美国国家公共电台 NPR 'Crown Heights' Seeks To Do Justice To A Saga Of Wrongful Conviction

 

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

How far you'd go to help a friend is one of those classic existential dilemmas¹. And that question is at the heart of a new film called "Crown Heights," which is out this weekend. As NPR's Alexi Horowitz-Ghazi reports, the film tells the true story of a man imprisoned² for more than 20 years for a murder he did not commit and the friend who finally got him out.

ALEXI HOROWITZ-GHAZI, BYLINE³: "Crown Heights" begins in the spring of 1980, with a single gunshot ringing out on a Brooklyn street corner. But the film is less a whodunit⁴ than a chronicle of the personal nightmare that murder set in motion.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "CROWN HEIGHTS")

LAKEITH STANFIELD: (As Colin Warner) When the police arrested me that night, that was it. I haven't been back home since. My life ended right there. Most of these prisoners, they know deep down they put themselves here. But I don't have that comfort.

HOROWITZ-GHAZI: That's Lakeith Stanfield playing Colin Warner, an 18-year-old immigrant from Trinidad wrongfully convicted of the murder. Warner's case happened against the backdrop of a crime wave in New York City and a tough, often indiscriminate, response from law enforcement. And his conviction was based on coerced⁵ false testimony⁶. The film also follows Warner's childhood friend, Carl KC King, who spent years fighting for justice even in the moments when Warner himself lost hope.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "CROWN HEIGHTS")

STANFIELD: (As Colin Warner) Why are you still at this, man? You got your family. You got your job. You got your life. Why you keep wasting your time on me?

NNAMDI ASOMUGHA: (As Carl KC King) It's not just about you. It could be me in here.

HOROWITZ-GHAZI: King spent more than two decades raising money for lawyers, tracking down witnesses, filing appeals. In 2001, his friend, Colin Warner, was finally exonerated⁷ and released from prison. A few years later, their saga⁸ was featured on This American Life. That's how the story ended up in the ear of "Crown Heights" director Matt Ruskin on his drive home.

MATT RUSKIN: Really, I couldn't get their voices out of my head after I heard their piece.

HOROWITZ-GHAZI: Ruskin knew the story had the makings of a feature film. And after convincing Warner and King that he would do their story justice, he set to work on a script that drew heavily from primary sources.

RUSKIN: Carl had become sort of the chief archivist of this case in the process of putting his appeals together. So when I started, he just handed me this binder⁹ of basically everything, which was court transcripts¹⁰, depositions¹¹ from witnesses, police reports, autopsy¹² reports.

HOROWITZ-GHAZI: Ruskin chose up-and-comer Lakeith Stanfield to play Colin Warner. And he says that Stanfield's dedication¹³ to the role was clear throughout.

RUSKIN: Usually in between scenes, actors will be taken off to somewhere comfortable. And Keith asked to be held in another prison cell.

STANFIELD: This one cell in particular, I don't know why, I was like, I want this to be my trailer. And in between takes, I would just sit in there. I just kept telling myself, this is nothing compared to what he had to experience. So if I wanted to embody¹⁴ the character, I had to feel a little bit uncomfortable sometimes.

HOROWITZ-GHAZI: This story also resonated with former NFL player Nnamdi Asomugha, who plays Carl King.

ASOMUGHA: It was written really artfully. It wasn't saying that all cops are bad, and it wasn't destroying everyone in the legal system. It was saying that there was a criminal justice system at that moment that was more interested in conviction than in truth.

HOROWITZ-GHAZI: Asomugha says that beyond the film's critique of American criminal justice, the story of Carl King's perseverance¹⁵ and Colin Warner's dignity spoke¹⁶ to something more universal.

ASOMUGHA: Fifteen minutes after he gets out of prison, he's got a microphone in his hand and cameras on him. And the first thing he says is, I'm not mad at anybody. I forgive everyone that put me in this position. The first thing that struck me, I'm like, that's what it means to be human.

HOROWITZ-GHAZI: Sixteen years to the day after Carl King submitted his final appeal to win Warner's freedom, "Crown Heights" premiered at the Sundance Film Festival.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED CROWD: (Cheering).

HOROWITZ-GHAZI: And the real Colin Warner and Carl King were in the audience with their families. Warner says it was tough watching his own story play out on the big screen.

COLIN WARNER: A lot of the feelings came back. It's feelings I don't want no more. I'm trying to lessen¹⁷ their impact on me even though those experiences make me the man I am today. It's time to move on. And this is what I'm trying to do now, move on with my life, create a family and just watch my family grow up.

