Incident

Incident Description

Buffalo Police officer Edward B. Wisniewski Jr of Fillmore Station. shot Stevenson McDuffie, a 16 year old Black boy, as he ran from a patrol car. He was shot in the upper right thigh and left shoulder. According to Officer Wisniewski and his partner, Officer Edmund Dukat, they were responding to a reported theft of a purse which contained $2.

Outcome

Two felony charges were placed against 16 year old Stevenson McDuffie—second degree grand larceny and attempted escape. McDuffie pled Not Guilty to the charges in his hospital room. City Judge Joseph Mattina, who went to the hospital for the arraignment set bail at $1,000.

Officer Wisniewski was put on temporary leave and was exonerated by Commissioner Felicetta of any wrongdoing. Felicetta turned his findings over to District Attorney Michael Dillion for presentation to a grand jury.

Community Response

Civil rights leaders and leaders representing CORE and NAACP demanded the suspension of Officer Wisniewski, called for a public hearing of the case, and criticized the handling of the case by Mayor Frank Sedita and Police Commissioner Frank Felicetta.

Donald R Lee, president of the NAACP, said the police department's investigation of the August 3 shooting "completely shocked the organization by its obvious attempt to whitewash the shooting." Samuel L Green, counsel for CORE, described the case as "police brutality" and charged that Felicetta's "private investigation" did not answer why the officer "had to shot McDuffie." Green said that Felicetta did not call for testimony of citizens who may have been witnesses to the shooting. David Collins, president of the Neighborhood(Ellicott) Advisory Council, Community Action Organization, said: "I feel if we don't take a stand on this, it will be the same thing over and over again." One leader urged that the incident be settled promptly before, "a powder keg explodes." The leaders approved a letter which was sent to Gov. Rockefeller asking him to investigate the case and authorized civil rights leaders to schedule picketing of City Hall to demonstrate their protest of the McDuffie case.