No Heroes No Villains

On June 28 1972 in a South Bronx subway station John Skagen a white off-duty policeman on his way home suddenly and without apparent provocation ordered James Richardson a black man on his way to work to get against the wall and put his hands up. Richardson had a gun and the two exchanged shots. In the melee that followed Skagen was fatally wounded by a cop who rushed to the scene. In the ensuing trial William Kunstler handled Richardson''s defense and the author of this book then assistant district attorney prosecuted the case. Here is a first-hand behind-the-scenes account of every step of the proceedings.