Democrat Hubert Humphrey a few months ago in the contentious 1968 presidential election. When he walks into a courtroom, he believes in the blindfolded lady with the scales. But now, Kunstler's faith is getting a serious test, and the trial hasn't even started. He glances over at his clients, turns to wine glass, and drops his voice.

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Anthony Anderson, Tabitha Brown, Tony Hawk. Oh, my God. Buy It Now. Stream free on Freebie and Prime Video. From Wondery, I'm Lindsey Graham, and this is American History Tellers. Our history. Your story. This is episode two of our special series on the trial of the Chicago Eight.

We're telling the story in collaboration with another Wondery podcast, Legal Wars. Hill Harper, who hosts that show and who you just heard, will be taking us through the drama in the courtroom. The trial captured the nation's attention, even in the midst of almost unprecedented political turmoil. Things had come to a head in August of 1968 when riots consumed the city of Chicago during the week of the Democratic National Convention.

Thousands gathered to protest U.S. action in Vietnam, and the cops cracked down. It was war in the streets. The federal government blamed the protesters and brought charges against eight prominent activists. But the trial was about more than just who threw the first punch. During the trial, the radicals and establishment interrogated each other relentlessly. On one side, the eight liberal defendants, Abbie Hoffman, Jerry Rubin, Bobby Seale, Dave Dellinger, Rennie Davis, Tom Hayden, John Froines, and Lee Weiner. On the other side, representing the U.S. government,

Judge Julius Hoffman and the sitting mayor of Chicago, Richard J. Daley. It was a battle for the soul of American culture, and both sides planned to win by any means necessary. On the first day of the trial, spectators hoping to glimpse the action line up around the block starting at the crack of dawn. It's early fall, but already freezing in Chicago. Strong winds blowing off Lake Michigan can chill you to the bone. Local news crews, film cameras at the ready, huddling vans, ready to jump out when the defendants arrive. The police, as always, are on hand in case there's trouble. One by one, the defendants enter the courtroom,

and almost immediately, the theatrics begin. The jury will please disregard the kiss blown by defendant Hayden. The defendants are charged with conspiracy to travel interstate with the intent to incite, organize, promote, encourage, participate in, and carry out a riot. John Froines and Lee Weiner are charged with teaching others how to make incendiary devices. And the other six, Hoffman, Rubin, Seale, Hayden, Dellinger, and Davis, are charged with inciting violence.

Added up, each defendant faces 10 years behind bars. The prim, proper, and perpetually outraged Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard Schultz is here to remind the jury why. The government, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, will prove in this case, the case which you will witness as jurors, an overall plan of the eight defendants in this case, which was to encourage numerous people to come to the city of Chicago, people who planned legitimate protest during the Democratic National Convention, which was held in Chicago in August of 1968, from August 26th through August 29th, 1968. They planned to bring these people into Chicago to protest,

legitimately protest, as I said, creating a situation in this city where these people would come to Chicago, would riot. The defendants in perpetrating this offense, they, the defendants, crossed state lines themselves. Defendant Tom Hayden is a pretty brilliant man, but even he is having trouble following this meandering opening statement. He looks over at the jury. They seem as bored as he feels. Hayden notices several of the jurors looking back in his direction. Schultz, now naming the defendants, says Tom Hayden. Hayden cheerily salutes the jurors with a raised fist. Judge Hoffman immediately cuts the prosecutor off. Mr. Marshall, please excuse the jury from the courtroom.

The jurors leave. Hoffman continues and addresses Schultz. Who is the last defendant you named, Mr. Hayden? The one that shook his fist in the direction of the jury? That is my customary greeting, Your Honor. It may be your customary greeting, but we do not allow shaking of fists in this courtroom. I made that clear. It implied no disrespect for the jury. It is my customary greeting. Regardless of what it implies, sir, there will be no fist shaking and I caution you not to repeat it. With Hayden cautioned and the jury brought back in, Schultz continues to state the government's case against the defendants. He outlines a three-step plan these alleged conspirators employed to invite protesters to Chicago with the explicit goal of sparking a violent large-scale confrontation. In sum, then, ladies and gentlemen, the government will prove that the eight defendants charged here conspired together to use interstate commerce and the facilities of interstate commerce to incite and to further a riot in Chicago. It's now defense attorney William Kunstler's turn to speak, and he has

