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DURING THE REEFER MADNESS ERA
THE JOE COATES CASE
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October 27, 1938.
Mrs. Elisabeth Bass,
District Supervisor,
Denver, Colorado.
Dear Mrs. Bass:
An article appeared in the News, Denver, Colorado, on October 15, 1938, under the heading “Door-to-Door Manhunt Ordered”, relative to one Joe Coates, marihuana crazed Negro who shot and killed Detective Fred Renovato.
Please submit a report to this office on the above matter.
Very truly yours,
Will S. Wood,
Acting Commissioner.
mgw
TREASURY DEPARTMENT
BUREAU OF NARCOTICS
DENVER,COLO.
November 12, 1938.
OFFICE OF DISTRICT SUPERVISOR
DISTRICT No. 13
STATES OF COLORADO, UTAH, WYOMING,
ARIZONA, AND NEW MEXICO
NAR:C
Commissioner of Narcotics,
Washington, D. C.
Dear Sir:
Reference is made to your request of October 27, 1938, that a report be submitted in the matter of an article in the Rocky Mountain News, Denver, Colorado, On October 15, 1938, under the heading “door-to-Door Manhunt Ordered”, relative to one Joe Coates, marihuana-crazed Negro who shot and killed Detective Fred Renevato.
Please be advised that a complete investigation has been made in this matter and there appears to be no basis for the charge that Coates was “Marihuana-crazed”. None of the police reporters for the Rocky Mountain News will assume responsibility for the statements concerning marihuana in the article. Coates himself denies that he ever used marihuana and in his statement to the District Attorney, he said that he was not drunk, had not been smoking “hey” and was not excited at the time he shot Detective Renovato. The chief witness in the case, Virginia Garcia, whom Coates was dragging down the street when accosted by Renovato, states that as far as she knows, Coates was not smoking marihuana prior to the shooting and that she had made no such statement to the police or members of the District Attorney’s office. I have interviewed John a. Carroll, the District Attorney for this county, Captain of Detectives James Childers, the City Editor of the Rocky Mountain News and several police reporters on that paper and I can find no foundation for the charge that Cotes had been using marihuana. In fact, one of the reporters stated that he believed whoever wrote the story dressed it up a bit.
Investigation of the matter was commenced by this office at the time the above article appeared in the Rocky Mountain News, having in mind the requirements of Circular Letter No. 458, dated September 29, 1937. However, no report was submitted at that time as nothing was found to indicate that marihuana was responsible in any way for the commission of this crime.
Very truly yours,
John W. Marsh,
Acting District Supervisor,
District No. 13.
JWM/mmh
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