John Artis was a co-defendant in the notorious 1967 murder trial against boxer Rubin “Hurricane” Carter (1937–2014). Both were convicted but later exonerated.
- Died: November 7, 2021 (Who else died on November 7?)
- Details of death: Died at his home in Hampton, Virginia of an abdominal aneurysm at the age of 75.
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“The guy in the background”
In a case that drew widespread attention, Artis and Carter were driving together in Paterson, New Jersey on a 1966 night when three men were murdered at the nearby Lafayette Bar and Grill. They were pulled over, reportedly because their car resembled the getaway car. After interrogation, Artis and Carter were released, then arrested again week later. Although the two men passed a lie detector test as they insisted they had nothing to do with the murders, they were convicted and given life sentences in prison. Artis later reported that he had been offered a deal wherein he could avoid conviction if he testified that he had been an accomplice to murder, implicating Carter. He refused to do so; Carter called him a hero for that refusal.
Several retrials took place over the years, and the verdicts were overturned in 1985. Artis was already a free man, having been paroled in 1981. Carter became a folk hero over the years as he struggled for justice, honored in Bob Dylan’s 1976 song “Hurricane” and the 1999 movie “The Hurricane.” But Artis’ role in the story was all but forgotten in these retellings.
Several years after his parole, Artis was imprisoned again on drug charges. He maintained that he was using cocaine to ease the pain of a circulatory disorder he developed while in prison that led to the amputation of several of his gingers and toes. He was released a year later. Artis went on to counsel inmates at the Norfolk [Virginia] Juvenile Detention Center, and he worked with Carter to promote the overturning of wrongful convictions. In Carter’s last years, Artis lived with him and cared for him while he fought prostate cancer.
Notable quote
“The police and Passaic County law-enforcement establishment was out to get Rubin, and I got tied in only because I was with him on the night of the shootings. I was always the guy in the background, the other guy in the case that no one knew or cared about.” —from a 1988 interview for the New York Times
Tributes to John Artis
Full obituary: The New York Times
