Manslaughter, Not Murder Black and white, and gray

"Murderers! Murderers!" yelled an enraged black spectator at the trial in New York City as the jury foreman announced the verdict. Two white teenagers, charged with chasing a black man out of their Howard Beach neighborhood to his death on a freeway, had been acquitted of murder and convicted, along with a third youth, on the lesser charge of manslaughter. A fourth had been found innocent of all charges. Though the gray decision satisfied the victim's mother, it could not dispel all the passions that have arisen among both blacks and whites since the tragedy one year ago made Howard Beach a synonym for racial tension.

The case involved the death of Michael Griffith, who had the misfortune to wander with two friends into the mostly white community after their automobile broke down. Shouting racial epithets and waving a baseball bat and tree limbs, about a dozen youths confronted the black men. One of the blacks pulled a knife. Griffith, 23, was chased onto a highway by some members of the gang and was killed by a passing car. The youths then severely beat one of Griffith's companions. Defense attorneys described the crime as a simple "fight," and pointed out that two of the victims had criminal records.

The three-month trial came to be considered a litmus test of racial justice in New York. Since the June acquittal of Bernhard Goetz on all but a minor count for his subway attack on four black youths, many of New York's black leaders have been claiming that the city is not a place where blacks can expect equal justice. The atmosphere inside the Howard Beach courtroom mirrored the racial polarization that they say is afflicting the city. A largely black audience packed one side of the courtroom, with Jean Griffith, the victim's mother, at the center. On the other side, amid a white crowd, were the families and friends of the defendants.

Aside from the response of outspoken spectators, reaction to last week's verdict was restrained, almost relieved, because the black community had feared that the defendants would, like Goetz, be acquitted of all major charges. As it turned out, however, three youths face up to 15 years in prison for manslaughter: Jon Lester, 18, Scott Kern, 18, and Jason Ladone, 17. Many of those involved in the trial felt that at least a measure of justice had been meted out. Said Jean Griffith: "God, in the end, did what was right."