United States Capitol shooting incident (1954)
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This article relies largely or entirely upon a single source. Please help improve this article by introducing citations to additional sources. Discussion about the problems with the sole source used may be found on the talk page. (January 2011) |
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This article is incomplete. Please help to improve the article, or discuss the issue on the talk page. (January 2011) |
| U.S. Capitol shooting incident (1954) | |
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| Location | Washington, D.C. |
| Date | March 1, 1954 |
| Target | United States Capitol (chamber of the House of Representatives) |
| Attack type | shooting |
| Deaths | 0 |
| Injured | Alvin M. Bentley, Clifford Davis, Ben F. Jensen, George Hyde Fallon, and Kenneth A. Roberts |
| Perpetrator(s) | Lolita Lebrón, Rafael Cancel Miranda, Andrés Figueroa Cordero, and Irving Flores Rodríguez |
| Part of a series on the |
| Puerto Rican Nationalist Party |
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Flag of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party
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Events and Revolts
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Nationalist Leaders
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Newsreel scenes in Spanish and in English of the attack on the U.S. Capitol led by Lolita Lebrón |
The United States Capitol shooting incident of 1954 was an attack on March 1, 1954 by four Puerto Rican nationalists who shot 30 rounds from semi-automatic pistols from the Ladies' Gallery (a balcony for visitors) of the House of Representatives chamber in the United States Capitol.
The attackers, Lolita Lebrón, Rafael Cancel Miranda, Andres Figueroa Cordero, and Irving Flores Rodríguez, unfurled a Puerto Rican flag and began shooting at the 240 Representatives of the 83rd Congress who were on the floor during debate over an immigration bill.
Five representatives were shot in the attack. The wounded lawmakers were Alvin M. Bentley (R-Michigan), who took a bullet to the chest, Clifford Davis (D-Tennessee), who was shot in the leg, Ben F. Jensen (R-Iowa), who was shot in the back, as well as George Hyde Fallon (D-Maryland) and Kenneth A. Roberts (D-Alabama). House pages helped carry Alvin Bentley off the House floor. Future congressmen Bill Emerson and Paul E. Kanjorski were two of the congressional pages who were serving on the floor during the incident.[1]
The attackers were immediately arrested. All the attackers were given minimum sentences of 70 years in prison, after their death sentences were commuted by President Dwight D. Eisenhower.[2]
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[edit] Assailants freed
Figueroa Cordero was released in 1978. In 1979, President Jimmy Carter freed the remaining assailants in exchange for Fidel Castro's release of several American CIA agents being held in Cuba on espionage charges.[2]
[edit] See also
- Puerto Rican Nationalist Party Revolts of the 1950s
- Truman assassination attempt
- Puerto Rican Nationalist Party
- Ponce Massacre
- Jayuya Uprising
- Nationalist attack of San Juan
- Utuado Uprising
- Río Piedras massacre
- Grito de Lares
- Puerto Rican Independence Party
- United States Congress members killed or wounded in office
- United States Capitol shooting incident (1998)
[edit] References
- ^ Michael Barone and Grant Ujifusa (1993). The Almanac of American Politics 1994. Washington, D.C.: National Journal. pp. 749. ISBN 0-89234-057-6.
- ^ a b Rockwell, Lew (2011-01-12) How Safe Is It To Be a Congressman?, LewRockwell.com
[edit] External links
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This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (September 2008) |
- General references
- "A Terrorist in the House" by Manuel Roig-Franzia, The Washington Post Magazine, February 22, 2004, pg. W12.
- "No one expected attack on Congress in 1954" Holland Sentinel, February 29, 2004
- Biographies from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- BENTLEY, Alvin Morell (1918-1969)
- DAVIS, Clifford (1897-1970)
- FALLON, George Hyde (1902-1980)
- JENSEN, Benton Franklin (1892-1970)
- ROBERTS, Kenneth Allison (1912-1989)
- Carlos ‘Carlito’ Rovira (March 2006). "Lolita Lebrón, a bold fighter for Puerto Rican independence". S&L Magazine. http://socialismandliberation.org/mag/index.php?aid=574.
