The Catherine Roraback Collection of Ericka Huggins Papers is now available for research. A detailed description of the collection can be found online: Catherine Roraback Collection of Ericka Huggins Papers (JWJ MSS 96).

Catherine Roraback (1920-2007), a Connecticut civil rights attorney, was lead defense counsel for Ericka Huggins during her 1971 New Haven murder trial as a Black Panther Party leader. Huggins was tried with Black Panther Party Chairman Bobby Seale for the murder of Alex Rackley. Their trial, October 1970 - May 1971, ended in a mistrial and dismissal of all charges.

The collection consists of papers compiled by Catherine Roraback during Higgins’s New Haven trial, including Huggins’ prison writings, legal files, and other documentation of the trial and Huggins’ imprisonment.

Images: Five images of Ericka Huggins and sketch of Catherine Roraback, Robert Templeton Drawings and sketches related to the trial of Bobby Seale and Ericka Huggins,1971, JWJ MSS 33