William Cook's Statement

Just Doesn't Add Up

By: Nikon

On April 29, 2001 William Cook broke his silence regarding what happen the night his brother was arrested for the murder of Philadelphia Police Officer Daniel Faulkner. The murder took place in the early morning hours of December 9, 1981, and this is the first William has given his version of what happened. William, or Billy, attended the 1982 trial in which his brother was found guilty of first-degree murder, but didn't testify on his behalf, even though he was most likely the closest witness. He was expected to testify at Mumia 1995 PCRA hearing, but never showed up.

In his statement Billy claims that he was driving around with his business partner and longtime friend Kenneth Freeman, after they had "hit a few bars". Billy stated that he was unarmed, but that his friend Freeman "always carried a gun", a .38 caliber.

He said he was driving on Locust Street at about Juniper and he saw flashing lights so he pulled over at the first spot he could find, which was just past 13th Street on the south side of Locust Street. However, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that he was pulled over for driving the wrong way on 13th Street, which is one-way.

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He claims that the reason he thought he was being pulled over was because he had wooden bumpers on his car, but claims that the Officer never said anything about them. Billy then abruptly changes the tone of his post and says, "I never hit him". In the very next paragraph Billy adds that he got out of the car and "Let him know that he was not happy". Billy says that he didn't hit Officer Faulkner, but two eyewitnesses, Cynthia White and Michael Scanlan both say that he did. They both testified at Billy's trial were he was charged with resisting arrest and assaulting a police officer and found guilty. Billy then claims that after going back and forth verbally with Officer

Faulkner that the officer pulled out a stick or some kind of object and hit him in the head three times. At this point he claims that he got back into the car and was looking for paperwork, however witnesses never described Billy getting back into the car after the altercation.

Billy then goes on to explain that he's not stupid enough to hit a cop, and may have tried to block the officer, who was hitting him with a flashlight. So, in one paragraph Billy claims to be hit with a stick, and in another it's a flashlight. For the record, all evidence point to the fact that Officer Faulkner responded to being punched in the face by striking Billy 2-3 times with his flashlight.

Anyway, now he claims that he's back in his VW, which nobody witnessed, looking in the backseat for his paperwork. He claims to have known that "people were milling about", but can't specifically place anyone.

He says that when he heard the first shot he was in the driver's seat facing towards the back looking for paperwork in the backseat. He said that Faulkner was now standing in front of the car, and he didn't see him shot because he was facing the back. He does however claim to have seen the flashes from the gun, even though the gun, according to ballistics evidence, was fired from 8-12 inches away from Faulkner. This means that the sides of Billy's eye would have to extend to the back of his head if he was looking in the backseat, and the shot was fired in front of the car 8-12 inches from Fualkner. Faulkner was found in a pool of blood in front of Billy's car, on the sidewalk.

He claims that when he first saw his brother he was running feet away from him, however in Mumia's affidavit he claims that he ran across the street when he saw Billy bloody and staggering in the street. Again, Billy claims to have heard the shot, and saw Jamal stumble forward, but didn't see the shooter, even though balistics proved that Mumia was shot from a distance of around 12 inches. So, Mumia was shot in the chest from 12 inches away, and his brother saw him stumble forward, but didn't see the person who would have had to have been standing right were Mumia was stumbling towards.

Billy says that when he was looking in the backseat Freeman was still there, but that he exited the car without him knowing. Billy was able to see sparks and flashes from a gun from directly behind him, outside the car with his "peripheral vision", but wasn't able to see a man inches away from him open the car door and exit the car.

This affidavit mainly tries to implicate Freeman in the shooting, however, it doesn't match the affidavit of the other confessed shooter, Arnold Beverly. Beverly claims that the "other guy" presumably Freeman, was standing near Camac Street when Faulkner pulled over Billy's VW. Freeman obviously couldn't be in Billy's VW and waiting near Camac Street at the same time. Not only that, but Billy claims to have heard the first shot while looking in the backseat, and claims that Freeman was still in the car while he was looking in the back seat. Plus the scenario has the "other guy" (Freeman?) shooting the first shot, but according to Billy Freeman was still sitting in the passenger's seat.

To implicate Freeman, Billy even goes as far as to say that "Later Poppy (Freeman) talked about a plan to kill Faulkner. He told me that he was armed on that night and participated in the shooting". We're expected to believe that Freeman told Billy that he was a party to the killing that his brother faced the death penalty for, and Billy didn't come forward in defense of his brother for almost 20 years. Freeman was picked up the morning of the murder, questioned and released. He died of natural causes in 1985.

Billy claims that he had no idea where Freeman went, bit that he left the area. Billy then claims to have gone over to Mumia and told him that he was there for him, even though nobody else witnessed this. When police arrived less than a minute later Billy was actually about 10 feet from Mumia standing by the wall of a building. According to police reports, Billy said, "I ain't got nothing to do with this." He didn't include his brother in his initial statement, he just stated that HE had nothing to do with it.

He says that he saw a gun in the street and kicked it under his car, which makes absolutely no sense. You would think if he appoached his brother, who had a gun lying about 8 inches away from him he woud have kicked that gun under his car, but no, he kicked anither gun under the car. Not only that, but in the crime scene photos you can see completely under Billy's car, and there is no gun. There were many differnt angles which clearly show through to the curb, and none show a gun under Billy's car. Not to mention the fac that the police would have looked under the cars. The only two guns found at the scene were Officer Faulkner's service revolver and Mumia's gun which was linked to him by the serial number.

Billy said that if the police asked him something, he didn't remember. I guess that's his why of explaining, or more to the point, ingoring his statement, "I ain't got nothing to do with it", or at least hoping others would ignore it. His affidavit says that he doesn't remember if he was taken to the Police Administration Building in a wagon or car, or whether he was sitting up or not. He also mentioned in the affidavit that he refused to give a statement to police.

So, basically, Billy didn't see who shot Jamal or Officer Faulkner. He doesn't remember saying, "I ain't got nothing to do with it". He doesn't even remember how he got to the Roundhouse. It's seems like he should have given his story earlier. His memory might have been better. But then again, it doesn't seem the purpose of this affidavit wasn't to tell what happened. I looks like this affidavit's main objective was attempting to place a man, whose now dead, at the scene, because he can't contradict the story.