In August of 1990, Yusef Salaam, then 15 years old, told the judge at his sentencing hearing that he looked at “this legal lynching as a test by my God Allah.” On Wednesday, nearly 23 years later, Salaam — an exonerated man, poet, author, and activist — has been declared the winner of a New York City Council primary in his home district of Harlem.
Salaam was one of the Central Park Five, a group of teens wrongfully convicted for the rape and assault of a jogger in New York City’s Central Park in...
Salaam was one of the Central Park Five, a group of teens wrongfully convicted for the rape and assault of a jogger in New York City’s Central Park in...
- 7/5/2023
- by Nikki McCann Ramirez
- Rollingstone.com
Steven Lopez, a lesser-known co-defendant of the Central Park Five, had his related robbery conviction overturned Monday, July 25, The New York Times reports.
Lopez was 15 when he and the rest of the Central Park Five were arrested and charged with raping a white woman jogging through Central Park. While the Central Park Five — all teenagers who were either Black or Hispanic — were infamously convicted based on false confessions obtained by police, Lopez struck a deal with prosecutors, avoiding the rape charge, and instead pleading guilty to robbing a male jogger.
Lopez was 15 when he and the rest of the Central Park Five were arrested and charged with raping a white woman jogging through Central Park. While the Central Park Five — all teenagers who were either Black or Hispanic — were infamously convicted based on false confessions obtained by police, Lopez struck a deal with prosecutors, avoiding the rape charge, and instead pleading guilty to robbing a male jogger.
- 7/25/2022
- by Jon Blistein
- Rollingstone.com
Exclusive: One lawsuit against the Emmy- and Peabody Award-nominated When They See Us miniseries has already been tossed out of court. Now, Netflix and Ava DuVernay are aiming to get the defamation action by ex-Central Park Five prosecutor Linda Fairstein dismissed too.
“Plaintiff’s claims fail under the First Amendment as a matter of law,” say the three-pronged filings Monday by the Oscar-nominated director, the streamer and co-defendant Wtsu producer/writer Attica Locke.
“Material falsity is essential to any defamation claim and is an element Plaintiff must establish,” says the motion to dismiss put in the federal court docket today. It comes in response to ex-Assistant District Attorney for New York County Fairstein’s wide spread damages and apology-seeking initial complaint of March 18.
“Here, the Series is an artistic dramatization of controversial and contested historical events. Plaintiff’s complaint that the Series’ portrayal of her is “false” because it ‘depict...
“Plaintiff’s claims fail under the First Amendment as a matter of law,” say the three-pronged filings Monday by the Oscar-nominated director, the streamer and co-defendant Wtsu producer/writer Attica Locke.
“Material falsity is essential to any defamation claim and is an element Plaintiff must establish,” says the motion to dismiss put in the federal court docket today. It comes in response to ex-Assistant District Attorney for New York County Fairstein’s wide spread damages and apology-seeking initial complaint of March 18.
“Here, the Series is an artistic dramatization of controversial and contested historical events. Plaintiff’s complaint that the Series’ portrayal of her is “false” because it ‘depict...
- 5/19/2020
- by Dominic Patten
- Deadline Film + TV
Former prosecutor Linda Fairstein took aim at Netflix and Ava DuVernay Wednesday when she filed a lawsuit against the streaming service, director and DuVerney’s co-writer Attica Locke claiming that their miniseries, When They See Us, defamed her.
The four-part series, which premiered on Netflix in May of 2019, “portrays Ms. Fairstein in a false and defamatory matter in nearly every scene in the three episodes in which her character appears,” according to a statement from her attorney, Andrew Miltenberg.
When They See Us tells the tale of the so-called Central Park Five,...
The four-part series, which premiered on Netflix in May of 2019, “portrays Ms. Fairstein in a false and defamatory matter in nearly every scene in the three episodes in which her character appears,” according to a statement from her attorney, Andrew Miltenberg.
When They See Us tells the tale of the so-called Central Park Five,...
- 3/18/2020
- by Brenna Ehrlich
- Rollingstone.com
Almost a year after the Emmy winning When They See Us launched on Netflix, the streamer and director Ava DuVernay have been sued by former Central Park Five prosecutor Linda Fairstein for defamation.
DuVernay may be radio silent today on this, Netflix ain’t having any of it.
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“Linda Fairstein’s frivolous lawsuit is without merit,” a spokesperson for the streamer said Wednesday morning after the ex-Assistant District Attorney for New York County filed her damages and more seeking suit in federal court in Florida. “We intend to vigorously defend When They See Us and Ava DuVernay and Attica Locke, the incredible team behind the series,” Netflix added.
