Introducing Rorschach: Murder at City Hall

Rorschach: Murder at City Hall trailer is a story of double lives and fatal ambition that results in the murder of City Councilman James E. Davis by his political opponent, Niel Askew. And the battle that still rages over what really motivated this shocking crime in the first place.
In the 20 years since these events took place, a lot has changed. In 2003, there was a desire to tell a simple story with a clear hero and a villain — it served the interest of the family, the political establishment, and the police. This version of the story glossed over the complexities of both men, of their relationship and of the nature of the crime itself. Lost in this story is the messier truth. Today, we’re ready to explore the moral grey areas, to center stories around people of color, and grapple with everything from mental health and gun violence, to sexuality in public life. In revisiting this story in 2025, we can reclaim the humanity of both Niel Askew and James E. Davis, and elevate this story above the tabloid version of its original telling.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:04):
Shots five city walling.

Speaker 2 (00:09):
A silver forty caliber handgun was recovered at the scene.

Speaker 1 (00:13):
From iHeart Podcasts and Best Case Studios, this is worshak
murder at city Hall? How did this have that? But
at city Hall? Will somebody tell me that Jeffery who
wasn't a coincidence?

Speaker 2 (00:24):
Jeffery who did it? There were times when I thought
that he was unstable, and there were times when I
got maybe he shouldn't carry a gun.

Speaker 1 (00:37):
July two thousand and three, the councilman James E. Davis
arrives at New York City Hall. We walked through the
metal detector, but I said, how you doing. Counselman David
with him as a guest, and when he introduced him
to me, I coiled back. I said, WHOA. I didn't
know who he was. I just got a vibe, like
I said, like James Davis. This man is black, he's handsome,

(00:59):
and he's wearing a suit. And I looked at him,
he looked at me, and I felt like he was
a little nervous. Both men were carrying concealed weapons, and
in less than thirty minutes, both of them will be dead.
A shocking public murder told by the people who were there.

(01:20):
I screamed, get down, get down. Those are shots, those
are shots, Get down. And I saw a silver gun
in the shooter's hand. My thought is up there with
with my thought, I can't see her. The possible into
the train station. A charismatic politician. You could almost smell

(01:43):
the ambition. You knew this guy wanted to be something.
You know, he just bent the rules all the time.
Man and an outsider with the secret. He alleged he
was a victim of blackdown. This is one of the
most dramatic events that really ever happened in New York
City pol. Nothing like this had ever happened before.

Speaker 2 (02:02):
This young man forty one years old being assassinated inside
the building, and they don't even speak of it. This
is not just killing somebody because you want this seat.

Speaker 1 (02:10):
That may or may not have been political, that may
have been about sex. I'm Jamal Jordan and this is
voreshack yop. Somebody gotta tell this James E. Davis story.
The fullness of that story has not been told. Listen
to Worshak Murder at City Hall starting on March twenty
fifth on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you

(02:31):
get your podcasts