If you grew up in the 1980s, you have probably heard of a band called Run-D.M.C. During the 80s, the rap group was one of the most popular music groups in the entire world. With hits ranging from It's Trickey to Walk This Way, listening to their music always made you get up and dance.
Jason William Mizell, or better known as Jam Master Jay, was the DJ of Run-D.M.C. ? performing a vital role in the overall success of the group. The group is credited with bringing the music genre of hip hop into mainstream music.
However, the music group's utter success would be cut short in an instance when Jam Master Jay was brutally murdered in his own studio in Queens.
His Career
Ever since he was a kid, Mizell had a passion for music. Around his house, he would always be singing and making music with whatever he could find. He was born in Brooklyn and later moved to Hollis, Queens when he was ten years old.
When Mizell was 13 years old he discovered DJing and fell in love immediately. After a few years of practicing the art, Mizell decided to begin playing at bars and parks for the people of his community. In his career, Mizell joined a few garage bands in his area.
In 1982, Mizell joined Joseph ?Run? Simmons and Darryl ?D.M.C.? McDaniels to form Run-D.M.C. The group became an instant success. In 1989, Mizell created his very own record company. His label even signed famous rapper 50 Cent.
In the Hollis, Queens community Mizell was a legend. To the people, he was a hero and a perfect example of how a kid with nothing could turn his life around. The residents thought of Mizell as being perfect and loved him for his hard stance on crime in his community.
The Tragic Murder
The night of Wednesday, October 30, 2002, was a chilly night. The seasons were changing and the days were getting shorter. Jason Mizell was going to be at his studio in Jamaica, Queens throughout the night recording music for an upcoming project. Most of Mizell's staff was there that night. However, after the murder, many of them chose to remain anonymous.
At about 7:30 pm, two men walked into the studio and opened fire on Mizell and his staff. Mizell was shot many times in the chest and head and died at the scene. One other person in the room, Urieco Rincon, was shot in the ankle and survived the ordeal.
At the beginning of the investigation, the detectives really didn't have much to go on. Their leads were slim and there was a sense of silence around the community about what people knew. After many years of investigating, the case ultimately went cold.
The New Developments
As stated above, the police had very little to go on in this investigation. During the investigation, they interviewed many people and said that they were looking at different suspects. However, nothing ever came out of that.
In 2003, Playboy magazine published an article that stated that a drug deal gone bad was what caused Mizell's death. The article stated that Mizell went to Washington D.C. on July 31, 2002, and purchased 10 kilograms of cocaine (valued at $250,000) from a dealer named ?Uncle?. The agreement that was made was that Mizell was going to pay Uncle in one week.
Mizell never ended up paying anything and the theory claims that ?Uncle? had Mizell murdered over this money. Mizell's community attempted to cover this story up as they say that Mizell would never be involved with drugs.
The case went cold after the Playboy article. However, renewed interest, in this case, came when Netflix and A&E both came out with series investigating the case.
In 2020, eighteen long years after the murder, this chilling case finally came to an end when the police arrested two men for the murder ? Ronald Washington and Karl Jordan Jr. The police said that Mizell had, in fact, ripped off ?Uncle? in Maryland and planned on selling the cocaine with Washington and Jordan. However, Mizell cut the two men out of the selling after an argument. This, in turn, caused the two men to murder Mizell.
The New York City community still cannot come to grips with Mizell's drug involvement after his firm stance on combatting drug use. The police say that this is why the investigation stalled at the very beginning ? no one wanted to tell the police about Mizell and his drug involvement because they thought that it would tarnish his image.
Jason William Mizell lived an extraordinary life. From his beginnings on the streets to being a part of one of the best groups in the 20th century, Mizell lead by example.
Mizell, or Jam Master Jay, was buried at Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale, New York.
Crime fiction, which we might also call ?homicide fiction,? has been popular since the 19th century, with the US and my native Britain dominating the genre. The trend continued even as violent crime rates generally declined and intentionally taking a life became an ever more unusual way for people to break the criminal law. In recent years, alongside invented mysteries and thrillers, we've seen the rise and rise of the true crime genre on streaming services and in audio podcasts. It appears everyone wants to know more about the minds of murderers.
As it happens, this is my day job; I've spent the last 30 years working with violent offenders as a forensic psychiatrist and psychotherapist. I've recently joined forces with dramatist Eileen Horne to describe my experience in The Devil You Know: Stories of Human Cruelty and Compassion (Scribner). Our book is an invitation to come with me into sessions where I meet with people considered the worst among us. With 11 stories about men and women who have either killed or committed other serious crimes like stalking and sex offending, we try to fill the blank space after the Netflix or podcast credits roll, when the judge has passed sentence and the secure doors lock shut. What happens next? Can they be helped to change?
I've been an avid reader of crime fiction throughout my life, which sometimes surprises people who can't help but wonder why I won't leave all that at the office. I tell them that the best detective stories focus on restoring order to chaos, which I find relaxing and reassuring. Over the years, I've noticed that my patients have an interest in crime fiction too, although mainly in the form of dramas they watch together on TV. I remember one therapy group for homicide perpetrators particularly enjoying the American series Dexter, featuring a forensic professional who is secretly a serial killer. I am more ambivalent about viewing TV and films in the crime genre because they often dwell on the suffering of victims in ways I find gratuitous, and I get impatient when perpetrators are depicted as obviously weird, remarkable or preternaturally clever. As better minds than mine have defined it, evil is banal, even ordinary.
I grew up with the British greats of crime fiction who made an art form out of the ordinary, the masters and mistresses of the humdrum homicide. I have my mother to thank for fueling this at an early age; it was our weekly treat to walk down to the Barrington Street library to borrow books, stopping off to get some oysters from the fish and chip shop on the way home. It must have been she who recommended that I try reading Agatha Christie, whose works were among the first I chose. Of her characters, I've always liked Miss Marple best because she embodies the importance of being a good observer of human behavior.
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