In language reminiscent of a WSJ op-ed she wrote back in June 2019, Fairstein says that...
DuVernay may be radio silent today on this, Netflix ain’t having any of it.
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“Linda Fairstein’s frivolous lawsuit is without merit,” a spokesperson for the streamer said Wednesday morning after the ex-Assistant District Attorney for New York County filed her damages and more seeking suit in federal court in Florida. “We intend to vigorously defend When They See Us and Ava DuVernay and Attica Locke, the incredible team behind the series,” Netflix added.
In language reminiscent of a WSJ op-ed she wrote back in June 2019, Fairstein says that...
- 3/18/2020
- by Dominic Patten
- Deadline Film + TV
Former New York City Assistant District Attorney Linda Fairstein found her record under question after Felicity Huffman portrayed her in When They See Us, the Ava DuVernay-directed Netflix series about the Central Park Five. Her decades of work in the sex crimes unit were the inspiration for Law & Order: Svu, but in the early Nineties she was also partly responsible for sending the Central Park Five — a group of black and Latino teens — to prison for a rape that, it turned out, they did not commit.
The Five were...
The Five were...
- 11/14/2019
- by Brenna Ehrlich
- Rollingstone.com
The Exonerated Five, whose lives were depicted in Ava DuVernay's powerful Netflix miniseries, When They See Us, graced the Microsoft Theater at the 2019 Emmys. The series entered the Emmys ring this year with a breathtaking 10 nominations, including ones in the limited series and lead actor categories. In the latter section, Jharrel Jerome, who plays Korey Wise, would pick up a win, ending his speech by paying homage to the men whose stories of resilience became the show's foundation.
In 1989, a media blitz dubbed five Black and Latino teenage boys - Wise, Raymond Santana, Kevin Richardson, Antron McCray, and Yusef Salaam - the "Central Park Five," a label that would become entrenched with a history of injustice and racism. In April 1989, a young woman named Trisha Meili was brutally raped and beaten while jogging in Central Park one night. Using intimidation tactics, the police cornered the teenagers into confessing that...
In 1989, a media blitz dubbed five Black and Latino teenage boys - Wise, Raymond Santana, Kevin Richardson, Antron McCray, and Yusef Salaam - the "Central Park Five," a label that would become entrenched with a history of injustice and racism. In April 1989, a young woman named Trisha Meili was brutally raped and beaten while jogging in Central Park one night. Using intimidation tactics, the police cornered the teenagers into confessing that...
- 9/23/2019
- by Stacey Nguyen
- Popsugar.com
Age is just a number indeed. With his victory for Best Limited Series/TV Movie Actor for “When They See Us” at Sunday’s Primetime Emmy Awards, Jharrel Jerome is now the first person in his 20s to win the category and is the category’s second youngest winner ever.
The 21-year-old is only eclipsed by Anthony Murphy, who was just 17 when he prevailed for “Tom Brown’s Schooldays” in 1973, which was also his first and only acting role. Younger performers historically haven’t fared well in this category, which was first awarded in 1955; veterans and middle-aged men have been the primary recipients. Only 12 men in their 30s have won — including the past two years for Riz Ahmed (“The Night Of”) and Darren Criss (“The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story”) — and twentysomethings are rarely even nominated.
See 2019 Emmys: Full list of winners in all 27 categories
Jerome — who was...
The 21-year-old is only eclipsed by Anthony Murphy, who was just 17 when he prevailed for “Tom Brown’s Schooldays” in 1973, which was also his first and only acting role. Younger performers historically haven’t fared well in this category, which was first awarded in 1955; veterans and middle-aged men have been the primary recipients. Only 12 men in their 30s have won — including the past two years for Riz Ahmed (“The Night Of”) and Darren Criss (“The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story”) — and twentysomethings are rarely even nominated.
See 2019 Emmys: Full list of winners in all 27 categories
Jerome — who was...
- 9/23/2019
- by Joyce Eng
- Gold Derby
Exclusive: Tamara Taylor and Reece Noi are set to topline the indie feature drama Marzipan from Divide/Conquer. Filming is set to begin this month in Los Angeles.
Written and directed by Adam Christian Clark, Marzipan tells the story of a washed-up alcoholic intelligence officer (Taylor) who is given the chance for one last mission: seducing an asset connected to the Saudi Royal Family (Noi). But when she finds someone as lonely and beaten down as her, the two form a unique bond and plot a way out of the perils of their lives.
In addition to her 11 seasons on Fox’s popular drama Bones and her feature debut in Tyler Perry’s Diary of a Mad Black Woman, Taylor recently appeared in Netflix’s Altered Carbon. She can be seen next as the lead in Netflix’s October Faction,...
