Jail: the place of confinement for people accused or convicted of a crime. Imagine being locked in a cell for 24 hours a day, but for a crime one was wrongly accused of committing. Murder on a Sunday Morning is a documentary film by Jean-Xavier de Lestrade that follows Brenton Butler’s criminal case, in which the fifteen-year-old boy was wrongfully accused of committing murder. On May 7, 2000, the African American teenager was accused of robbing and killing an elderly, white tourist, Mary Anne Stevens, in Jacksonville, Florida. Two hours later, the police arrested Brenton Butler, a fifteen-year-old boy, that was walking nearby the scene. The only witness was the deceased woman's husband and he identified Butler as the killer. Butler signed …show more content…
Their lack of attention to detail was revolting, failing to check security footage at Blockbuster, check in with eyewitnesses, talk to neighbors about sounds they heard and events they saw, and speak with the family about their son's whereabouts were some of the simplest things they could have done to credify the charge, but they failed to do so. It’s hard to understand how in the legal system, where justice is supposed to be served, how something so unjust can occur. The public defense attorney went above and beyond the call of duty to prove his case, proving Brenton Butler innocent. The police was given a very brief description of the suspect: a skinny black male, wearing dark denim shorts, and caring a small pistol. They racially profiled The first black man on the street that they saw. They assumed that he murdered Mrs. Stevens, without doing any research. In addition, Mr. Stevens, who stated that he once saw the assailant from a distant, was ultimately coerced by the Jacksonville Police Department to name Brenton Butler as the guilty party. Through an intense police interrogation, Jacksonville Police Department utilized severe tactics, which includes beating Butler up, causing bruises and swelling to the stomach and face, to get Butler to sign a confession that would have him facing life in
However, police should have acknowledged that individuals can make mistakenly identify the wrong person, especially an individual who had just tragically witnessed his wife’s death, and that the positive identification can not be the only evidence used to confirm the identity of a suspect. In addition, a search was never conducted on Butler’s home to see if any evidence was there. Unless my memory fails me, police officers also did not perform a gun residue test on Butler to see if he had recently fired a gun. Regardless, police did not find any physical evidence, such as blood, on Butler’s clothes or body. In fact, there was no forensic investigation of evidence conducted at all. Mary Ann Stephen’s purse was later discovered in a trash can, but it wasn’t until after the acquittal of Brenton Butler that a fingerprint belonging to the real killer was found on her purse. Overall, the ethical issues involved in the Brenton Butler case are astounding. The best solution to resolve those issues is to thoroughly perform job duties with integrity. Investigators had to know that more evidence than just a positive identification made by one, rightly upset individual was not substantial enough to confirm the identity of the
On June 7th 2008, Sarah May Ward was arrested for the murder of Eli Westlake after she ran him over in a motor vehicle in St. Leonards. Prior to the incident the offender had been driving the wrong way down Christine Lane which was a one way street. Whilst this was occurring she was intoxicated, under the influence of marijuana, valium, and ecstasy and was unlicensed to drive. The victim and his brother who were also intoxicated, where walking down the lane and where nearly hit by the offender. This prompted the victim to throw cheese balls at the car and make a few sarcastic remarks regarding her driving ability. After a brief confrontation between the two parties the victim and his brother turned away and proceeded to walk down Lithgow Street. The offender followed the victim into the street and drove into him while he was crossing a driveway.
In the movie My Cousin Vinny, Vinny Gambini is set on a journey to prove his cousin and his friend innocent of a murder case. Bill and Stan are on a road trip to California to the University of California, Los Angeles, where they receive a scholarship to attend the university. On the way there they stop at a convenient store to buy some necessities for the trip. Their hands were full of food and drinks, when Bill put the can of tuna in his jacket because there was no way he couldn’t carry any more food.
On 1997 four men were convicted of the rape and murder of Michelle Basko. The four men were Joe Dick, Daniel Williams, Eric Wilson, and Derek Tice. Detective Robert Ford believed that the four U.S. navy men were all guilty of the crime. One of the victim’s friend claimed that Daniel Williams, was Michelle Basko’s murderer. Based on the information provided by Basko’s friend, Ford suspected that William was guilty. With that, the series of harsh interrogations led by detective Robert Ford began. Detective Ford began his interrogatories with a label that Williams is the suspect. The psychological abuse he used, led Williams to make a false confession. After closing the case, the DNA results did not match the one in the crime scene. Instead of releasing Williams, it was believed that Joe
As I was completing this assignment, I was watching the infamous Netflix documentary entitled Making a Murderer. The documentary follows the story of Steven Avery, who is currently in prison for the death of a woman, Teresa Halbach, in 2005. Steven Avery has been denying any involvement in the murder of Teresa Halbach for the past eleven years. In the middle of the reading, the documentary was exploring and analyzing Steven Avery’s deviant behavior as a young man (Making). As I observed what was being discussed about Steven Avery, I was able to build the connection between how society, and the community from which he came from, perceived Steven Avery and what Kai Erikson discussed in the first couple pages of the book with regards to deviance and its relation with regards to society.
