"Junior Dead"

07-09-2013, 07:27 PM

I have had a couple of requests for shorter stories. I have trouble using a few words when a 1,000 make me look smarter. Some of my topics require lengthy posts, but some great stories can be brief. So here is one of very many.

Junior Dead

In the early 70's there were very few Blacks living on Miami Beach. In fact - and a topic of future posts, Blacks were not allowed on Miami Beach after dark as late the late 60's. One of the few were a handful of some who constantly came into contact with the police such as Silky Thomas, Joe Lewis Thomas, Malcolm Matthews and Rose and Junior Cook. The former for criminal activity and violence, the Cooks for about 500 drunken domestic disputes. Every cop who worked the south end, especially evenings and weekends, had dozens of calls with these two. Junior was a large bulldog type of a man and Rose was small skinny and both were world class drunks. One minute they would be at each other's throats and the next everything was forgiven. I don't know how they survived financially and I never saw them on the street or at a job. Only at their apt - which changed all the time around the South - and always drunk, dirty and sweaty. And very loud. They knew more cops than I did.

Well...After hundreds of calls to handle their violent drunken rages, Rose called the desk and said, "Junior Dead." This time they were living at 130 Meridian Avenue. That's right, right next to the North lot of the Police Department. Rose had stabbed Junior, again, and this time he died. (I honestly thought that to kill either one of them a silver bullet or wooden spike was needed). Several responders simply put down their coffee and walked out of the station and a few more feet to the murder scene. I actually saw a Detective run to his car in the north lot - while laughing - Jump in, turn on the dash light and hidden siren,. and back up about 50 feet and park in front of the homicide.

Of course, Rose was arrested. Even we could figure this one out. I don't know what happened to her, but with Rose and Junior gone, it was a part of the change from the old days to different ones.