Written and directed by Adam Christian Clark, Marzipan tells the story of a washed-up alcoholic intelligence officer (Taylor) who is given the chance for one last mission: seducing an asset connected to the Saudi Royal Family (Noi). But when she finds someone as lonely and beaten down as her, the two form a unique bond and plot a way out of the perils of their lives.
In addition to her 11 seasons on Fox’s popular drama Bones and her feature debut in Tyler Perry’s Diary of a Mad Black Woman, Taylor recently appeared in Netflix’s Altered Carbon. She can be seen next as the lead in Netflix’s October Faction,...
- 8/6/2019
- by Dino-Ray Ramos
- Deadline Film + TV
Jharrel Jerome did the hard part. Now the 21-year-old “When They See Us” star can make history as the first man in his 20s and the second youngest overall to take home the Best Limited Series/TV Movie Actor Emmy.
First awarded in 1955, Best Limited Series/TV Movie Actor, which has underdone various name changes, has traditionally honored middle-aged men and veterans. The youngest champ was Anthony Murphy, who was just a wee lad of 17 when he prevailed for “Tom Brown’s Schooldays” in 1973, which was also his first and only acting role. Actors in their 20s have completely struck out in this category and only 12 men in their 30s have won.
See 2019 Emmy nominations: Here’s the complete list of nominees
In fact, twentysomethings are rarely even nominated here. Jerome is the first twentysomething nominee since Jonathan Rhys Meyers, who was 12 days shy of his 28th birthday when he...
First awarded in 1955, Best Limited Series/TV Movie Actor, which has underdone various name changes, has traditionally honored middle-aged men and veterans. The youngest champ was Anthony Murphy, who was just a wee lad of 17 when he prevailed for “Tom Brown’s Schooldays” in 1973, which was also his first and only acting role. Actors in their 20s have completely struck out in this category and only 12 men in their 30s have won.
See 2019 Emmy nominations: Here’s the complete list of nominees
In fact, twentysomethings are rarely even nominated here. Jerome is the first twentysomething nominee since Jonathan Rhys Meyers, who was 12 days shy of his 28th birthday when he...
- 7/16/2019
- by Joyce Eng
- Gold Derby
Last year, Darren Criss became the second youngest Emmy winner in the Best Limited Series/TV Movie Actor category when the then-31-year-old took home the award for “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story.” But he may get knocked back to third youngest this year. “When They See Us” star Jharrel Jerome is 21 and would be the first twentysomething to win that category.
First awarded in 1955, Best Limited Series/TV Movie Actor, which has underdone various name changes over the years, has long favored middle-aged men and seasoned thespians. Anthony Murphy holds the record as the category’s youngest winner, just 17 when he prevailed for “Tom Brown’s Schooldays” in 1973, which was also his first and only acting role. Actors in their 20s have completely struck out here and only 12 men in their 30s have won.
Three of those thirtysomething champs triumphed in the last five years: Criss,...
First awarded in 1955, Best Limited Series/TV Movie Actor, which has underdone various name changes over the years, has long favored middle-aged men and seasoned thespians. Anthony Murphy holds the record as the category’s youngest winner, just 17 when he prevailed for “Tom Brown’s Schooldays” in 1973, which was also his first and only acting role. Actors in their 20s have completely struck out here and only 12 men in their 30s have won.
Three of those thirtysomething champs triumphed in the last five years: Criss,...
- 7/1/2019
- by Joyce Eng
- Gold Derby
The NYPD detective who made the first arrests in the case that was made into the Netflix series When They See Us is claiming the film is inflammatory and full of lies.
Eric Reynolds arrested Raymond Santana and Kevin Richardson in the notorious Central Park Five case. He told the Daily Mail that the film is riddled with inaccurate information.
Reynolds contends that the Central Park Five were not innocent bystanders, but were part of a pack of youths who went “wilding” in the park in April 1989. The night resulted in jogger Trisha Meili being raped and beaten. Reynolds also took issue with the film’s portrayal of the teenage youth being beaten during their arrest.
“Please, someone, show me the pictures of them,” Reynolds said to the Daily Mail. “Show me the injuries, show me the black eyes, show me the swollen faces, because every single one of them...
Eric Reynolds arrested Raymond Santana and Kevin Richardson in the notorious Central Park Five case. He told the Daily Mail that the film is riddled with inaccurate information.
Reynolds contends that the Central Park Five were not innocent bystanders, but were part of a pack of youths who went “wilding” in the park in April 1989. The night resulted in jogger Trisha Meili being raped and beaten. Reynolds also took issue with the film’s portrayal of the teenage youth being beaten during their arrest.
