Joseph P. Cox was a member of a gang led by Clarence Boddicker.
Biography[]
Murder of Alex Murphy[]
Following a robbery committed by the gang, Officers Alex Murphy and Anne Lewis gave chase to them on Industrial Way. They exchanged fire until the gang managed to escape to a nearby steel mill.[1]
As he relieved himself at the mill, he was held up by Officer Lewis. He asked her if he could zip up his pants, distracting her so that he could lash out, first knocking her pistol out of her hand, then punching her with the other hand in the face, knocking her off a platform and onto scrap metal below. Rather than go down and finish her off, Joe merely pointed and laughed.[1]
Cox joined the gang as Clarence beat Murphy for information about his partner's whereabouts. Joe casually swaggered in and announced that she had been taken care of. With the rest of the gang, he mutilated and tortured Murphy with his shotgun until it ran dry of ammo. Cox then coldly taunted Murphy after the ordeal, sarcastically asking in a falsetto voice "Does it hurt? Does it hurt?", then laughing. Clarence then shot Murphy in the head and the gang left, Joe bidding farewell to Murphy with "Goodnight, sweet prince!"[1]
Shootout at Sal's[]
Months later, at Sal's drug factory, Joe and Steve Minh were covering Clarence as they forced business deals with Sal. As the deal was completed, cyborg police officer RoboCop smashed his way into the factory, instigating a firefight. Joe fought alongside Steve and Clarence, until Steve was killed and reflexively hit Cox's face with his shotgun, knocking him off the gantry and into a pile of cardboard boxes, saving him from a certain death. Cox was subsequently arrested.[1]
Showdown with RoboCop[]
Cox was released from prison by Dick Jones upon request by Clarence in order to destroy RoboCop. The group reunited, Joe driving a brand new 6000 SUX. However, Clarence decided to test out a Cobra Assault Cannon on Joe's car, obliterating it, despite Joe's pleads for restraint. After seizing Emil's Cobra Cannon, he joined his fellow gangster in cheerfully blasting storefronts, parked cars and a fire hydrant until Clarence was alerted to RoboCop's presence at the steel mill and the gang moved out.[1]
Joe Cox meets his demise.
At the mill, RoboCop ambushed the gang, shooting Cox three times, causing him to collapse to the ground and die soon after. Intent on escaping and regrouping to battle the cyborg, the rest of the gang simply left Cox' body lying where he'd fell.[1]
Behind the scenes[]
Cox is played by actor Jesse Goins. The line "Goodnight, sweet prince!" is taken from the William Shakespeare tragedy, Hamlet, act V, scene ii.
In the novelization, Joe's last name is instead Nelson.
Joe is the only African-American member of Clarence's gang.