Link your TV provider to stream full episodes and live TV. Walter "Johnny D." McMillian (October 27, 1941 - September 11, 2013) was a pulpwood worker from Monroeville, Alabama, who was wrongfully convicted of murder and sentenced to death. An idealistic lawyer (Michael B. Jordan, left) seeks exoneration for an innocent man on death row (Jamie Foxx) in "Just Mercy.". "We've represented children prosecuted as adults," says Stevenson. "The fear was so present.". But after meeting Jordan, Foxx and director Destin Daniel Cretton, he was satisfied they cared. Played by Jamie Foxx, and Herbert Richardson, played by Rob Morgan. "I had to apologise. He arrested and indicted one of Stevensons witnesses for perjury after the witness came forward with exculpatory evidence, then dropped the charges when Stevenson pointed out they were obviously an intimidation tactic. Richardson, a Vietnam War veteran, was found guilty of capital murder and sentenced to death following the killing of an 11-year-old girl, according to the Huffington Post. He was the first Vietnam war veteran to be put to death, and the sixth inmate in the state of Alabama to be executed following the Supreme Courts 1976 decision to reinstate capital punishment, per UPIs report. Well, Im just as smart as that guy, even if I didnt go to Harvard. Here are the most inspirational moments in Just Mercy. A row of prisoners in their cells bang their cups against the. Though heartbreaking at times,it is also filled with stirring moments. The Word file is viewable with any PC or Mac and can be further adjusted if you want to mix questions around and/or add your own headers for things like "Name," "Period," and "Date." The Word file offers unlimited customizing options so that you can teach in the -Graham S. The timeline below shows where the character Herbert Richardson appears in. "Just Mercy" tells the story of Walter McMillian, a wrongfully convicted man who fights a flawed criminal justice system "This was an important story, a moving story and one that we felt could. In the book Just Mercy: A story of Justice and Redemption Bryan Stevenson details his story of his experiences as a lawyer fighting for justice. Date February 18, 2020 " Just Mercy ," the film based on the memoir of the same name by Harvard Law graduate Bryan Stevenson, ends with a sobering statistic: For every nine people executed in this country, one person on death row has been exonerated. We can be inspired by Stevenson, who often worked for years to free a client, spending hundreds of hours on one case. Can we get you stamps to mail your last letter? Just Mercy emphasizes social justice, enumerating the variety of flaws of a criminal justice system blinded by racism and handicapped by poverty. "Each of us is more than the worst thing we've ever done.". Please? You havent been feeling well, and so youre here so you can get better. However, Richardsonclaimed that the girls death was an accident, andthe bomb was not intended to kill anyone only to scare her family. Recalling some of the particularly difficult scenes he had to relive on the big screen, Bryan told Metro.co.uk at the premiere: I remember being forced to strip search and I remember when they executed my client Herbert [Richardson]. Crucially, Tate arrested McMillian in his truck, which gave him a pretext to drive the truck to the police stationTate drove it personallywhich made it possible to have a prisoner who said he knew something about the case see the truck and positively identify it as the one he claimed hed seen outside the cleaners around the time of the shooting, which gave Tate the minimum number of witnesses hed need to charge McMillian with Morrisons murder. Pocket. Herbert is a Vietnam War veteran who was traumatized by the war. "We still have to recognise that if you have a system that treats you better if you're rich and guilty than if you're poor and innocent, that is not a system that can be defended. But at the end of the day, the filmleaves itup to you to decide whether or not he should have gotten the death penalty. Then he really joined the defenses motion to have all charges dropped. This is so sad and troubling to even think about. The other scene being when Herb was to be put to death. The film is based on Bryan Stevenson's bestselling 2014 memoir, Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption. system on the night of his execution, though. As he walks out, the rest of the death row inmates reach out and shake his hand, happy to see him walking to his freedom. The incident actually happened during the reading of the initial guilty verdict, before Stevenson was involved, and Earley and Stevenson dont agree about all the factsStevenson has the courtroom tackle, Earley has Sheriff Tate issuing an arrest warrant for Johnny afterwards and making his mom drive him back to court be bookedbut in both versions, Tate claimed Johnny said something along the lines of Somebodys going to pay for what theyve done to my father., Tate also seems to have been the government official who was most reluctant to accept that McMillian was innocent, even after he was finally released from prison. Jamie Foxx has revealed the exact moment that left him 'fuming' and pushed him to deliver one of the most emotional performances of his career in new drama Just Mercy. He attempted suicide multiple times before landing in a mental hospital, where he fell in