one central point to make. He readily agrees that there was a conspiracy, but from his point of view, this conspiracy wasn't hatched by his clients sitting in some dark, shadowy basement somewhere, plotting to ensure the streets of Chicago ran red with blood. No. Instead, he points the finger in a different direction, which raises the stakes. The real conspiracy was against these defendants. But we are going to show that the real conspiracy is not against these defendants as individuals because they are unimportant as individuals. The real attempt was, the real attack was on the rights of everybody.

All of us American citizens, all to protest under the First Amendment to the Constitution. Kunstler is pleased with what feels like a solid and well-put opening statement. But when he sits back down, he can see that his clients are furious. During a recess, they let their lead attorney have it. What the hell are you thinking? That was your opening statement? This was our chance to tell them why we're really here. What we're really fighting for.

Calm down, Abby. You blew it, Bill. Can't even believe this. Tom, can you? It's not about our rights. It's not about the First Amendment. We don't care about any of that. What we care about is the soldiers dying in Vietnam. I thought you understood.

It's decided Leonard Weinglass will make these points when the defendants return to court. But he can't. Every time he mentions Vietnam, Judge Hoffman tells him not to talk about anti-war positions. Finally, Judge Hoffman yells at him. Mr. Weinglass, I think your persistency in disregarding the direction of the court and the law in the face of repeated admonitions is contumacious conduct, and I so find it on the record. He's accusing Wineglass of outright disrespect and refusing to obey the judge's authority. That's going to be a theme throughout the trial.

Opening statements complete, more or less. The fundamental question is established. Are these eight men, often profane, often theatrical, always outspoken in their criticism of America, a sinister cabal? Did they advocate for violence in Chicago and get exactly what they were hoping for? Or are they well-intentioned idealists unjustly facing punishment from a duplicitous federal government trying to squash dissent? Just who are the Chicago Eight? Judge Hoffman has forbidden cameras in the courtroom,

so magazines, newspapers, and TV networks send sketch artists to depict the drama as it unfolds on day one. Cartoonist Jules Feiffer captures Judge Hoffman resting his head against his right hand in a pose of wearied agitation. Part of what he finds so irritating about these radicals is that they're radical in different ways. The Eight have recognized this from the beginning. It's the government that decided to try them as a group, forcing them to appear in court together like some sort of protest super team. Is there mutual respect between them? Sure. But Tom thinks Abby and Jerry waste time with their endless clowning. Abby and Jerry think Tom is square and uptight. Dave Dellinger believes there's no excuse for violence for any reason, ever. Bobby Seale is a Black Panther who believes in the right to armed

self-defense. Weiner and Freunds are aspiring professors. When Abby Hoffman thinks about it all, he just has to laugh. These guys in a conspiracy? Hell, they can't even agree on lunch. But Judge Hoffman is not laughing. He sees a group of defendants and their lawyers clearly scheming to undermine his court. I want to make a statement. Just a minute, sir. Who is your lawyer? Bobby Seale looks directly at the judge. Charles R. Gary.

As Judge Hoffman knows, along with everyone else, Charles R. Gary is not in this courtroom. Hoffman asks the jury to leave the courtroom for the third time today. It's only 11 o'clock. Maybe you've forgotten. So much has happened already. Charles R. Gary is Bobby Seale's lawyer, but he isn't in the courtroom because he's at home in California recovering from gallbladder surgery.

Seale tells the judge he doesn't want Kunstler or Leonard Weinglass to represent him. He wants Gary. Gary asked Hoffman to postpone the trial for six weeks while he regained his health, but the judge refused. William Kunstler gets up and tells Judge Hoffman that to make an opening statement on Bobby Seal's behalf will compromise his client's position, that the trial can't go forward until he has the lawyer he wants. Judge Hoffman replies, I don't ask you to compromise it, sir, but I will not permit him to address the jury with his very competent lawyer seated there. If I were to make an opening statement, I would compromise his position that he is not his full counsel here. Mr. Seale, you are not to make an opening statement, I would compromise his position that he is not his full counsel here.

