f World News
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Baton Rouge mayor
claims riot a plot
BATON ROUGE, La. AP — Hie mayor of Baton
Rouge said Tuesday that Black Muslims trying to
overthrow national Muslim leader Elijah
Muhammad came here and deliberately provoked
the gunfight which cost four lives.
Two policemen and two blacks were killed in
the sudden flare cf gunfire. About 25 persons were
injured, including a television newsman listed in
critical condition from a beating.
Mayor W W. Dumas told a news conference the
shootout was part of what he called a planned
conspiracy of revolution and said that other cities
should be on the alert for similar violence.
The mayor said he didn’t know why the
militants precipitated the confrontation—or how it
tied in with what he described as one of their goals—
to “get rid of” Elijah Muhammad.
“This Elijah Muhammad, whoever he is, better
watch out for these people,” Dumas told newsmen
in a partial report on the police interrogation of 20
blacks arrested after the battle with officers on a
city street Monday.
The mayor declined to go into any details on his
broad statements or to say whether he anticipated
further violence, but he announced that the National
Guard would be kept in the city and a 9:30 p.m.-6
a m. curfew would be in effect.
"With the information we have from our own
sources and admissions from these men, these
people are either members or a splinter group of
Black Muslims,” Dumas said.
Seven young Muslims in Baton Rouge denied
their organization was involved.
Of the 20 blacks arrested during and im
mediately after the gun battle in front of a movie
theater, eight were charged with murder and
placed under bonds of $500,000 each.
At least five of the eight and one of the blacks
killed was from out of state.
Dist. Atty. Sargent Pitcher said police con
fiscated documents from the arrested men which
revealed a travel itinerary beginning in
Washington, D.C., and ending in Baton Rouge.
“We have information that there were two units
who traveled separately but united in Baton
Rouge,” Pitcher said.
Officials maintained they had no idea why the
alleged Muslim group picked Baton Rouge for the
bloody showdown with police.
“This took us completely by surprise,” Pitcher
said.
Charles Granger, a black civil rights leader,
said members of the group did identify themselves
to him as Black Muslims.
“They were here to kick off a campaign to die,”
Granger said. “They said they were ready to die.”
The gunfight erupted when sheriff’s deputies,
who were attempting to remove two automobiles
with out-of-state license plates from the middle of
the street, approached a line of blacks. The Blacks
had short hair and were uniformly dressed in suits
and black bow ties.
Killed in the exchange of gunfire were Deputy
Sheriffs Ralph Hancock, 30, and Ralph Dewayne
Wilder, 27, and two blacks, Thomas Davis, 25, of
Chicago and another man who remained uniden
tified. Bob Johnston, the newsman for television
station WBRZ who was beaten by a group of blacks
before the gunfight, remained hospitalized in
critical condition with massive head injuries.
State Department official
confirms columnist’s charges
Washington AP - The State
Department Tuesday
acknowledged that the United
States has pledged $12.5 million,
subject to Congressional ap
proval, for a contribution to a $25
million exchange stabilization
fund for Cambodia.
State Department spokesman
Charles Bray III, commenting on
a report by columnist Jack An
derson, at the same time denied
that the UnitedStatesgovemment
was acting contrary to the in
struct ions of Congress.
Anderson, citing what he
described as a secret exchange of
messages between Washington
and Phnom Penh, said that
because of congressional
hostility, the Nixon ad
ministration has pretended to
take no active part in raising
funds from other nations to
support the “tottering regime of
Cambodian strongman Lon Nol *’
Anderson quoted a suggested
letter the State Department had
prepared for Lon Nol to send to
other governments to solicit
support for the exchange
stabilization fund.
"We have given Cambodia our
suggest ioned text of a letter to
which Anderson refers,” Bray
acknowledged.
But he said that this was "part
of our technical assistance to get
the multilateral exchange
stabilization fund off the ground.
The department sent the text and
if Cambodia approved, it might
send such a letter out. TTie
Cambodians have had no ex
perience in arranging a con
sortium, so we have assisted
them," Bray added
“It would be a mistake to
conclude from this that the
United States is engaged in some
kind of shady deal,” Bray said
Cambodia is holding a pledging
conference in Phnom Penh on
Friday and the U S. team for that
meeting has already departed. It
is led by Roderick O’Connor,
assistant AID director for East
Asia
Other countries expected to
attend include Japan, Australia,
New Zealand, Indonesia, Italy
and Malaysia. Bray said other
nations also may participate.
Anderson said that according
to the secret documents he was
quoting the Cambodian govern
ment is seeking a pledge of $7.5
million from Japan; Australia, $3
million; Britain, $500,000; New
Zealand, $300,000; Indonesia,
$250,000; Malaysia, $25,000,
Singapore, $250,000; Thailand,
$250,000; and the Philippines
$250,000.
Anderson said one of the secret
reports from U.S. ambassador
Emery Swank criticized ‘‘Lon
Nol’s haphazard, out of channel
and ill-coordinated conduct of
military operations.”
Bray refused to comment on
this part of the report.
“The implication in the story,
however, that the U.S. govern
ment is acting contrary to the
spirit of congressional
legislation. I do not think is the
case," he said.
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News Roundup
from AF report*
WASHINGTON — Over the objection of two Nixon administration
appointees, the Supreme Court has given a convicted bank robber a
chance at a shorter prison sentence by applying a landmark ruling on
the Warren years. The split in the way the court handled the case
Tuesday pointed up the conservatism of Chief Justice Warren Burger
and Harry Blackmun on criminal law. The two other Nixon ap
pointees, Lewis Powell Jr. and William Rehnquist joined the court too
late to participate.
RICHMOND, Va. -- The City of Richmond and suburban Henrico
and Chesterfield counties were given 30 days by a federal judge on
Tuesday to “take all steps . . . necessary” to merge their school
systems in September. U.S. District Court Judge Robert Merhige Jr.
entered the order as a followup to his landmark decision Monday
directing the consolidation as a means of achieving “meaningful in
tegration.” Tuesday’s order gave the State Board of Education 30 days
to name an administrative staff for the new, 104,000 metropolitan
school division and 90days to submit a plan for its financial operation.
WASHINGTON — Florida Secretary of State Richard Stone
nominated on Tuesday a field of 12 Democrats—including George
Wallace and Sen. Edward Kennedy—for the state’s automatic entry
March 14 presidential Primary. Stone also listed two challengers
against President Nixon on the Republican side of the ballot antiwar
Rep. Paul McCloskey of California and conservative Rep. John Ash
brook of Ohio. Under the Florida primary law, Stone based his
nominations on general recognition of candidates by the state and
national news media. However, these recommendations are not final.
SAFEWAY
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