More than a few eyebrows were raised over the FBI’s choice for the first female named to its list of Most Wanted terrorists:  An individual who hasn’t even been in the US for decades and who the FBI cannot explain its reasoning for labeling her a threat. 

Known to the US government as Joanne Deborah Chesimard, the reward for Assata Shakur’s capture was also doubled to $2 Million.  She fled the United States in 1979 after escaping prison.  Shakur was convicted of the 1973 murder of state trooper Werner Foerster during a traffic stop.  She’s reportedly been living in Cuba since 1984 with political asylum.

“She is a domestic terrorist who murdered a law enforcement officer execution style,” according to FBI Special Agent Aaron Ford, “And while we can’t right the wrongs of the past, we can and will continue to pursue justice no matter how long it takes.”

But Shakur’s supporters say the “wrongs of the past” are the problem.  They insist was railroaded by a kangaroo court and racist prosecution motivated by her involvement with the Black Panther Party and Black Liberation Army instead of questionable evidence. 

Independent investigators have determined that Assata was shot by police while her hands were in the air, and there was no evidence of gun powder on her own hands, which they say is proof she never even handled a weapon.  A series of other charges were knocked out, including some related to a kidnapping that occurred while she was in prison, and attempts to link her to every bank robbery involving an African American.

Shakur’s plight has been kept alive in the Hip Hop community, with the artist Common writing a song about her.