Mr. Seale, you are not to make an opening statement. I so order you, you are not permitted to in the circumstances of this case. With that, Judge Hoffman asks the prosecution to call their first witness. Raymond Simon, Corporation Counsel for Chicago and the city's top attorney, takes the stand. He's up there because Abby Hoffman and Jerry Rubin approached him on August 8, 1968, requesting a permit for protesters to congregate in Lincoln Park the week of the Democratic National Convention. Simon turned them down. Rennie Davis and others from the National Mobilization Committee to end the war in Vietnam sued, and Simon met with them, he says, to try and find a solution. Prosecutor Thomas Foran

addresses Simon. What did Mr. Davis say? He said, if the city doesn't give us the park, there will be tens of thousands of people without a place to stay. And they will go into the parks. And the police will drive them out. And they will run through the streets of the city. And there will be disorder and conflict and problems. And the police will fight back. And there will be tear gas and mace and billy clubs.

Davis didn't get what he wanted. His lawsuit against the city of Chicago was dismissed, meaning that if he and his protesters wanted to demonstrate in Lincoln Park, they'd have to do so without a permit. The world saw what happened next. Tear gas, mace, and billy clubs. This begs the question, was Rennie Davis clearly a leader,

just being irresponsible when he decided to go ahead with the rally, knowing what could happen? Or, as the prosecution is clearly suggesting, was violence the goal all along? September 30th, day five. Tensions ratchet up a notch. Prosecuting attorney Thomas Foran addresses the court. I was informed just about the time we were to come to court by the FBI that they had been informed that one of the jurors had received a

letter or her family had received a letter that certainly could be of a threatening nature. It is addressed to the King family, 81 South Carolina, Crystal Lake, Illinois, 60014. It is written in script, you are being watched. The Black Panthers. Bobby Seale, quaking with rage, whispers to his co-defendants, That's a forgery. We never sign anything The Black Panthers. It's always The Black Panther Party, or if we're being formal, the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense. There are actually two letters, both sent to Christy King. She's young and through her sister has a connection to the Peace Corps. The defense sees these two points as being in their favor.

They could also explain why someone working against them would want to frighten King off the jury. Defense Attorney Kunstler, like Seal, knows the letters are bogus and tells the judge so. We are at the point, Your Honor, where the defendants have seriously made a statement that they believe that the two letters in question were sent in some way by some agent of the government in order to prejudice them further in this trial. That is their position. I think they have publicly stated it, and that is the position which they take. Judge Hoffman scoffs. He sits elevated 10 feet above the floor. Behind him hang several framed portraits of the founding fathers. Hoffman is certain those great men would

be rolling in their graves if they could hear what was just said. He squints down at the defense table. I will let you try to prove that right now. That is a very grave charge against an office of the government. Well, we obviously can't prove it, Your Honor. Then don't say it. This is the client's position. That is my statement. To make a statement like that is irresponsible. It's clear Christy King is already badly rattled. Now she's under Judge Hoffman's microscope. He says to the young woman, have you seen either of these letters? No, Your Honor. Well then, you'd better just take this right now and read it. Christy does as instructed. Now knowing how you and your family have been threatened,

do you believe you still would be able to remain impartial in this case? Christy King's face reddens. She looks quickly at Bobby Seale, then away. Quietly, she replies, No. Miss King, your services are no longer required in this trial. You are dismissed. King's replacement is a woman named Kay Richards,

who just happens to be engaged to Mayor Richard Daley's supervisor of personnel. Judge Hoffman does not see a conflict of interest. Over the next month, the prosecution calls witness after witness, all of whom testify about their certainty that the defendants intended violence. One is Robert Pearson, a police officer who went undercover in order to get dirt on Abbie Hoffman. He explains how for his assignment, he altered his appearance to come across a little less cop-like and more like a radical. I allowed my hair to grow long. I allowed myself to go without a shave for approximately four to six weeks. I purchased the attire of a motorcycle gang member, which is motorcycle boots, a black t-shirt, black Levi's, and a black leather vest,