HOROWITZ-GHAZI: Still, Warner says, he hopes his story can offer strength to prisoners who wrongfully sit behind bars today, fighting for the vindication¹⁸ that he finally found. Alexi Horowitz-Ghazi, NPR News.

1 dilemmas   

n.左右为难( dilemma的名词复数 )；窘境，困境

参考例句：

• They dealt with their dilemmas by mixing perhaps unintentionally an explosive brew. 他们――也许是无意地――把爆炸性的佐料混合在一起，以此来应付困难处境。 来自辞典例句
• Ten years later we encountered the same dilemmas in Vietnam. 十年后，我们又在越南遇到了同样进退两难的局面。 来自辞典例句

2 imprisoned   

下狱，监禁( imprison的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He was imprisoned for two concurrent terms of 30 months and 18 months. 他被判处30个月和18个月的监禁，合并执行。
• They were imprisoned for possession of drugs. 他们因拥有毒品而被监禁。

3 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

4 whodunit   

n.侦探小说（或剧本、影片等）

参考例句：

• It is not the most promising script for a whodunit.这并不是最有市场前景的侦探小说剧本。
• I always like the series "Whodunit" by Wei Sili.我一直很喜欢卫斯理系列的推理小说。

5 coerced   

v.迫使做( coerce的过去式和过去分词 )；强迫；（以武力、惩罚、威胁等手段）控制；支配

参考例句：

• They were coerced into negotiating a settlement. 他们被迫通过谈判解决。
• He was coerced into making a confession. 他被迫招供。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

7 exonerated   

v.使免罪，免除( exonerate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The police report exonerated Lewis from all charges of corruption. 警方的报告免除了对刘易斯贪污的所有指控。
• An investigation exonerated the school from any blame. 一项调查证明该学校没有任何过失。 来自辞典例句

8 saga   

n.(尤指中世纪北欧海盗的)故事，英雄传奇

参考例句：

• The saga of Flight 19 is probably the most repeated story about the Bermuda Triangle.飞行19中队的传说或许是有关百慕大三角最重复的故事。
• The novel depicts the saga of a family.小说描绘了一个家族的传奇故事。

9 binder   

n.包扎物，包扎工具；[法]临时契约；粘合剂；装订工

参考例句：

• The cloth flower snaps on with a special binder.这布花是用一种特殊的粘合剂固定住的。
• Purified water was used as liquid binder.纯净水作为液体粘合剂。

10 transcripts   

n.抄本（ transcript的名词复数 ）；转写本；文字本；副本

参考例句：

• Like mRNA, both tRNA and rRNA are transcripts of chromosomal DNA. tRNA及rRNA同mRNA一样，都是染色体DNA的转录产物。 来自辞典例句
• You can't take the transfer students'exam without your transcripts. 没有成绩证明书，你就不能参加转学考试。 来自辞典例句

11 depositions   

沉积（物）( deposition的名词复数 )； （在法庭上的）宣誓作证； 处置； 罢免

参考例句：

• The safety problems are more severe for low-pressure depositions because the processes often use concentrated gases. 对于低压淀积来说安全性问题更为突出，因为这种工艺通常使用高浓度的气体。
• The chief method is to take depositions of parties and witnesses. 主要的方法是录取当事人和证人的宣誓证言。 来自口语例句

12 autopsy   

n.尸体解剖；尸检

参考例句：

• They're carrying out an autopsy on the victim.他们正在给受害者验尸。
• A hemorrhagic gut was the predominant lesion at autopsy.尸检的主要发现是肠出血。

13 dedication   

n.奉献，献身，致力，题献，献辞

参考例句：

• We admire her courage,compassion and dedication.我们钦佩她的勇气、爱心和奉献精神。
• Her dedication to her work was admirable.她对工作的奉献精神可钦可佩。

14 embody   

vt.具体表达，使具体化；包含，收录

参考例句：

• The latest locomotives embody many new features. 这些最新的机车具有许多新的特色。
• Hemingway's characters plainly embody his own values and view of life.海明威笔下的角色明确反映出他自己的价值观与人生观。

15 perseverance   

n.坚持不懈，不屈不挠

参考例句：

• It may take some perseverance to find the right people.要找到合适的人也许需要有点锲而不舍的精神。
• Perseverance leads to success.有恒心就能胜利。

16 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

17 lessen   

vt.减少，减轻；缩小

参考例句：

• Regular exercise can help to lessen the pain.经常运动有助于减轻痛感。
• They've made great effort to lessen the noise of planes.他们尽力减小飞机的噪音。

18 vindication   

n.洗冤，证实

参考例句：

• There is much to be said in vindication of his claim.有很多理由可以提出来为他的要求作辩护。
• The result was a vindication of all our efforts.这一结果表明我们的一切努力是必要的。