“Please, someone, show me the pictures of them,” Reynolds said to the Daily Mail. “Show me the injuries, show me the black eyes, show me the swollen faces, because every single one of them...
- 6/29/2019
- by Bruce Haring
- Deadline Film + TV
Netflix already said that When They See Us was one of the most popular series on the streaming platform. Now the numbers are out, showing more than 23 million accounts worldwide have watched the four-part drama about the so-called Central Park Five.
On Tuesday, Ava DuVernay, who produced, directed and co-wrote the miniseries, took to Twitter to share the viewership numbers.
“Imagine believing the world doesn’t care about real stories of black people. It always made me sad,” she wrote. “So when Netflix just shared with me that 23M+ accounts worldwide have watched #WhenTheySeeUs, I cried. Our stories matter and can move across the globe. A new truth for a new day.”
Imagine believing the world doesn’t care about real stories of black people. It always made me sad. So when Netflix just shared with me that 23M+ accounts worldwide have watched #WhenTheySeeUs, I cried. Our stories matter and can move across the globe.
On Tuesday, Ava DuVernay, who produced, directed and co-wrote the miniseries, took to Twitter to share the viewership numbers.
“Imagine believing the world doesn’t care about real stories of black people. It always made me sad,” she wrote. “So when Netflix just shared with me that 23M+ accounts worldwide have watched #WhenTheySeeUs, I cried. Our stories matter and can move across the globe. A new truth for a new day.”
Imagine believing the world doesn’t care about real stories of black people. It always made me sad. So when Netflix just shared with me that 23M+ accounts worldwide have watched #WhenTheySeeUs, I cried. Our stories matter and can move across the globe.
- 6/26/2019
- by Anita Bennett
- Deadline Film + TV
Image Source: Getty / Roy Rochlin
Prior to Disney's A Wrinkle in Time, Ava DuVernay shifted conversations around racial justice with films like 13 and Selma. When They See Us, her latest project now available to stream on Netflix, revisits the harrowing story of the Central Park Five in a five-part limited series. The details of the real case are ghastly, marking a grave miscarriage of justice and revealing how the deep legacy of racism plagued America's media and legal system in the late '80s.
While out on a jog the evening of April 19, 1989, a 28-year-old white woman named Trisha Meili was brutally assaulted and raped at Central Park. Her body was found in a ravine, covered in grime and blood. She spent 12 days in a coma, suffering from severe hypothermia and memory loss. Though medical professionals believed that she would die, Meili woke up. The trauma affected her memory,...
Prior to Disney's A Wrinkle in Time, Ava DuVernay shifted conversations around racial justice with films like 13 and Selma. When They See Us, her latest project now available to stream on Netflix, revisits the harrowing story of the Central Park Five in a five-part limited series. The details of the real case are ghastly, marking a grave miscarriage of justice and revealing how the deep legacy of racism plagued America's media and legal system in the late '80s.
While out on a jog the evening of April 19, 1989, a 28-year-old white woman named Trisha Meili was brutally assaulted and raped at Central Park. Her body was found in a ravine, covered in grime and blood. She spent 12 days in a coma, suffering from severe hypothermia and memory loss. Though medical professionals believed that she would die, Meili woke up. The trauma affected her memory,...
- 6/22/2019
- by Stacey Nguyen
- Popsugar.com
Elizabeth Lederer, the prosecutor during the Central Park 5 rape case, has resigned as a part-time lecturer at Columbia Law School, citing the backlash she has received from the Netflix series “When They See Us.”
Lederer, who is portrayed by Vera Farmiga in the Ava DuVernay biographical drama, told the law school on Wednesday she would not seek reappointment, according to a note from Dean Gillian Lester sent to students and obtained by TheWrap.
Lederer, who is portrayed by Vera Farmiga in the Ava DuVernay biographical drama, told the law school on Wednesday she would not seek reappointment, according to a note from Dean Gillian Lester sent to students and obtained by TheWrap.
- 6/13/2019
- by Brian Welk
- The Wrap
Just days into the initial round of Emmy voting, When They See Us has gotten a big boost from the streaming service that the Ava DuVernay directed limited series is on and from real world outrage over the prosecutors who were hellbent on putting the Central Park 5 behind bars for the brutal sexual assault of a NYC jogger in 1989.
Offering no actual stats or date, Netflix today sent up a very big flare for the widely acclaimed four-parter that is almost guaranteed to be a big contender for this year’s TV Academy ceremony. When asked to elaborate, the Reed Hastings-run streamer had nothing but a “no” to offer on questions of context, clarification, or hard numbers over its well-guarded claims:
When They See Us has been the most-watched series on Netflix in the Us every day since it premiered on May 31 pic.twitter.com/jS8IXIh03g
— Netflix...