and a motorcycle helmet. Monday, August 26, 1968, did you have any occasion on that day to go to Lincoln Park? Yes, sir, I did. Jordan introduced me to Abby Hoffman. He said, Abby, this is Bob. He will be one of your bodyguards. I said to Hoffman that last night's confrontation was a pretty good one. And Hoffman said to me that last night they pushed us out of the park, but tonight we're going to hold the park. He then said that we're going to, and he used a foul word, F up the pigs and the convention. What was the word, please? Will you relate it? Fuck. As the first month wraps up,

a separate and ongoing issue reasserts itself. Since the opening statement debacle, Judge Hoffman and Bobby Seale have barely been able to exchange three civil words. On Monday, October 27th, day 34 of the trial, the situation escalates. Seale again tells Judge Hoffman that he wants his lawyer. What about my constitutional right to defend myself and have my lawyer? Your constitutional rights? You are denying them. You have been denying them. Every other word you say is denied, denied, denied, denied.

And you begin to oink in the face of the masses of the people of this country. That is what you begin to represent? The corruptness of this rotten government of 400 years? Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I regret that I will have to excuse you. I hope you don't blame me for anything. And those false lying notes and letters that were sent that said the Black Panther Party threatened the jury. It's a lie. And you know it's a lie. And the government did it to tank the jury against me. Over the next couple of days, things between Bobby Seale and Judge Hoffman get even more intense.

I am warning you, sir, that the law. Instead of warning, why don't you warn me I've got a right to defend myself, huh? I am warning you that the court has the right to gag you. I don't want to do that. Under the law, you may be gagged and chained to your chair. Gagged? I'm being railroaded already. The court has the right and I... The court has no right whatsoever. The court has no right to stop me from speaking out in my behalf of my constitutional rights. The court will be in recess until tomorrow morning at 10 o'clock. Everyone will please rise.

I am not rising. I am not rising until he recognizes my constitutional rights. Mr. Marshall, see that he rises. Mr. Seale, and the other one too, get all the defendants to rise. Mr. Hayden, will you please rise? Let the record show that none of the defendants has risen. The court will be in recess. The following day, October 29th, Abby Hoffman makes an observation.

There are 25 marshals in here now and they all got guns. It's clear that the marshals are here in force and armed for one purpose. To keep Bobby Seale and his supporters in the courtroom in check. It's a startling image in a trial already filled with them. And it's not going to be the craziest thing these people see. We'll see all that and more in The Best Idea Yet, a brand new podcast from Wondery and T-Boy. This is Nick. This is Jack. And we've covered over a thousand episodes of pop business news stories on our daily podcast. We've identified the most viral products of all time. And they're wild origin stories that you had no idea about. From the Levi's 501 jeans to Legos.

Come for the products you're obsessed with. Stay for the business insights that are going to blow up your group chat. Jack, Nintendo, Super Mario Brothers, best-selling video game of all time. How'd they do it? Nintendo never fires anyone, ever. Follow The Best Idea Yet on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to The Best Idea Yet early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery Plus. In a quiet suburb, a community is shattered by the death of a beloved wife and mother.

But this tragic loss of life quickly turns into something even darker. Her husband had tried to hire a hitman on the dark web to kill her. And she wasn't the only target. Because buried in the depths of the internet is The Kill List, a cache of chilling documents containing names, photos, addresses, and specific instructions for people's murders. This podcast is the true story of how I ended up in a race against time to warn those whose lives were in danger. And it turns out convincing a total stranger someone wants them dead is not easy. Follow Kill List on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to Kill List and more Exhibit C true crime shows like Morbid

early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery+. Check out Exhibit C in the Wondery app for all your True Crime listening. Bobby Seale was born on October 22nd, 1936 in Dallas, Texas, the oldest of three children. His father, a carpenter, struggled to make ends meet, and when Bobby was eight, the family left Texas for California, seeking a better life. The Seals were just a few of the millions of African Americans who left the South as part of the Great Migration. They wound up in Oakland, joining the growing black community there. At 18, Seal dropped out of high school and enlisted in the Air Force. He lasted three years until he got kicked out for fighting a commanding officer.