love with a nurse. Teacher Editions with classroom activities for all 1699 titles we cover. In the text of Just Mercy, Herbert in his final hours is too isolated to reach . I don't think that's the right perspective to have. In contrast, those who participate directly feel the reality of killing another person, even if they feel powerless to stop it. I'm motivated to help try to tell more stories like this.". Unfortunately, Walter has had many lawyers promise him many things and fail him, so he's uninterested in going down that path again. What right did he have to come lecture me about morals? In the summer 1989, despite a series of setbacks with obtaining space and securing funding. So now this is just completing his artistic senses.. I sat down at the defence counsel's table and when the judge walked out and he saw me sitting there, he got angry. Tate was also responsible for the scene in which McMillians son Johnny is tackled by deputies in the courtroom. He has a dialogue in this scene in which he states that this day is marks the first time that people have asked him what he needs. Whats not in dispute is that he arranged McMillians arrest rather differently than it appears in the film. Detailed quotes explanations with page numbers for every important quote on the site. "More people have said, 'What can I do to help you?' HBO's Saturday night movie this week is Just Mercy, a based-on-a-true-story drama about a young, idealistic lawyer's fight to get an innocent Alabama man off death row in the late 1980s and . Foxx, who won an Oscar for his portrayal of Ray Charles in Ray in 2005, says for him, Just Mercy was personal; he tells the story of how his own father was jailed. PDF downloads of all 1699 LitCharts literature guides, and of every new one we publish. You'll also get updates on new titles we publish and the ability to save highlights and notes. He remembers his grandmother telling him, "You can't understand most of the important things from a distance, Bryan. Just Mercys McMillian corresponds pretty closely to the man depicted in both the 60 Minutes segment and Stevensons memoir, but its perhaps worth noting that Earleys bookis a little harsher on him, alleging thatalthough rumors during the trial that McMillian was a player in the Dixie mafia were nonsensehe really was a small-time marijuana dealer, whod been investigated by both the Alabama Bureau of Investigation and local police, for whatever thats worth. On the night of the execution, Herbert was calm and introduced Stevenson to his weeping wife and family. Part memoir, part exhortation for much-needed reform to the American criminal justice system, Bryan Stevenson's Just Mercy is a heartrending and inspirational call to arms written by the activist lawyer who founded the Equal Justice Initiative, an Alabama-based organization responsible for freeing or reducing the sentences of scores of wrongfully convicted individuals. new video loaded: Just Mercy | Anatomy of a Scene, Hi, my name is Destin Cretton. Top: Walter McMillian and attorney Bryan Stevenson. Film directors walk viewers through one scene of their movies, showing the magic, motives and the mistakes from behind the camera. ", Just Mercy is available to watch on Sky Cinema and NOW TV as part of their programme of shows and films celebrating black talent, culture and history throughout Black History Month, Just Mercy: Sentenced to death for a murder he didn't commit - the true story behind gripping drama, Walter McMillian was sentenced to death after being wrongly convicted of murder in Alabama. Though Myers is hesitant with the sheriff sitting in the room watching him, Bryan steps in between them and asks him point-blank if he lied. A few years later, lawyer Bryan Stevenson (Michael B. Jordan) moves to Alabama to start offering legal services to death row clients. "Once you see it, you can't unsee it. This is a hospital., Theyve got me again, and youve got to help me.. In 1987, McMillian was sentenced to death for the murder of a young white woman in Monroeville, Ala., despite mounting evidence proving his innocence. The footage of seeing real-life Hinton released from prison and reuniting with his family is a powerful moment. Southern Prisoners Defense Committee (SPDC), Voting Rights Protests of 1965 (Selma-to-Montgomery Marches). Warner Bros. A group of women, white, evidently scared, minimise themselves as far into one corner as they can go, until, "Oh!" The morning after his disastrous 60 Minutes interview aired, Chapman told the paper, For them to hold themselves up as a reputable news show is beyond belief and irresponsible., In the movies scene in which Tate arrests McMillian, he taunts him by saying things like, Those rims look like they cost you a pretty pennywhove you been working for?Thats shitty, but in Walter McMillians version of the story, as reported in court filings, Tate said much worse: He said he was going to stop us niggers from fucking these white women himself. Just Mercy is rated PG-13 by the MPAA for thematic content including some racial epithets. Herbert, a Vietnam veteran who lost some of his marbles in the war, isn't trying to escape the crime he committed; quite the contrary, he's drowning in guilt. You'll also get updates on new titles we publish and the ability to save highlights and notes. When McMillian died, the Monroe Journala newspaper whose vitriolic coverage of his trial and