Bill > AR69

This Resolution, passed by the General Assembly of the State of New Jersey, urges Cuba to extradite Joanne Chesimard, also known as Assata Shakur, to the United States. Chesimard was convicted in 1977 for the 1973 murder of New Jersey State Trooper Werner Foerster and the wounding of Trooper James Harper during a shootout on the New Jersey Turnpike, an incident where Chesimard and members of the radical Black Liberation Army opened fire on the troopers. After escaping from a New Jersey prison in 1979, Chesimard fled to Cuba, where she was granted political asylum and has resided since. Despite numerous efforts by state authorities to secure her extradition, including appeals to Pope John Paul II, Chesimard was listed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in 2013 as one of the greatest threats to the American government, being the first woman named to the FBI's most wanted terrorist list. In light of the re-establishment of diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba in 2015, this Resolution calls for Cuba to return Chesimard to face justice for the murder of a law enforcement officer. Copies of this resolution will be sent to the U.S. Ambassador to Cuba and the U.S. Secretary of State.