Offering no actual stats or date, Netflix today sent up a very big flare for the widely acclaimed four-parter that is almost guaranteed to be a big contender for this year’s TV Academy ceremony. When asked to elaborate, the Reed Hastings-run streamer had nothing but a “no” to offer on questions of context, clarification, or hard numbers over its well-guarded claims:
When They See Us has been the most-watched series on Netflix in the Us every day since it premiered on May 31 pic.twitter.com/jS8IXIh03g
— Netflix...
- 6/13/2019
- by Dominic Patten
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Linda Fairstein has been dropped by her publisher, and now the ex-Manhattan Deputy District Attorney who spurred the prosecution of the eventually exonerated Central Park Five has been shown the door by her Hollywood literary agency ICM Partners over Netflix’s When They See Us.
This comes as Fairstein lashed out late last night in the Wall Street Journal at Ava DuVernay and Netflix’s acclaimed series as an “outright fabrication” for its depiction of the shameful series of judicial events three decades ago and Fairstein’s pivotal role in them.
ICM has cut ties with Fairstein after several years, I’ve learned. The agency represented the lawyer in her post-prosecution career as the bestselling author of over a dozen mystery novels featuring fictional Manhattan Deputy D.A. Alexandra Cooper. The 1996 offering Final Jeopardy was adopted into a TV movie for ABC in 2001 starring Dana Delany as Cooper.
ICM...
This comes as Fairstein lashed out late last night in the Wall Street Journal at Ava DuVernay and Netflix’s acclaimed series as an “outright fabrication” for its depiction of the shameful series of judicial events three decades ago and Fairstein’s pivotal role in them.
ICM has cut ties with Fairstein after several years, I’ve learned. The agency represented the lawyer in her post-prosecution career as the bestselling author of over a dozen mystery novels featuring fictional Manhattan Deputy D.A. Alexandra Cooper. The 1996 offering Final Jeopardy was adopted into a TV movie for ABC in 2001 starring Dana Delany as Cooper.
ICM...
- 6/11/2019
- by Dominic Patten
- Deadline Film + TV
Former New York City prosecutor Linda Fairstein, who oversaw the investigation and wrongful conviction of the Central Park Five, said on Monday that filmmaker Ava DuVernay’s Netflix series about the ordeal is “so full of distortions and falsehoods as to be an outright fabrication.”
DuVernay’s “When They See Us,” which premiered May 31, depicts the events leading to the arrest and wrongful convictions of Korey Wise, Antron McCray, Yosef Salaam, Kevin Richardson and Raymond Santana for the rape of a woman in central park. Fairstein, portrayed by Felicity Huffman in the series, has been subject to intense criticism and professional backlash since the series premiered. Most recently, she was dropped by her publisher, Dutton.
In an op-ed published by the Wall Street Journal, Fairstein says the miniseries “wrongly portrays them as totally innocent,” and that it defamed her. “The facts of the original case are documented in a 117-page...
DuVernay’s “When They See Us,” which premiered May 31, depicts the events leading to the arrest and wrongful convictions of Korey Wise, Antron McCray, Yosef Salaam, Kevin Richardson and Raymond Santana for the rape of a woman in central park. Fairstein, portrayed by Felicity Huffman in the series, has been subject to intense criticism and professional backlash since the series premiered. Most recently, she was dropped by her publisher, Dutton.
In an op-ed published by the Wall Street Journal, Fairstein says the miniseries “wrongly portrays them as totally innocent,” and that it defamed her. “The facts of the original case are documented in a 117-page...
- 6/11/2019
- by Ross A. Lincoln
- The Wrap
The Central Park Five, the subjects of Ava DuVernay’s Netflix film “When They See Us,” received a newly discovered $3.9 million settlement from the New York State Court of Claims in 2016 in addition to the $41 million received in 2014, according to the New York Daily News.
The new DuVernay film, which was released on May 31, covers the arrest and conviction of five teenagers accused of sexually assaulting a jogger in Central Park 30 years ago, leading to them serving between six and 13 years in prison. The men were exonerated in 2002 when DNA evidence and a confession from convicted rapist Matias Reyes revealed the true perpetrator.
The film and the incident has received additional interest because of its connection to President Trump. In the days after the 1989 crime, Trump took out a full-page ad in the New York Daily News with the headline, “Bring Back the Death Penalty. Bring Back the Police.” In the ad,...
