Santa Line Slaying

The Santa Line Slaying was a nationally publicized incident that occurred on December 21, 1971, in Cleveland, Ohio. The incident resulted in the death of one man, Jack Fitzpatrick. Tyrone Howard was convicted of manslaughter and served 11 months in prison. In 2005, the incident attracted some attention again when it was revealed that Tyrone Howard is the father of actor Terrence Howard, who witnessed the incident as a young boy. Terrence Howard gave an interview on Oprah about the incident, but his account of what happened was later contradicted by his father, who accused him of trying to garner publicity for his own career.

There are differing accounts of the events that led to the death of Jack Fitzpatrick. But what is beyond dispute is this:

Twenty one-year-old Tyrone Howard and his pregnant wife took their three sons (one of whom was two-year-old Terrence) to see Santa Claus at a Higbee's department store in Cleveland, Ohio's Public Square. Also waiting in the long line was 36-year-old Jack Fitzpatrick who was with three of his own children while his pregnant wife shopped with their oldest daughter. At one point, the Howards were accused of cutting in the line by some of the others waiting including Fitzpatrick. An argument began between the two men. What was said in the argument and who initiated the altercation differs among witnesses. But the result was Fitzpatrick grabbed Howard, pinned him against a wall and kneed him in the groin. Howard's groin began bleeding from a previous injury he received on his job. Howard then used a sharp object to stab Fitzpatrick several times in the thighs and neck until Fitzpatrick fell to the floor. Howard fled to his mother's home. Hours later, he turned himself in to police. Fitzpatrick was taken to a nearby hospital and died from his wounds.

The incident made headlines in the local Cleveland newspapers who called the incident "The Santa Line Slaying". It was also widely reported in newspapers around the country. The local newspapers reported the altercation as racially-motivated due to Fitzpatrick being white and Howard being an African American. Some witnesses claimed that racial slurs were used by Fitzpatrick. It was also reported that the weapon Howard used was a knife which he had in his jacket. Cleveland's then-Mayor Ralph Perk publicly denounced Howard as a murderer. The Episcopal bishop of Ohio called the slaying an "atrocity," and compared it to the Biblical story of Herod the Great's Massacre of the Innocents.

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