Seal was court-martialed, then dishonorably discharged. He was told he had just five minutes to get off the base. He replied, What are you going to do with the other four minutes and fifty-nine seconds? Because it won't take me any time to get away from here. Seal returned to Oakland where he worked in a sheet metal factory by day and finished his high school degree at night. Seal sought to continue his education at Oakland's Merritt College, a seemingly ordinary decision that would have a major impact on the civil rights movement.

In the early 1960s, at Merritt College, Seale stood out. He was outspoken, political, and anti-authority. He immersed himself in Black nationalist literature, studying the teachings of Malcolm X, and joined the Afro-American Association. One day, during a rally in West Oakland, Seale came across another young Black man making a name for himself on campus, speaking to a riveted group of about 250 students about the Cuban Missile Crisis. His name was Huey P. Newton. Newton was born in 1942, the seventh son of a Louisiana sharecropper and Baptist preacher. He was named after Huey P. Long,

the populist Louisiana governor assassinated in 1935. The Newtons, like the Seals, wound up in Oakland as part of the Great Migration. There, Newton and Seal shared a mutual respect and bonded over their commitment to radical Black activism. They fought to get Black Studies and other Afrocentric courses added to the Merritt College curriculum. And on October 15, 1966, they founded the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense. The previous year had been difficult for those in the civil rights struggle. Malcolm X had been assassinated on February 21, 1965, shot 21 times while addressing an audience in Manhattan. The following month, Bloody Sunday occurred in Alabama.

Hundreds of protesters marching from Selma to Montgomery were attacked at the Edmund Pettus Bridge by state troopers who beat them with nightsticks and sprayed them with tear gas. Though a major victory came with the Voting Rights Act of 1965, just days after it was signed into law, riots erupted in Watts, a black community in Los Angeles, in response to news of a violent traffic stop in which a white officer kicked a pregnant black woman. The riot lasted for six days, caused millions of dollars in damage, and resulted in 34 deaths.

But for Seal and Newton, it was an event of the next year, 1966, that was likely the last straw. Matthew Johnson, an unarmed Black man, had been shot to death by police in nearby San Francisco. Seal and Newton felt that this incident further proved that Black people couldn't expect protection by the police. If anything, Black citizens needed protection from the police, and the Black Panthers were formed a month later. The symbol for the party, the image of a crouched and snarling Black Panther, was borrowed from the Lowndes County Freedom Organization in Alabama. The Panther leaders felt the symbol neatly summed up their philosophy. As Newton put it, it's not in the Panther's nature to attack first,

but when he is attacked and backed into a corner, he will respond viciously. Seale and Newton drafted a 10-point platforming outlining the party's beliefs and demands, including an emphasis on self-defense. To raise money for guns and ammunition, they sold copies of Chairman Mao's Little Red Book on college campuses. The Panthers felt it was critical to keep an eye on the police. While the cops patrolled Oakland, the Panthers patrolled the cops. Newton and Seale saw to it that the Panthers acted as a deterrent to police brutality in the East Bay. The party gained national prominence in May of the next year, 1967, when 30 armed Panthers arrived at the Capitol Building in Sacramento to protest the signing of the Mulford Act,

a bill that prohibited the carrying of firearms in public. The Panthers tried to enter the assembly, but were denied access. Some members, including Seal, were arrested and charged with disrupting a legislative session. Upon release, Seale stood in front of the police station and issued a forceful statement. The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense calls upon the American people in general, and the Black people in particular, to take careful note of the racist California legislature, which is considering legislation aimed at keeping the Black people disarmed and powerless at the very same time that racist police agencies throughout the country

are intensifying the terror, brutality, murder, and repression of Black people. The way the Panthers saw it, guns were essential for protection in their environment. After all, the cops were armed, and always would be. The Panthers maintained the goal was an end to violence, but were adamant on how it should be done. They stated, we are advocates of the abolition of war, which can only be abolished through war, and in order to get rid of the gun, it is necessary to pick up the gun. This was not Dr. King's brand of activism.