The new DuVernay film, which was released on May 31, covers the arrest and conviction of five teenagers accused of sexually assaulting a jogger in Central Park 30 years ago, leading to them serving between six and 13 years in prison. The men were exonerated in 2002 when DNA evidence and a confession from convicted rapist Matias Reyes revealed the true perpetrator.
The film and the incident has received additional interest because of its connection to President Trump. In the days after the 1989 crime, Trump took out a full-page ad in the New York Daily News with the headline, “Bring Back the Death Penalty. Bring Back the Police.” In the ad,...
- 6/9/2019
- by Jeremy Fuster
- The Wrap
In Netflix’s “When They See Us,” the Central Park Five-focused Ava DuVernay limited series, audiences learn that the five exonerated men sued New York City in 2003. Following a decade of uncertainty, the city finally settled with the plaintiffs for $41 million in 2014, and the five men pursued an additional $52 million in damages from the state of New York.
What they wound up receiving was another $3.9 million in a 2016 settlement, in what the Daily News describes as a “low-key state Court of Claims payout” for the “economic and emotional devastation caused by the incarceration of the five men,” who were just teenagers at the start of their prison sentences.
After their convictions in the 1989 rape and savage assault of a Central Park jogger were overturned in 2003, the five exonerated men sued New York City for malicious prosecution, racial discrimination, and emotional distress. Under Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the city refused to settle...
What they wound up receiving was another $3.9 million in a 2016 settlement, in what the Daily News describes as a “low-key state Court of Claims payout” for the “economic and emotional devastation caused by the incarceration of the five men,” who were just teenagers at the start of their prison sentences.
After their convictions in the 1989 rape and savage assault of a Central Park jogger were overturned in 2003, the five exonerated men sued New York City for malicious prosecution, racial discrimination, and emotional distress. Under Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the city refused to settle...
- 6/9/2019
- by Tambay Obenson
- Indiewire
The Central Park Five, the subject of a new Netflix film directed by Ava DuVernay, When They See Us, also received $3.9 million in a New York state settlement two years after collecting a $41 million wrongful conviction payout from New York City.
The New York Daily News reported that the state Court of Claims payout covered the economic and emotional devastation to the five men, who were imprisoned for the 1989 rape and assault on a Central Park jogger. The case was later overturned and is chronicled in When They See Us, which bowed May 31 on Netflix.
“I understand people say it’s a lot of money. The reality is there’s no amount of money that would adequately compensate them,” said Jonathan Moore, one of the attorneys in both settlements, said to the Daily News. “They’ve suffered every day since 1989 and they’re still suffering.”
The state settlement gives plaintiffs...
The New York Daily News reported that the state Court of Claims payout covered the economic and emotional devastation to the five men, who were imprisoned for the 1989 rape and assault on a Central Park jogger. The case was later overturned and is chronicled in When They See Us, which bowed May 31 on Netflix.
“I understand people say it’s a lot of money. The reality is there’s no amount of money that would adequately compensate them,” said Jonathan Moore, one of the attorneys in both settlements, said to the Daily News. “They’ve suffered every day since 1989 and they’re still suffering.”
The state settlement gives plaintiffs...
- 6/9/2019
- by Bruce Haring
- Deadline Film + TV
Since her retirement, Linda Fairstein — a former prosecutor for the New York sex crimes unit — has built a career as a mystery author, penning more than 20 mystery novels in the best-selling Alexandra Cooper series, which follows the travails of a hard-boiled New York City prosecutor. Recently, however, she is best known for her role as chief prosecutor in the case involving Korey Wise, Kevin Richardson, Raymond Santana, Antron McCray and Yusef Salaam, the young men of color also known as the Central Park Five.
In 1989, the five young men (all...
In 1989, the five young men (all...
- 6/7/2019
- by EJ Dickson
- Rollingstone.com
In the first episode of Ava DuVernay's must-watch Netflix limited series When They See Us, viewers see cops and detectives relentlessly interrogate teenagers Yusef Salaam, Kevin Richardson, Antron McCray, Korey Wise, and Raymond Santana - commonly referred to as the Central Park Five - for up to 30 hours. Under the direction of Linda Fairstein, head of the Manhattan district attorney's sex crimes unit, the cops working the case coerced false confessions from four out of the five teens by lying to them about nonexistent evidence against the others and leading them to believe they were simply being interrogated as witnesses. Despite the absence of any DNA evidence linking them to the crime, all five teens were convicted and spent years behind bars.
Police videotaped the teens' confessions, but they failed to record the hours and hours that lead up to their eventual admission of guilt. And, although it is...
Police videotaped the teens' confessions, but they failed to record the hours and hours that lead up to their eventual admission of guilt. And, although it is...