The Murderers Are Among Us, directed by Wolfe Gang Staudte, is the first postwar film. The film takes place in Berlin right after the war. Susan Wallner, a young women who has returned from a concentration camp, goes to her old apartment to find Hans Mertens living there. Hans took up there after returning home from war and finding out his house was destroyed. Hans would not leave, even after Susan returned home. Later on in the film we find out Hans was a former surgeon but can no longer deal with human suffering because of his traumatic experience in war. We find out about this traumatic experience when Ferdinand Bruckner comes into the film. Bruckner, Hans’ former captain, was responsible for killing hundreds
Murder at the Margin is a murder mystery involving various economic concepts. The story takes place in Cinnamon Bay Plantation on the Virgin Island of St. John. It is about Professor Henry Spearman, an economist from Harvard. Spearman organizes an investigation of his own using economic laws to solve the case.
The sentencing of underage criminals has remained a logistical and moral issue in the world for a very long time. The issue is brought to our perspective in the documentary Making a Murderer and the audio podcast Serial. When trying to overcome this issue, we ask ourselves, “When should juveniles receive life sentences?” or “Should young inmates be housed with adults?” or “Was the Supreme Court right to make it illegal to sentence a minor to death?”. There are multiple answers to these questions, and it’s necessary to either take a moral or logical approach to the problem.
The evidence discovered during the investigation suggested to the police that OJ Simpson may have had something to do with this murder and they obtained an arrest warrant. The investigators believed that they “knew” OJ Simpson committed the murders. His lawyers and him were informed of the arrest warrant and agreed to a specified time when OJ would turn himself into authorities. Investigators are later admonished, by the defense, on how they handled the crime scene.
While in jail he had no one to support him or keep him level except for his journal. His parents didn't visit and Kathy O’Brien, his defense attorney, wasn’t believing in Steve ad as only there to do her job. On the contrary, in Murder on a Sunday Monday, Brenton Butler had a huge amount of support from his parents and from his defenders: Patrick McGuiness and Anne Finnell. Similarly, both were treated without respect from people around them. The case came to close for both of the boys after everyone was done after defending their side on the
Crimes in America can be vicious and brutal, often leading to long, draw out trials, but it is only fair if you charge the right man. The only way that it can be fair is if you go by the facts and not the appearance of the accused. Many trials in America have men of color pointed out to be criminals. Many crimes are committed for a reason but many people label it as unknown. People are racist especially against colored people, they believe that white men are innocent but that is not always true. They always turn against the colored people for many crimes that could have been committed by a white man. The novel,Monster and the documentary “Murder On A Sunday Morning” are the same because,both cases have similar charges,both crimes were taken in a public place,and the both consist of racism either by the jury or police.
A red balloon floats from the boy’s grasp, as tears run down his face, all of the boys around him hit him and pull at his things. All except one, who stands in the back, Jon Huntman, He doesn’t understand why his childish need for torture and fun have subsided, he just felt pity for the boy. Years then past, his feelings of love and regret grew stronger each year. He no longer wanted pain for others, he had a good job and a wife, and he felt bad for past deeds and wanted to correct his wrongdoings. One day in his late 30’s he went to the boy’s house whom he had stood and watch get bullied, and hung a red balloon on his door. Growing mentally and becoming a better person is the best thing about growing up, as Jon did.
In both of Edgar Allan Poe’s writings, “The Murders at the Rue Morgue” and “The Tell Tale Heart” as the reader I am able to identify possible roles of crime and comfort in each piece. As we discussed in lecture, crime can be breaking the law, an act against another that is hurtful and against human morals, punishable by law, victimizing and much more. In each reading we find our self deeply immersed in the story this gives me the reader a clearer understanding into each tragedy by having the opportunity to clearly define the role of crime and comfort in each reading.
Michael Sanders, a Professor at Harvard University, gave a lecture titled “Justice: What’s The Right Thing To Do? The Moral Side of Murder” to nearly a thousand student’s in attendance. The lecture touched on two contrasting philosophies of morality. The first philosophy of morality discussed in the lecture is called Consequentialism. This is the view that "the consequences of one 's conduct are the ultimate basis for any judgment about the rightness or wrongness of that conduct.” (Consequentialism) This type of moral thinking became known as utilitarianism and was formulated by Jeremy Bentham who basically argues that the most moral thing to do is to bring the greatest amount of happiness to the greatest number of people possible.
Judith Wright's poem `The Killer' explores the relationship between Humans and Nature, and provides an insight into the primitive instincts which characterize both the speaker and the subject. These aspects of the poem find expression in the irony of the title and are also underlined by the various technical devices employed by the poet.