Assata Shakur, born JoAnne Deborah Byron and later known as Joanne Deborah Chesimard, has died in Havana at the age of 78. Shakur was a former member of the Black Liberation Army and had been convicted for her role in the killing of New Jersey State Police trooper Werner Foerster during a 1973 traffic stop.
After being sentenced to life in prison for murder, armed robbery, and related crimes, Shakur escaped from Clinton Correctional Facility for women in November 1979. Members of the Black Liberation Army aided her escape by posing as visitors, taking two guards hostage, and commandeering a prison van.
Following her escape, Shakur fled to Cuba where she was granted political asylum. She lived there for decades and publicly supported Fidel Castro’s government.
Cuba’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed that Shakur died Thursday due to “health conditions and advanced age.” Her daughter, Kakuya Shakur, also announced her mother’s death on Facebook.
Officials in New Jersey acknowledged her death at age 78. The Associated Press reported that she remained a fugitive sought by U.S. authorities since her escape.
On May 2, 1973, Shakur and two others were stopped by police because their car had a broken taillight. A shootout followed in which Trooper Werner Foerster was killed and another officer wounded; one of Shakur’s companions also died during the incident.
Shakur became a symbol among some activists who regarded her as a figure in the black liberation movement while others continued to see her primarily as a fugitive convicted of serious crimes.