- 6/7/2019
- by Caitlin Flynn
- Popsugar.com
Ava DuVernay's Netflix miniseries When They See Us has put the stories of the Central Park Five back in the news. Five teenagers served time - and were released between 1995 and 2002 - for a crime they didn't commit. Yusef Salaam, Kevin Richardson, Antron McCray, Korey Wise, and Raymond Santana were wrongfully convicted of the brutal rape and beating of 28-year-old Trisha Meili, an investment banker who was attacked while running in Central Park on the evening of April 19, 1989. After the assault, Meili was in a coma for 12 days and woke up with no memory of what happened that night.
While Meili was unconscious, detectives interrogated the teens, who ranged in age from 14 to 16, for up to 30 hours until they provided false confessions. Despite the absence of any DNA evidence linking them to the horrific crime, Salaam, Richardson, McCray, Wise, and Santana were convicted and given prison sentences of between five and 15 years.
While Meili was unconscious, detectives interrogated the teens, who ranged in age from 14 to 16, for up to 30 hours until they provided false confessions. Despite the absence of any DNA evidence linking them to the horrific crime, Salaam, Richardson, McCray, Wise, and Santana were convicted and given prison sentences of between five and 15 years.
- 6/7/2019
- by Caitlin Flynn
- Popsugar.com
Brought to the small screen with a talented cast, Ava DuVernay's limited Netflix series When They See Us is a haunting yet sharp and stirring project about the wrongful convictions of the adolescent boys who were known as the "Central Park Five." DuVernay, known for directing Selma and A Wrinkle in Time, shows the complicity of officials and journalists while illuminating the painful stories of the defendants and their families.
The real case was unjust on all sides. In 1989, Trisha Meili had been in Central Park when she was assaulted so badly that she entered a 12-day coma and recalled no memories of her attack. Immediately after, five black and Latino teenage boys - Yusef Salaam, Kevin Richardson, Antron McCray, Korey Wise, and Raymond Santana - were interrogated and coerced into a fabricating stories that implicated them despite no DNA evidence tying them to the crime. When Matias Reyes,...
The real case was unjust on all sides. In 1989, Trisha Meili had been in Central Park when she was assaulted so badly that she entered a 12-day coma and recalled no memories of her attack. Immediately after, five black and Latino teenage boys - Yusef Salaam, Kevin Richardson, Antron McCray, Korey Wise, and Raymond Santana - were interrogated and coerced into a fabricating stories that implicated them despite no DNA evidence tying them to the crime. When Matias Reyes,...
- 6/6/2019
- by Stacey Nguyen
- Popsugar.com
Michael K. Williams has complicated emotions about playing the father of Antron McCray, one of five teenagers unjustly accused of the 1989 brutal attack of a woman jogging in Central Park, in Ava DuVernay’s Netflix series, “When They See Us.”
Williams remembers well when the attack and arrests occurred. He remembers feeling like something was off, despite the supposed confessions of the teenagers. And he acutely remembers the panic in New York at the time around “wilding,” packs of young men on the prowl to do violence — because he himself was a victim of this new urban scourge.
“I got wilded on,” said Williams, a 52-year-old distinguished character actor with credits in “The Wire” and “Boardwalk Empire,” who plays Bobby McCray in the new Netflix series. It was a freak attack one night in New York, he recalled in an emotional conversation with WaxWord.
Also Read: 'When They See Us':...
Williams remembers well when the attack and arrests occurred. He remembers feeling like something was off, despite the supposed confessions of the teenagers. And he acutely remembers the panic in New York at the time around “wilding,” packs of young men on the prowl to do violence — because he himself was a victim of this new urban scourge.
“I got wilded on,” said Williams, a 52-year-old distinguished character actor with credits in “The Wire” and “Boardwalk Empire,” who plays Bobby McCray in the new Netflix series. It was a freak attack one night in New York, he recalled in an emotional conversation with WaxWord.
Also Read: 'When They See Us':...
- 6/2/2019
- by Sharon Waxman
- The Wrap
The first episode of HBO’s new documentary, The Case Against Adnan Syed, premiered this past Sunday, once again bringing the murder conviction of the Baltimore man accused of killing his ex-girlfriend back into the headlines. Syed, the subject of the popular 2014 podcast, “Serial,” is currently serving a life sentence in prison for the 1999 death of Hae Min Lee.
The now 38-year-old Syed has long maintained his innocence, and had been holding out for a new trial, something a Maryland appeals court actually granted him last year. However, the state...
The now 38-year-old Syed has long maintained his innocence, and had been holding out for a new trial, something a Maryland appeals court actually granted him last year. However, the state...
