{"id":3429,"date":"2020-07-24T23:05:00","date_gmt":"2020-07-25T03:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/newyorkcitygangs.com\/?page_id=3429"},"modified":"2020-07-24T23:05:00","modified_gmt":"2020-07-25T03:05:00","slug":"robert-the-sailor-and-a-manhattan-assault","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/newyorkcitygangs.com\/?page_id=3429","title":{"rendered":"Robert, The Sailor and a Manhattan Assault"},"content":{"rendered":"

Some gangs are well-known, even now, many decades later.\u00a0 Gangs like the Dragons, Viceroys, Bishops and Chaplains.\u00a0 The Mau Maus too, of whom I wrote a book about and finished in 2018 after 15 years of research and writing.\u00a0 With the information I currently have, entire books could be written about the Dragons, Viceroys and Bishops.<\/p>\n

For various reasons (size of gang, the severity of crimes it committed, how many members are alive now are examples) some gangs are barely a blip on the record; in fact, we are lucky to even know the name of some gangs, much less who they fought, where their turf was and what their exploits were.\u00a0 Today\u2019s story is an example of that.<\/p>\n

Although information about this gang is sparse, I have more information about one of the people in this gang and his story.\u00a0 His name is Robert.\u00a0 This brings me to my next point.<\/p>\n

For me, it\u2019s always about the story and narrative.\u00a0 Not to be confused with political narrative \u2013 which we see and hear every day in the media \u2013 but the narrative of the human condition which we are all afflicted by.\u00a0 The things we do and why we do them.\u00a0 This is Robert\u2019s story\u2026<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Born in Lakeview, South Carolina in 1939, Robert\u2019s parents found out at a very early age that he was a load to handle.\u00a0 As later reported by an investigator, Robert \u201cbecame incorrigible and his guardians had virtually no control over him.\u201d\u00a0 His parents didn\u2019t stay together long enough for both to shoulder the burden of their son\u2019s rebellion together.\u00a0 Maybe he acted out because of his parent\u2019s separation.<\/p>\n

His parents\u2019 break-up happened when he was five years old when his mother left his father because of \u201cgeneral incompatibility\u201d issues (whatever that means) and because he cheated on her.\u00a0 The year was 1944 and she moved from South Carolina to start a new life in the Big Apple.\u00a0 For reasons that aren\u2019t clear, Robert didn\u2019t move with his mother, or, for that matter, his father.\u00a0 Instead he was shipped to live with his Uncle Cal and Aunt Rosa.<\/p>\n

Robert was hell on wheels with his uncle and aunt.\u00a0 When he was 12 years old he was taken to the Children\u2019s Court as a Truant and Incorrigible child and put on probation.\u00a0 When he was 13 years old, Robert hit the bottle \u2013 whiskey was his drink \u2013 and smoked marijuana cigarettes.\u00a0 Robert probably learned to drink from his uncle who was known to imbibe.<\/p>\n

Life must have been tough and dreary for the lad.\u00a0 His uncle owned his own home and had a store in his front yard.\u00a0 He farmed all his life and when Robert wasn\u2019t attending school, he was toiling on the farm for his uncle during season.\u00a0 His uncle was a frightful bore: a dreadfully unintelligent man who couldn\u2019t read.<\/p>\n

It was around this time that Robert was arrested for breaking into a house.\u00a0 He was found not guilty, but he confessed that he often took the keys to his uncle\u2019s store on the sneak and stole whatever he wanted.\u00a0 Even though he wasn\u2019t guilty of the break-in, the stink of possible wrong-doing didn\u2019t rub off of Robert, despite his innocence.\u00a0 The Chief of police took him to the Judge who reprimanded him and had Robert returned back to his uncle.<\/p>\n

This was all too much for Uncle Cal and Aunt Rosa to handle.\u00a0 Robert had to go.\u00a0 So in 1953, his mother came to South Carolina and collected her son from the field in which he was working without telling him what was going on.\u00a0 Robert was moving to Manhattan, New York City, making the Chief of Police a happy man.\u00a0 It was his opinion that the community needed to be Robert-free and that he should never return.\u00a0 I looked up Lakeview, South Carolina, and today it is a small town with less than 1,000 residents.\u00a0 Most likely it was that way in the 1950s too.<\/p>\n

When Robert got to Manhattan and enrolled in school, he immediately began failing his subjects at Junior High School 139.\u00a0 His conduct was barely better.\u00a0 Supervision at home was non-existent because his mother worked during the day to provide for her and Robert, now a teenage son.\u00a0 Like a ship bearing down on the proverbial iceberg, Robert became a child of the streets, adopting the bad habits of other truants and guttersnipes.\u00a0 When his mother gave advice or admonished him, he ignored her.\u00a0 His mother\u2019s wisdom had no room in his life.\u00a0 He was easily influenced \u2013 by the wrong people.<\/p>\n

