As decided 19 months ago, golden-age rapper Cool C, is set to be executed tomorrow, Jan. 8. The Philadelphia-based rapper — whose real name is Christopher Roney — was convicted of murder in the first degree for the shooting of Police Officer Lauretha Vaird, which happened in 1996.
The shooting occurred during an attempt Cool C made with two other men, including his rapping partner Warren "Smooth B" McGlone, to rob a Philadelphia PNC Bank branch. Roney, who at the time was 26, fired his weapon as soon as Vaird walked through the bank's front doors. The incident marked the first occurrence in the city's history that an officer was killed responding to a call.
The rapper has spent the last 18 years in prison and will face execution by way of lethal injection tomorrow. As reported, Cool C was originally scheduled to be executed March 9, 2006, but he was granted a delay by the governor of Pennsylvania at the time.
Cool C gained notoriety in the rap scene as part of the 1980s group C.E.B. He released his debut solo album I Gotta Habit in 1989, and the album also saw a feature that hit the Billboard charts, "The Glamorous Life." The C.E.B. crew — which stands for Countin' Endless Bank — released their self-titled debut in 1993.
It was reported that the court sought the death penalty for all three rappers involved in the incident, but only Cool C received the sentence. To this day, it is reported that Cool C and his mother maintain his innocence, claiming the two were at home eating a meal during the time of the robbery, but surveillance footage and forensic evidence did not support that claim. Additionally, three witnesses also testified that the rapper being was at the scene.
While Cool C's career was short lived due to his conviction, during the time of his arrest he was gaining notoriety in Philadelphia during a time where a large majority of hip-hop was being produced in New York City.
