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Russell Maroon Shoatz

1943–2021

United States

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Biography

Russell Melvin Shoatz II (August 23, 1943 – December 17, 2021), also known as Maroon, was an American Black nationalist activist, writer, and convicted murderer. Raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Shoatz was a founder of a local group called the Black Unity Council and a member of the Black Panther Party and the Black Liberation Army. In 1972, he was convicted of the 1970 murder of Philadelphia police officer Frank Von Colln, as well as the shooting of another policeman who survived.

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Black heritage reference ↗

Biography text · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source checked 2026-10-13

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