\"Robert's<\/a>

Robert’s Report Card<\/p><\/div>\n

When Robert\u2019s parent\u2019s had split up and his mother moved to NYC, his father remained in Lakeview, South Carolina, remarried and was a piccolo machinist.\u00a0 His mother\u2019s job was working as a chambermaid at the Ritz-Tower Hotel making $38 a week.\u00a0 She didn\u2019t pay for rent though, because she was kept as a mistress by an oddly-named man called \u201cWoolie Huggard.\u201d\u00a0 He paid for her rent.<\/p>\n

Robert\u2019s Mom wasn\u2019t busy with just Woolie.\u00a0 I\u2019m not sure if this happened at the same time as her relationship with Woolie, but she also had an out-of-wedlock daughter by a more normal-named man called Robert Green, who she later married.<\/p>\n

In late 1954, she moved to the Bronx with Robert where they lived at 2789 Valentine Avenue.\u00a0 She had received a rent-free apartment there in exchange for janitorial work.\u00a0 They lived there from November 1954 to September 1955.<\/p>\n

It was while he was living in the Bronx that Robert joined a street gang called the Ravens, who then changed their name to the Politicians.\u00a0 This is not to be confused with the Politicians gang from Harlem.\u00a0 One time he and his friends \u201ccongregated\u201d in a Bronx housing projects and acted in a \u201cdisorderly manner,\u201d a favorite catch-all charge that the police would use for any kind of bad behavior, even minor incidents.\u00a0 Robert was taken into custody and put on probation in the Bronx.<\/p>\n

In September 1955, Robert and his mother moved back to Manhattan (they had actually lived there for a year before they had moved to the Bronx).\u00a0 Their new home was 112 West 134th<\/sup> Street in the heart of Harlem, a neighborhood known for \u201cgrinding poverty, abject living conditions and rampant crime\u2026\u201d\u00a0 Just like in the Bronx, Robert was a rebel.\u00a0 His mom didn\u2019t approve of his friends and her opinion was that her son needed iron discipline to keep him straight.\u00a0 She wasn\u2019t wrong.\u00a0 Twice she marched him into the 30th<\/sup> and 32nd<\/sup> police stations asking for help in how to deal with Robert who was staying up late, occasionally deserting the home and refusing to work.<\/p>\n

\"Robert's<\/a>

Robert’s Home in Manhattan 112 West 134th Street<\/p><\/div>\n

It was on one of those late night capers that Robert got involved in an incident that had him facing very serious criminal charges: two counts of 2nd<\/sup> degree assault and carrying a dangerous weapon.<\/p>\n

James Harrington, who lived in Bedford-Stuyvesant in Brooklyn, was employed as a car cleaner by the Pennsylvania Railroad Company.\u00a0 On the evening of December 9, 1955, he met a member of the U.S. Air Force in the Pennsylvania Railroad station at 33rd<\/sup> Street and 8th<\/sup> Avenue in Manhattan.\u00a0 They hit it off and they decided to spend their night together drinking.\u00a0 They found a bar in Harlem on West 125th<\/sup> Street and 7th<\/sup> Avenue.\u00a0 There they polished off several glasses of beer.\u00a0 When they finished drinking, it was shortly before 2:00 a.m., now December 10.<\/p>\n

The two companions walked out of the bar down the street a ways, when James stopped at a store to buy some cigarettes.\u00a0 The airman hailed a taxi cab.\u00a0 After James paid for his purchase and was leaving the store, he saw a large group of\u00a0 teenagers surround the cab as the airman was about to enter it.<\/p>\n

James approached the taxi and the teenagers turned their attention from the airman onto James.\u00a0 This was no friendly visit.\u00a0 They were angry and the group of boys rushed James, punched and kicked him and stabbed him in the back to cap things off.\u00a0 The time was 2:03 a.m.<\/p>\n

Incredibly luckily for James, Patrolman Frank Carbo of the 28th<\/sup> Precinct happened to be passing by at the moment of the vicious beatdown.\u00a0 He saw Robert pummeling James who was sprawled on the ground.\u00a0 When he approached the scene, at least nine of the pack scattered like birds into the air, along with several girls who were with them.\u00a0 Carbo chased the group and overtook and caught Robert.\u00a0 He questioned him and when James identified him as one of his attackers, Robert was arrested.<\/p>\n

Harrington was treated at Harlem Hospital for a stab wound and one suture was inserted into his back.\u00a0 He got out of the hospital the next day and given a pair of crutches.\u00a0 Working as a car cleaner at the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, James earned $65-70 per week.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t return to work until January 4, 1956, thus losing out on his salary since December 11.<\/p>\n

The big question was of course what had precipitated the surrounding of the taxicab.\u00a0 If it hadn\u2019t been for James coming out to see what was going on, it would have been the airman who would have received the drubbing. Something had happened while he was in the shop buying his cigarettes.<\/p>\n

