Mayor Michelle Wu formally apologizes to men wrongfully suspected in Charles and Carol Stuart case
BOSTON - Boston Mayor Michelle Wu has formally apologized to two men wrongfully connected to the October 1989 Charles Stuart case.
At a press conference Monday, Wu issued a formal apology to Willie Bennett and Alan Swanson, who were both publicly linked to the case. Wu was joined at the press conference by Swanson and Bennett's family, as he was unable to attend; the Boston Globe said he now has dementia.
"We are here today to acknowledge the tremendous pain that the city of Boston inflicted on Black residents throughout our neighborhoods 34 years ago," said Wu. "The mayor's office, city officials and the Boston Police Department took actions that directly harmed these families and continue to impact the larger community, reopening a wound that has gone untended for decades."
In October 1989, Charles Stuart told police that a Black man shot him and his pregnant wife Carol in their car as they were leaving a birthing class at Brigham and Women's Hospital. Carol and her unborn baby died. Stuart was shot in the abdomen but survived.
"There was no evidence that a Black man committed this crime," said Wu. "But that didn't matter because the story was one that confirmed and exposed the beliefs that so many shared...At every level and at every opportunity, those in power closed their eyes to the truth because the lie felt familiar. They saw the story they wanted to see."
In January 1990, Matthew Stuart told police his brother Charles was the one who killed Carol. Before he could be arrested, Charles Stuart jumped off the Tobin Bridge.
"On behalf of the Boston Police Department, the mayor's office and the entire city of Boston, I want to say to Mr. Swanson and Mr. Bennett, the entire Bennett family and Boston's entire Black community, I am so sorry for what you endured," said Wu. "I am so sorry for the pain that you have carried for so many years. What was done to you was unjust, unfair, racist and wrong."
The case is getting new attention due to a new docuseries, "Murder in Boston," that aired on HBO.
