Herman Bell, born in the rural south, spent his youth in New York City. When he moved to Oakland on a football scholarship with the University of California, he was introduced to the Black Panther Party and, as a member, participated in their community programs. State aggression drove him underground. He was captured in 1973 and convicted in 1975 of the 1971 killing of two policemen in New York City. Along with his co-defendants (the New York Three), Jalil Muntaqim and Albert Nuh Washington, he was sentenced to 25 years to life.
During the course of his 33 years of imprisonment, Herman completed a university degree and was active with inside and outside communities, working on issues as varied as prisoners’ rights and the environment. Despite his impressive institutional record and accomplishments, he was denied parole for the second time in February, 2006.
