All,
I saw the film this past weekend and found it incredibly sad and moving. To address the question, “how innocent were the Central Park Five and how does the film treat this, if at all,” I offer the following:
The film does do a remarkable job at encapsulating the culture of crime and racism of the late 1980s/early 1990s. I also found it very compelling when the historian the director kept going to for commentary (his name escapes me) indicated that the sentiment of disappointment and fear in one’s own race was so drastic that when events like the central park jogger case emerged in the media, one would just say to himself, oh God I hope it’s not us.
The question of innocence is a tricky one. On one hand, it is clear the Five were not guilty of committing the crime they were convicted of. However, the director was less clear on the matter of sheer innocence. The Five were out in a group of 25+ teenagers accused of “wilding” that night and committing random acts of violence throughout the park on unsuspecting victims. The documentary does a good job at chronicling the Five’s whereabouts throughout the park, and showing how they could not have conceivably been at the spot of the rape during the time it occurred. However, that does not necessarily absolve the Five completely. They could have conceivably aided or even committed some crimes of “wilding” the night of April 19, 1989, rendering them not entirely innocent. Also, one of the Five, Raymond Santana, was later convicted of an unrelated drug charge after serving time for the rape he did not commit. One could argue Santana would have never been led to the drug life had he not been so displaced and emotionally spent from serving time for a crime he did not commit. But regardless, his conviction for a crime he actually did commit makes him not a completely innocent character.
That being said, there is no question this was a failing on every level. From journalists, to the prosecution, to the NYPD, to the media, to the general culture permeating NYC at the time; in almost every respect this was a witch hunt. The Five’s lives were ruined and their youth stripped. There was not one ounce of DNA from any of the Five found on the rape victim, and there was a complete communication failure within the department. The wrongful conviction of these five boys was the unjust result of hatred that percolated the mindset of NYC, and incompetence that rendered justice unattainable.
-Jordana
Based on your comment on the movie, I would say that there were altogether six victims in the Central Park Five case. I have not seen the movie yet; however, I read many accounts and reports from people who have watched the documentary. I will do so as soon as possible. In the meantime, I applauded the efforts of the people behind this new documentary, because the incident happened in April 1989, and the only thing that most people remember is a group of Black and Spanish thugs were arrested for rape. Most of these people are still unaware that they were innocent, because a serial rapist confessed to the attack. Of course, they will only remember the guilt of an infamous trial.