On a summer afternoon in Philadelphia, on August 29, 1975, Arthur Wilson, a 70-year-old married man, was at his place of business, the Robinson Clothing Store, located at 2841 Girard Avenue. It was a day that would tragically end in violence, forever altering the lives of those present. Two individuals entered the shop, setting in motion a chain of events that would culminate in Wilson's untimely death.
One of the men, later identified as Curtis L. Anthony, approached the counter and requested a shirt. As he was being attended to, he brandished what was described as a starter pistol and announced a holdup. His accomplice, Allan Smith, also produced a gun, escalating the threat within the small store. In a moment of self-defense, Arthur Wilson retrieved his own. 25 caliber automatic and fired a single shot at Smith. The response was swift and deadly; Smith fired four shots in return, one of which struck Wilson in the chest, inflicting a fatal wound.
The investigation into the murder of Arthur Wilson led to the swift apprehension of one of the suspects. On September 4, 1975, just days after the shooting, Curtis L. Anthony was arrested. During questioning, he provided a statement to the authorities, admitting his involvement in the robbery and implicating Allan Smith as the one who shot and killed the shop owner. Further solidifying the case against him, fingerprints found on a cellophane wrapper from the shirt he had requested were positively matched to Anthony.
On March 1, 1976, Curtis L. Anthony appeared in court and pleaded guilty to third-degree murder and robbery for his role in the death of Arthur Wilson. He was subsequently sentenced on July 7, 1976, to a term of ten to twenty years for the murder charge, with a concurrent sentence of two and a half to five years for the robbery. Throughout the legal proceedings, an eyewitness, who was a partner of the victim, was prepared to testify about the events that transpired in the clothing store on that fateful August day.
