The Case of Chol Soo Lee 1973-82

see also story of his acquital

CHRONOLOGY OF THE CHOL SOO LEE CASE (1973-78) 

Chol Soo Lee is a twenty-six year old Korean immigrant now serving life sentence at Deuel Vocational Institute in Tracy. He was convicted of a 1973 Chinatown killing and faces today a death penalty trial in connection with the stabbing death of an inmate in the prison yard.

Chol Soo emigrated to this country in 1964 at the age of twelve when there were very few Korean immigrants in the United States. Because he didn't understand the language and culture of America, he encountered tre­mendous difficulties and hardships growing up. What follows are the major dates and facts in both cases.

6/1/73     By this date, twelve unsolved gang murders have occurred in Chinatown since October 1970. The mayor, Joseph Alioto, concerned about bad publicity for San Francisco, says publicly that the police presence in Chinatown will be "beefed up."

6/3/73      Yip Vee Tak, a Wah Ching gang advisor, is gunned down in a busy Grant Avenue intersection in San Francisco Chinatown. Although hundreds witness the shooting, only five white tourists step forward to cooperate with the police. They describe the killer as being a young Asian male, 18-25 years old, about 145 lbs., 5'6-5'10 Later that evening the five witnesses examine police mugbooks. The police advise them to select photos of persons who resemble the killer. Chol Soo Lee's picture, taken when he was 16, is one of five chosen by the witnesses.

6/4/73     Steve Morris, another eyewitness, contacts the police. On the basis of the description Morris gives of the killer and the car used, the police broadcast an all points bulletin throughout San Francisco.

6/5/73     Police contact Morris and ask him to describe the murder to them again. He is not shown police mugbook photo

6/6/73     The police draft a memo for the Mayor giving three motives for the killing. This memo was withheld from Chol Soo's defense attorney. In 1979 the Sacramento Superior Court will base its decision to overturn Chol Soo's 1973 conviction on this action by San Francisco police and prosecutors.

6/7/73     Chol Soo Lee is arrested entering the hotel where he lives. At the time of his arrest he was 5'2", weighed 120 lbs., and sported a full mustache.

6/11/73   The eyewitnesses to the killing who had selected photos of possible suspects from the mugbooks participate in  a line-up identification. Steve Morris is not contacted. Chol Soo stands in the line-up, the only person out of five individuals resembling the killer selected from mugbooks. Of the six Asians in the line-up, four including Chol Soo, have mustaches. Three witnesses pick Chol Soo, two pick others, and one says that the individual he saw commit the murder is definitely not Chol Soo Lee.

6/28/73   Based on the line-up identification, Chol Soo is held in San Francisco for the murder of Yip Vee Tak. The court appoints a public defender to represent Lee because he has no money.

4/2/74     Over Chol Soo's protests, the San Francisco Superior Court moves the trial to Sacramento. A private attorney Hamilton Hintz, replaces Chol Soo’s public defender shortly before the case goes to trial.

6/3/74     Trial begins.

6/19/74   Chol Soo is convicted on the testimony of the three witnesses who identified him as the killer at the line?ui The other three witnesses are not subpeoned by either the prosecution or defense. Chol Soo is sentenced to life imprisonment for first degree murder.

THE SECOND CASE 

Chol Soo is incarcerated at Deuel Vocational Institute, one of California's most violent prisons. Confidential evaluations of Chol Soo praise his "outstanding attitude and conduct."

Feb-Mar 77 Morrison Needham, 21 years old and a suspected member of the Aryan Brotherhood, described by prison authorities as a "white supremacist, neo-Nazi prison gang, is transferred to DVI. He is convicted of "assisting  a suicide."

Chol Soo discovers that prison authorities have classified him as a member of the Nuestra Familia, a Latino prison gang. This erroneous identification spreads throughout the facility and Lee's life is endangered.

Mar 77      Chol Soo appeals the error. There is an official finding that Lee is not affiliated with the Nuestra Familia       or any other prison gang. At the same time, according to entries in Lee's record, his life is threatened by white inmates who believe Lee to be a Nuestra Familia member.

Oct. 8, 77  Inmate Morrison Needham is slain in a prison yard fracas involving Chol Soo Lee. Lee is later charged with murder in connection with Needham's stabbing death. 

The Chol Soo Lee Defense Committee was formed in early 1978 after a series of articles in a Sacramento newspaper began to publicize the outrageous facts surrounding Chol Soo's 1974 Chinatown murder conviction. The Committee, made up of community groups, students, professionals and church groups, has grown to a national level within the Korean community with chapters in such places as Atlanta, Georgia, Chicago, Los Angeles, Sacramento, Hawaii, New York, and San Francisco. The broader Asian communities and the public at large have also begun to actively participate in the Committee.

Throughout 1978 the Committee worked towards reopening the Chinatown case by holding fundraisers, publicizing the case, speaking to the larger needs and problems reflected in the case, and mobilizing people to attend all court proceedings. It was this collective and unified effort which won the first major victory for Chol Soo. On February 2, 1979, the Sacramento Superior Court overturned Chol 500 Lee's 1974 Chinatown murder conviction. 

But the work continues and much more support is needed before Chol Soo Lee can walk away unshackled from those long, unjustified years in prison.

You can help by sending contributions for his defense and/or working with the Chol Soo Lee Defense Committee. For more information contact: