Left: Gov. Christine Todd Whitman, Right: Sherron RolaxSherron Rolax was gunned down in Camden early Saturday morning; he was 28 years old. Mr. Rolax achieved unwitting fame when, one night in 1996, he was used as a political prop by New Jersey Governor Christine Todd Whitman. While on a ride-along with state troopers, the governor patted down Mr. Rolax, then 16, who, as it turns out, had done nothing wrong. The incident was forgotten - Mr. Rolax did not even realize it was the governor who accosted him - until when four years later, amid a deteriorating relationship with the State Police (embroiled in their own racial profiling scandal), the above photograph was leaked to the media just ahead of the 2000 Republican National Convention in Philadelphia, of which Whitman was co-chair. The photograph of the beaming white governor frisking a black youth served to exacerbate tensions between the G.O.P. and the African-American community, and in all probability ended Whitman's chances at higher office; following Bush's election, she was appointed administrator of the EPA, where her crowning achievement was to vouch for the air quality in lower Manhattan immediately following 9/11, thus exposing thousands of rescue workers and New Yorkers to hazardous debris.
Following the photo's publication, Mr. Rolax unsuccessfully attempted to sue the state; a federal court, though allowing that the facts suggested his rights had been violated, determined that too much time had elapsed for his suit to proceed. Rolax subsequently served two separate jail terms on unrelated drug charges. Following the second, he began to pursue his GED, and, according to his family, had begun a new job at a KFC in the neighboring affluent suburb of Cherry Hill. He was a father of five at the time of his death.
After being publicly exposed, Governor Whitman allowed that the frisking had been a mistake, but never apologized to Mr. Rolax for humiliating him. According to the Newark Star-Ledger, she declined, through a spokesperson, to comment yesterday following the revelation of Mr. Rolax's death. This is fitting, because if she didn't give a shit about Sherron Rolax while he was alive, why should she care about him now that he's dead?
Following the photo's publication, Mr. Rolax unsuccessfully attempted to sue the state; a federal court, though allowing that the facts suggested his rights had been violated, determined that too much time had elapsed for his suit to proceed. Rolax subsequently served two separate jail terms on unrelated drug charges. Following the second, he began to pursue his GED, and, according to his family, had begun a new job at a KFC in the neighboring affluent suburb of Cherry Hill. He was a father of five at the time of his death.
After being publicly exposed, Governor Whitman allowed that the frisking had been a mistake, but never apologized to Mr. Rolax for humiliating him. According to the Newark Star-Ledger, she declined, through a spokesperson, to comment yesterday following the revelation of Mr. Rolax's death. This is fitting, because if she didn't give a shit about Sherron Rolax while he was alive, why should she care about him now that he's dead?