- 3/12/2019
- by Tim Chan
- Rollingstone.com
A terrible injustice alters the lives of five young men of color in the first trailer for Ava DuVernay’s upcoming series about the Central Park Five, When They See Us, premiering May 31st on Netflix.
The simple clip boasts a chilling sequence in which one of the boys mills about his room, grabs his jacket, goes outside then gets stopped by police and suddenly finds himself in a holding cell with the four other boys. The first half features narration from a mother talking about watching her son grow up,...
The simple clip boasts a chilling sequence in which one of the boys mills about his room, grabs his jacket, goes outside then gets stopped by police and suddenly finds himself in a holding cell with the four other boys. The first half features narration from a mother talking about watching her son grow up,...
- 3/1/2019
- by Jon Blistein
- Rollingstone.com
Yiana Pandelis and Reece Noi (Photo credit: Ben Mezups)
Yiana Pandelis was 14 when she did her first acting workshop at Melbourne’s Active Performance Studios.
Her performance made a lasting impression on one of the attendees, casting director Cinzia Coassin, who was amazed to discover afterwards that Yiana is hearing impaired.
So years later when Coassin received the script for Unsound, she immediately thought of Yiana as ideal for the co-lead Finn, a young woman who is hearing impaired and undergoing the difficult process of transitioning to male.
After reading the script by Ally Burnham, a Nida graduate who received funding from Screen Australia’s Gender Matters Brilliant Stories program, Pandelis did several self-tests and auditioned for a previous director in Melbourne last year.
Development took longer than the producer Tsu Shan Chambers expected, with Screen Australia’s support on the script, and Ian Watson took over as the director.
Yiana Pandelis was 14 when she did her first acting workshop at Melbourne’s Active Performance Studios.
Her performance made a lasting impression on one of the attendees, casting director Cinzia Coassin, who was amazed to discover afterwards that Yiana is hearing impaired.
So years later when Coassin received the script for Unsound, she immediately thought of Yiana as ideal for the co-lead Finn, a young woman who is hearing impaired and undergoing the difficult process of transitioning to male.
After reading the script by Ally Burnham, a Nida graduate who received funding from Screen Australia’s Gender Matters Brilliant Stories program, Pandelis did several self-tests and auditioned for a previous director in Melbourne last year.
Development took longer than the producer Tsu Shan Chambers expected, with Screen Australia’s support on the script, and Ian Watson took over as the director.
- 1/28/2019
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Ava DuVernay will write and direct a limited series about the Central Park Five for Netflix. The five-episode drama is set to premiere on the video streaming service in 2019.
DuVernay previously worked with Netflix on the documentary 13th, which explored race and justice in America following the prohibition of slavery as deemed by the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature at this year's ceremony.
"I had an extraordinary experience working with Netflix on 13th and am overjoyed to...
DuVernay previously worked with Netflix on the documentary 13th, which explored race and justice in America following the prohibition of slavery as deemed by the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature at this year's ceremony.
"I had an extraordinary experience working with Netflix on 13th and am overjoyed to...
- 7/6/2017
- Rollingstone.com
Tony Sokol Jul 7, 2017
Ana DuVernay follows up 13th with a hard look at the Central Park Five, for Netflix...
The Central Park jogger case divided New York City at the end of the 80s. A group of young men attacked, raped and sodomized a complete stranger, Trisha Meili, leaving her in a coma for 12 days. Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson, Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana and Korey Wise, were convicted.
Because of the press, it became embedded in the minds of New Yorkers, and beyond. Donald Trump put out $85,000 full-page ads calling for New York to reinstate the death penalty. Almost to this day, the president states with conviction that those Five Harlem teenagers are guilty. But the Central Park Five didn’t do it: their confessions were coerced, and they spent years locked up for a crime they didn't do.
Now, filmmaker Ava DuVernay (Selma, 13th, and the upcoming A Wrinkle In Time...
Ana DuVernay follows up 13th with a hard look at the Central Park Five, for Netflix...
The Central Park jogger case divided New York City at the end of the 80s. A group of young men attacked, raped and sodomized a complete stranger, Trisha Meili, leaving her in a coma for 12 days. Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson, Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana and Korey Wise, were convicted.
Because of the press, it became embedded in the minds of New Yorkers, and beyond. Donald Trump put out $85,000 full-page ads calling for New York to reinstate the death penalty. Almost to this day, the president states with conviction that those Five Harlem teenagers are guilty. But the Central Park Five didn’t do it: their confessions were coerced, and they spent years locked up for a crime they didn't do.
Now, filmmaker Ava DuVernay (Selma, 13th, and the upcoming A Wrinkle In Time...
- 7/6/2017
- Den of Geek
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