John Dunphy recalls his coverage of 1970 Kent State shootings

Former BJ reporter John Dunphy and brother Steve Dunphy were reunited Sunday, May 5 in Lakewood, California. But it was May 4 that was on John’s mind the most.

On his Facebook page, John recalls his days of covering the aftermath of the May 4, 1970 Ohio National Guard shooting that killed four and wounded nine Kent State students:

John Dunphy (left), brother Steve Dunphy

“May 4 is the 43rd anniversary of the Kent State shootings. I was assigned to Kent in October 1970 a few months after the shooting for the Akron Beacon Journal. I spent more than 7 years full-time covering all the investigations and trials. Hard to believe it's been that long.”

John performed his task under the vigilant and passionate whip of the late Pat Englehart, who was switched from his State Desk Editor role to direct the BJ’s Kent State coverage. One result was a Pulitzer Prize for the BJ.

Janis Froelich, another former BJ reporter, added on John’s Facebook page:

“You really were all over that story -- and the newspaper won a Pulitzer although tears were all over that prize.”

Jeff Sallot, on the faculty of the Carleton University School of Journalism and Communication after a long career at the Toronto Globe and Mail,  and the late Terry Oblander also had significant roles in the BJ’s coverage.

So did the late Ray Redmond. The Portage County district attorney trusted the quiet-spoken Ray so much that he walked out of the room, leaving the FBI report critical of the Ohio National Guard on his desk for Ray to read and take notes which he turned over to Englehart and his minions to explode onto the media world.

Ray was the Portage County BJ bureau chief, but he came up with the hottest scoop of the coverage because of the way he conducted himself with Portage County officials throughout his BJ career.

Dunphy is dealing with Stage 3 esophageal cancer in a remarkably upbeat and humorous way.