The Panthers were much closer to Malcolm X's more confrontational philosophy. Channeling Malcolm, Newton promised, We will change society. We will use whatever means are necessary. We will have our manhood, even if we have to level the earth. Yet another aspect of the Panthers that made them distinct was their emphasis on Marxist-Leninist ideology. They were concerned that the legal and political advancements King was fighting for would only benefit middle-class blacks. They felt working-class people, from which Seale and Newton came, would be left behind. The last of their ten-point platforms stated,

We want land, bread, housing, education, clothing, justice, and peace. They also pioneered direct social service programs in local neighborhoods, including a free breakfast program for children and medical clinics for the needy. But it was their militancy that drew most of the attention. The Panthers clashed often with the police. On October 28, 1967, a shootout between the police and the Panthers left one officer dead, another in serious condition, and Newton with a bullet in the stomach. He was arrested, handcuffed in the hospital while receiving treatment. Newton did 33 months behind bars. Throughout that time, his fellow Panthers held frequent free Huey rallies. In 1968, there

was another high-profile altercation with the cops. One Panther was killed, and Eldridge Cleaver was wounded. Cleaver gained fame for his memoir written in prison, Soul on Ice, and he had taken a larger role in the Panthers after Newton's arrest. Over the next year and a half, the Panthers would tangle with the police nearly a dozen more times. New chapters were opening across the nation and public officials took notice. They feared the spread of lawlessness and a rising tide of black radicalism. One of the most worried was FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover. He called the Panthers the greatest threat to the internal security of the country. As early as May of 1967, there were police raids on Panther Party offices. By August,

the FBI's operation, called COINTELPRO, was at work with the mission of preventing a coalition of militant Black nationalist groups. The same FBI program was also spying on other prominent Black leaders, including Martin Luther King Jr. The Bureau went to great lengths to interfere with unification efforts amongst Black groups. Hoover's greatest fear, it seems, was a Black messiah

who would bring all the groups together and topple society. To keep such a figure from rising, the FBI employed informants, spread misinformation, and helped the police in their raids. The most infamous of these raids took place on December 4, 1969, in Chicago. The police targeted an apartment rented by Fred Hampton, a Black Panther swiftly moving up the ranks in the party. Hampton had done an effective job uniting groups within Chicago

and had been recently promoted to the Panther Central Committee. But FBI informant William O'Neill told officials that Hampton's West Monroe Street apartment was being used to stockpile weapons. In the hours before dawn, the police descended upon Hampton, his nine-month pregnant fiancée, and several members of the party as they slept. Panther Mark Clark was on guard that night and sat in the front room of the apartment with a shotgun at the ready. When the police kicked down the door, they fired on Clark and killed him.

As he took a fatal hit to the chest, Clark reflexively fired back. He was to be the only round fired by a Panther that morning. The police stormed into the room where Hampton and his fiancée lay sleeping, but Hampton did not wake during the raid because hours earlier, William O'Neill, the FBI informant, drugged him by slipping a barbiturate in his drink. The police checked Hampton's vitals and discovered that he was wounded but not dead, so they shot him twice in the head, dragged his body into the hallway, and left him there. Then they fired into yet

another room. The Panthers they found there were wounded, then beaten, then arrested, and ultimately indicted by a grand jury on charges of weapons possession, armed violence, and attempted murder. In total, the police fired 99 shots. The Panthers only shot once, and that was Mark Clark's involuntary pull of the trigger as he was killed. Nevertheless, the police described the raid as a shootout. Not long after the raid, there was a break-in at the FBI field office in Pennsylvania. COINTELPRO documents were discovered. These documents revealed a floor plan of Hampton's apartment and a plan to conceal the FBI's role in his assassination.

