Blacks Roam N. J. Town After Violence Over Killing of Youth

Street violence over the fatal shooting of a black teen-ager by a white policeman strained racial relations Thursday in this tightly knit suburb, which has prided itself on racial harmony for decades.

Teen-agers, mostly blacks, roamed city streets after a night of smashing windows and overturning cars. The Wednesday night violence broke out after a peaceful candlelight protest over Tuesday’s death of 15-year-old Phillip Pannell of River Edge.

The police officer was responding to an anonymous telephone tip that a teen-ager had drawn a gun on another youth. Police told the county prosecutor that a gun was found on the youth’s body, a contention that some of Pannell’s friends denied.

The crowd of about 1,000 protesters called for a special prosecutor to investigate the shooting.

Gov. James J. Florio asked for calm but said he saw no reason to appoint a special prosecutor because the county prosecutor is a deputy attorney general. Florio said he would not put the National Guard on alert.

“I am being kept informed of events there, and I will await further investigation before determining what other action by state officials may be required,” he said at a news conference in Trenton.

City Police Chief Bryan Burke held a news conference outside police headquarters and warned against further violence.

“It’s stopped as far as I’m concerned,” Burke said. “We’re not going to tolerate any more unlawfulness. There will be arrests.”

The chief promised that a large contingent of local, county and state police officers will remain in the New York City suburb for about a week.

He refused to estimate property damage from Wednesday night’s violence but said six police cars were destroyed. Many store windows were shattered.