Robert didn\u2019t deny he assaulted Harrington, but he did deny that he stabbed him in the back.\u00a0 As Carbo interrogated Robert, information came out that explained what happened.\u00a0 According to Robert, the airman had made some suggestive and derogatory remarks to the girls who were with Robert and his companions.\u00a0 They were taking the girls home after attending a party in a housing project at West 128th<\/sup> Street and 8th<\/sup> Avenue.<\/p>\n

Harrington denied making any derogatory remarks to the girls and I believe him.\u00a0 He was in the tobacco store buying cigarettes and wouldn\u2019t have had the opportunity.\u00a0 Certainly he wouldn\u2019t have heard the airman say anything.\u00a0 When they were drinking together he did caution the airman about flashing his money.\u00a0 His opinion was that Robert and his friends were out to rob the airman.\u00a0 No money was stolen from him, but then again, the whipping was interrupted by the cop.\u00a0 Harrington had no idea who cut him, but he did say that all of his attackers had struck him with their fists as well as beer cans.\u00a0 His right side was numb and he couldn\u2019t use his limbs adequately.<\/p>\n

Carbo talked to the airman at the scene shortly after Robert was arrested, but he later disappeared, leaving New York City for somewhere in Texas.\u00a0 Carbo did notice that Harrington and the airman were both drunk, which wasn\u2019t exactly a surprise.\u00a0 But Robert was sober.\u00a0 Robert knew that one of the guys in the group had a knife, but Carbo couldn\u2019t recover the weapon which was obviously ditched in the chase.<\/p>\n

When I wrote Brooklyn Rumble<\/em><\/a>, the antagonism between sailors and the Sand Street Angels and Fort Greene Chaplains was well-known and documented.\u00a0 After being at sea for long stretches of time, the sailors came off their ships drunk on their raging hormones.\u00a0 Hoots, catcalls and whistles funneled to neighborhood girls was one way for them to blow off steam.\u00a0 This was resented by the neighborhood youth and fights between them and sailors were a common feature of the neighborhood.\u00a0 I wouldn\u2019t be surprised in the slightest if this airman did make some sexual remarks to the girls, especially considering he was drunk.<\/p>\n

According to Robert, when the airman made some lewd remarks to the girls, the boys in the group took offense and challenged the airman who then cursed and challenged them.<\/p>\n

As the back-and-forth continued, the airman reached into his back pocket and took out a bottle.\u00a0 He advanced to the group when all of a sudden he turned and jumped into a taxicab.\u00a0 It was at this time that Harrington came on the scene to the aid of his drinking companion.\u00a0 Robert and his friends, turning their fury from the airman (who was now in the cab), attacked Harrington.<\/p>\n

After Robert was arrested, he submitted to a Psychiatric test at Bellevue Hospital.\u00a0 It was found that he was without psychosis and had borderline intelligence.\u00a0 He had a low IQ, but was stable emotionally.\u00a0 He had a \u201chigh frustration tolerance,\u201d was soft-spoken and \u201cdisplay[ed] a pleading, explanatory manner.\u201d\u00a0 In regards to the assault, he admitting participating, but denied starting the attack.\u00a0 He just went along with the others \u201cto be doing something.\u201d\u00a0 One of the conclusions of the psychiatrist was that Robert was \u201cobviously suggestible and easily influenced.\u201d<\/p>\n

The authorities must not have thought the incident was too serious because Robert was designated as a \u201cYouthful Offender,\u201d which meant he was put on probation.\u00a0 As long as he would make his visits with his probation officer and follow the rules (get a job, not hang out with others of \u201cill repute,\u201d and stay out of trouble) then he would eventually be discharged from probation and wouldn\u2019t be charged with the assault and carrying a dangerous weapon.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Unfortunately for Robert, staying out of trouble wasn\u2019t in his plan.<\/p>\n

On March 20, 1956 at 9:15 p.m., he and three other Youthful Offenders and an adult, assaulted and raped a 40-year-old woman multiple times over the course of the evening.\u00a0 They were caught when the victim yelled loud enough for her boyfriend to hear.\u00a0 Everyone was arrested at the scene of the rape.<\/p>\n

This was an extremely serious charge and this time the authorities wasted no time or gave him another chance.\u00a0 Robert was convicted and sent to a notorious upstate prison for teenagers.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Some gangs are well-known, even now, many decades later.\u00a0 Gangs like the Dragons, Viceroys, Bishops and Chaplains.\u00a0 The Mau Maus too, of whom I wrote a book about and finished in 2018 after 15 years of research and writing.\u00a0 With … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":2254,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/Pdrj3O-Tj","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newyorkcitygangs.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3429"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newyorkcitygangs.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newyorkcitygangs.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newyorkcitygangs.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newyorkcitygangs.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3429"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/newyorkcitygangs.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3429\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3437,"href":"https:\/\/newyorkcitygangs.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3429\/revisions\/3437"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newyorkcitygangs.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2254"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newyorkcitygangs.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3429"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}