This prompted a lengthy legal battle, and in 1982, 13 years after the raid, the federal government and Cook County settled with the survivors of the raid and Hampton's relatives for $1.85 million, or almost $5 million today. By 1970, 28 Black Panthers had been killed, while 2,000 more were arrested. The 70s would prove to be hard years for the party. As always, law enforcement threatened it from the outside, but there were also cracks of internal division. Panthers disagreed with each other on the path forward. There was grave suspicion of informants. There was also a leadership crisis,

as top officers faced legal cases and prison time. Newton would stay in jail until 1970. Cleaver jumped bail in 68 and then fled to Cuba. And of course, there was Bobby Seale, who in 1969 faced trial in Chicago alongside the seven other defendants. Seale brought his experience with the Black Panthers into the courtroom. And whether on the streets, in prison, or in court, Seale would fearlessly take on anyone who stood in his way,

even if it meant paying a high price. For more than two centuries, the White House has been the stage for some of the most dramatic scenes in American history. Inspired by the hit podcast American History Tellers, Wondery and William Morrow present the new book, The Hidden History of the White House. Each chapter will bring you inside the fierce power struggles,

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wherever you get your books. Thank you. and many, many more, Incoming is a hilariously thrilling podcast that will leave you wondering, how would you spend your last few minutes on Earth? You can binge Incoming exclusively and ad-free on Wondery+. Join Wondery in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. It's day 36 of the trial, and Bobby Seale and Judge Julius Hoffman are still arguing. The jury is once again asked to leave the courtroom. Mr. Seale, I have admonished you previously. I have a right to cross-examine the witness.

What might happen to you if you keep on talking? We are going to recess now, young man. If you keep this up... Look, old man, if you keep up denying me my constitutional rights, you are being exposed to the public and the world that you do not care about people's constitutional rights to defend themselves. Judge Hoffman reiterates his threat from the previous day. I will tell you that what I indicated yesterday might happen to you. Happen to me?

What can happen to me more than what Benjamin Franklin and George Washington did to black people in slavery? What can happen to me more than what Benjamin Franklin and George Washington did to black people in slavery? What can happen to me more than that? Mr. Seale, do you want to stop or do you want me to direct the marshal? I want to argue the point. We will take a recess. Take the defendant into the room there and deal with him as he should be dealt with. I still want to be represented. I want to represent myself. The marshal turns to the nearest defense attorney. William Kunstler, will you instruct the defendants, sir, that it is the order of the court that they will rise upon the recess? If that is a direction of the court, I certainly will pass it on. Let the record show none of the defendants have stood at this recess

in response to the Marshalls' request. Let the record show. He's cut off. Six Marshalls rush in and grab Bobby Seale. The other seven defendants jump to their feet, and Dave Dellinger, the pacifist, tries to get between Seale and the Marshalls. He's thrown to the floor. Yippee co-founder Jerry Rubin yells for all to hear.

They're kicking him in the balls. A Marshal punches him in the face. Tom Hayden shouts above the melee. Your Honor, all he wants is to be legally represented, not be a slave here. The chaos of the Chicago streets is now in the courtroom. Get off me! Goddamn pigs, get the hell off me! The marshals drag Bobby into a back room.

Bobby Seal's ankles and wrists are put in chains. Hey, get off me! Get off me! The marshals tie a thick white cloth around the back of his head and over his mouth. And then this is followed by perhaps the most shocking moment of all. He's brought back in and the judge and marshals attempt to resume the trial as if nothing happened. Mr. Foran, would you like to proceed? This is a true turning point. William Kunstler can't contain himself. I wanted to say the record should indicate that Mr. Seal is seated on a metal chair.

Each hand is handcuffed to the leg of the chair on both the right and left sides so he cannot raise his hands. And a gag is tightly pressed into his mouth and tied at the rear, and that when he attempts to speak, a muffled sound comes out, as he has done several times since he has been bound and gagged. Bobby Seale has been muzzled, but not silenced. Mr. Marshall, I don't think you've accomplished your purpose. Judge Hoffman orders yet another recess, and the marshals carry

Seal out once again, still chained to his chair. When he's brought back in, there's a plug-like device in his mouth. Same story the next day. Seal sits in the courtroom, plugged and in chains. Once again, he struggles against the marshals, and a chair is kicked over. At this point, pandemonium breaks out again. Marshals elbow and punch defendants, spectators, and journalists. The court's sketch artist gets it all. William Kunstler has never witnessed anything like this, and it's making him more of a radical by the second. This is no longer a court of order, Your Honor. This is a medieval torture chamber. It is a disgrace. They are assaulting the other defendants also.

