Boston Mayor Apologizes to Black Men Wrongly Accused in 1989 Carol Stuart Murder

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu apologized on behalf of the city Wednesday to the two Black men wrongly accused of murdering Carol Stuart in 1989.

Addressing the two men, Alan Swanson and Willie Bennett, Wu said, “I am so sorry for what you endured.”

"I am so sorry for the pain that you have carried for so many years,” the mayor added. “What was done to you was unjust, unfair, racist, and wrong."

Stuart was killed in October 1989 by her husband, Charles, who orchestrated the killing and the hoax surrounding her death. In the aftermath of his pregnant wife’s death, Charles Stuart told police he and his wife were carjacked by a Black gunman, who shot and killed her.

Boston police launched a crackdown in Boston’s Black neighborhoods to search for a nonexistent suspect, eventually arresting Swanson and Bennett, who maintained their innocence. 

Ultimately, Charles Stuart’s hoax fell apart, and in Jan. 1990 he took his own life. 

“We are here today to acknowledge the tremendous pain that the city of Boston inflicted on Black residents throughout our neighborhoods 34 years ago,” Wu said.

Swanson was present for the mayor’s apology, as was the family of Bennett, who was unable to attend.

Wu said their presence was a “gift in the truest sense of the word, in that it has been given to the city, but not earned.”

“We can’t imagine the strength and grace that you bring today and that you have for 34 years,” she said, "and thank you for your faith in our capacity to do better."