its aftermath is well documented in both booksran an obituary that did not mention his trial. Bagwells public airing of his disillusionment and his personal lack of concern for death row inmates contrasts with the willingness of Stevenson and Ansley to inconvenience themselves for their cause. "My students can't get enough of your charts and their results have gone through the roof." As he's led into the room with shaved eyebrows and prison whites, his legs buckle dramatically. Despite his appeals, Bryan is unable to prevent Herbert's execution. He is aided by a white woman whose sense of fairness is outraged by inequities in the cases of men on Alabama's death row. -Graham S. By describing Herberts history of loss, abuse and violence, Stevenson attempts to show Herberts humanity and explain the events that affected his mental health. Mr McMillian was with his family miles away when Ronda Morrison was killed. And it allowed the two actors to really be in it and respond to each other. Find related themes, quotes, symbols, characters, and more. "Sometimes this issue feels so big that individuals feel like, what can I personally do to affect change? The murder remains unsolved to this day, and the people who ruined McMillians life prospered in the aftermath. Can we get you coffee? Just Mercy is a seemingly inspirational tale about defense attorney Bryan Stevenson ( Michael B. Jordan ), who represents death row inmate Walter McMillan ( Jamie Foxx ). Michael B Jordan, who in turn admitted he wanted to make his idol proud. I went over to Herberts wife as she held him tightly, sobbing softly. In August 1988, a black man named Walter McMillian, known as Johnny D, was sentenced to death for the murder of a white teenage girl in Monroeville, Alabama. Instant PDF downloads. The film opens with the introduction of Bryan Stevenson (Jordan), a young law student sent to deliver news to a death row inmate. Definitions and examples of 136 literary terms and devices. Stop reading now if you don't want to know. Herbert is consumed with guilt but is also a very sick man in need of help. "My father, who was an educator for 25 years, they put him in jail for $25 worth of illegal substance," he says. In the movie, the hearing in which Stevenson submits the overwhelming evidence that McMillian was innocent is referred to as Judge Foster, played by Lindsay Ayliffe, looking as much like Jeff Sessions as possible. From the creators of SparkNotes, something better. To capture the performances of this scene, we actually shot with two cameras running simultaneously, with Jamie Foxx in one cell and Rob Morgan in the other which was very helpful for a scene like this, because it was quite loose. The woman's 11-year-old niece, Rena Mae Callins, waskilled when she picked it up. tunefind. He was charged with capital murder in 1977 after placing a pipe bomb on the porchof a veterans hospital nurse who had broken off a relationship with him. NEXT: Netflix's Two Popes: 10 Best Moments From The Biographical Drama. But judging from Stevensons memoir, Larsons performance is true to life. "I don't think we've seen any change really on this presumption of dangerousness and guilt that gets assigned to black and brown people in America," he says. Our, "Sooo much more helpful thanSparkNotes. Jamie had nothing but praise for his co-star Michael B Jordan, who in turn admitted he wanted to make his idol proud. This is relevant in Herbert's case because he had no intent to kill the child. ", "It's a joke," he says, cutting through the laughter from the audience. Guy Hunt also refused to grant clemency for Richardson, according to the Times. You have to get close" (14). Stevenson demonstrates the problem of political motivation in the court system, and illustrates the importance of public education by showing the connections between public education, public views, election cycles and court rulings. McMillians prosecution and exoneration have been the subject of two books: Circumstantial Evidence: Death, Life, and Justice in a Southern Town, a 1995 true crime book about the murder by journalist Pete Earley, and Stevensons memoir, also called Just Mercy, which is structured around the McMillian case but also covers the early years of the Equal Justice Initiative. "Just Mercy" opens in limited release on Christmas Day, and hits theaters everywhere on Jan. 10. Yet the prospect of death now . (including. LitCharts Teacher Editions. He was executed in 1989 by the State of Alabama after being convicted of capital murder in 1978. He really gave that heartless 60 Minutes interview. Stevenson believes that what he sees as the immoral cruelty of capital punishment is just as evident in those scenes. Before his death, he refused to have a last meal, and requested to be blindfolded as he was led to thechamber, according to the outlet. Destin Daniel Cretton shot that scene, but chose. So that put me in the mind space of, I know hes not doing this on purpose, but just the fact that he looks at me that way.. While injustice still exists, what has changed since McMillian's case, says Stevenson, is that more people are aware of it, and working to fight it, whether that be lawyers helping the EJI or filmmakers highlighting real-life stories. The movie is a compelling look at injustices that still exist today and the people who suffer from them. Michael B. 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