Yet again, the whole world is watching, and the viewers at home have seen the hand-drawn images of the black man in chains on the front page of the morning papers, this is very bad publicity. Eventually, Seal is allowed to appear in court without the restraints. The increasingly cranky judge peers down at the lead defense attorney. Bill H. Ray, San Mateo County Deputy Sheriff, is on the witness stand. Mr. Kunstler, do you have any cross-examination of this witness? Your Honor, since this witness only related facts relevant to Mr. Seale, who has, as Your Honor knows, discharged me, I have no questions. I think I have a right to cross-examine. Mr. Seale,

I ask you to sit down. Bobby Seale is clearly not the kind of guy who sits down when he's told to sit down. He has some questions for the man testifying against him. Have you ever killed a Black Panther Party member? Mr. Seale, I will have to ask you to sit down, please. Have you ever been on any raids in the Black Panther Party's offices or Black Panther Party members' homes? Mr. Seale, this is the third time I am asking you to sit down as courteously as possible. Judge Hoffman has the jury leave the courtroom. You are making it very difficult for me, Mr. Seale. You are making it very difficult for me, Judge Hoff Seale. You are making it very difficult for me, Judge Hoffman. Judge Hoffman seems to be building to something.

Len Wineglass knows what's coming next and isn't surprised when Hoffman says, I find the acts, statements, and conduct of the defendant, Bobby Seale, constitute a deliberate and willful attack upon the administration of justice and attempt to sabotage the functioning of the federal judiciary system and misconduct of so grave a character as to make the mere imposition of a fine a futile gesture and a wholly insignificant punishment. Judge Hoffman then sentences Bobby Seale to contempt,

citing some 16 instances of it. Penalty? Four years behind bars. But there's more. There will be an order declaring a mistrial as to the defendant Bobby G. Seal and not as to

any other defendants. The marshals return, this time to take Bobby Seal back to prison. As he is dragged away and spectators shout Free Bobby! Seal makes sure he's heard. Wait a minute. I got it right. What's the cat trying to pull now? I can't stay. I still want an immediate trial. You can't call it a mistrial.

I'm put in jail for four years for nothing. Hey, I want my coat. The date is November 5th, 1969. The Chicago 8 are now the Chicago 7. For Bobby Seale, this part is over. But for Abby Hoffman, Jerry Rubin, Tom Hayden, Dave Dellinger, Rennie Davis, Lee Weiner, and John Foynes, it's just the beginning. Next week, on the third episode of this special American History Tellers and Legal War series on the trial of the Chicago Eight, the defendants step up their

defiance of the court and call a who's who of legendary 60s celebrities, philosophers, and activists to help them do it. If you like American History Tellers, you can binge all episodes early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts. Prime members can listen ad-free on Amazon Music. And before you go, tell us about yourself by filling out a short survey at wondery.com slash survey. I hope you enjoyed this episode. American History Tellers is hosted, edited, and produced by me, Lindsey Graham, for Airship. Sound design by Spoke and Derek Behrens. This episode was co-hosted by Hill Harper.

Our writer is Hannibal Diaz. Our legal consultant is Katie Berger-Kramer. And our researchers are Caitlin Crammond and Dan Wallace. Editors are Casey Miner and Dorian Marina. This episode was produced by Stephanie Jens, George Lavender, Jenny Lauer-Beckman, and Katie Long. Our executive producers are Marshall Louis and Hernán López for Wondering. war crimes look no further than Paul Bergeron. All the big guys go to Bergeron because he gets everybody off. You name it, Paul can do it. Need to launder some money? Broker a deal with a drug cartel? Take out a witness? From Wondery, the makers of Dr. Death and Over My Dead Body,

comes a new series about a lawyer who broke all the rules. Isn't it funny how witnesses disappear or how evidence doesn't show up or somebody doesn't testify correctly? In order to win at all costs. If Paul asked you to do something, it wasn't a request. It was an order. I'm your host, Brandon James Jenkins. Follow Criminal Attorney on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to Criminal Attorney early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts.