The Trials Of Darryl Hunt

HBO/TH!NKFilm. 106 minutes.<br /> In the summer of 1984, 19-year-old African American Darryl Hunt was arrested for the rape and murder of a white woman, Deborah Sykes, a newspaper copy editor in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

Fight disinformation: Sign up for the free Mother Jones Daily newsletter and follow the news that matters.


In the summer of 1984, 19-year-old African American Darryl Hunt was arrested for the rape and murder of a white woman, Deborah Sykes, a newspaper copy editor in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Forensic evidence failed to match Hunt to the crime, but he was swiftly convicted by an all-white jury on the basis of an alleged witness’ dubious 911 call, and on the testimonies of a Klansman and a cocaine-addicted teenage prostitute. Ten years into a life sentence, Hunt was denied a third trial by the Supreme Court despite dna evidence that revealed Hunt wasn’t Sykes’ rapist. Against all odds, Hunt’s hope—and that of his indefatigable defense attorneys—emerges from those fragile genetic strands.Tenacious themselves, codirectors Ricki Stern and Annie Sundberg followed Hunt’s harrowing story for more than a decade. Their film’s quiet rage against the perpetrators of gross criminal injustice is enriched by the characterization of Hunt as a man who somehow maintained his composure and his faith over 20 years, even as those working overtime to free him began to doubt they’d ever succeed. As one supporter states, “Racism is more powerful than facts.” This searing documentary makes you understand and even feel that despairing sentiment, but Hunt’s strength surpasses all else. He was finally released in 2004, and in February 2007 the City of Winston-Salem gave Hunt a $1.65 million settlement and formally apologized “for all that he has endured and suffered.”

AN IMPORTANT UPDATE

We’re falling behind our online fundraising goals and we can’t sustain coming up short on donations month after month. Perhaps you’ve heard? It is impossibly hard in the news business right now, with layoffs intensifying and fancy new startups and funding going kaput.

The crisis facing journalism and democracy isn’t going away anytime soon. And neither is Mother Jones, our readers, or our unique way of doing in-depth reporting that exists to bring about change.

Which is exactly why, despite the challenges we face, we just took a big gulp and joined forces with The Center for Investigative Reporting, a team of ace journalists who create the amazing podcast and public radio show Reveal.

If you can part with even just a few bucks, please help us pick up the pace of donations. We simply can’t afford to keep falling behind on our fundraising targets month after month.

Editor-in-Chief Clara Jeffery said it well to our team recently, and that team 100 percent includes readers like you who make it all possible: “This is a year to prove that we can pull off this merger, grow our audiences and impact, attract more funding and keep growing. More broadly, it’s a year when the very future of both journalism and democracy is on the line. We have to go for every important story, every reader/listener/viewer, and leave it all on the field. I’m very proud of all the hard work that’s gotten us to this moment, and confident that we can meet it.”

Let’s do this. If you can right now, please support Mother Jones and investigative journalism with an urgently needed donation today.

payment methods

AN IMPORTANT UPDATE

We’re falling behind our online fundraising goals and we can’t sustain coming up short on donations month after month. Perhaps you’ve heard? It is impossibly hard in the news business right now, with layoffs intensifying and fancy new startups and funding going kaput.

The crisis facing journalism and democracy isn’t going away anytime soon. And neither is Mother Jones, our readers, or our unique way of doing in-depth reporting that exists to bring about change.

Which is exactly why, despite the challenges we face, we just took a big gulp and joined forces with The Center for Investigative Reporting, a team of ace journalists who create the amazing podcast and public radio show Reveal.

If you can part with even just a few bucks, please help us pick up the pace of donations. We simply can’t afford to keep falling behind on our fundraising targets month after month.

Editor-in-Chief Clara Jeffery said it well to our team recently, and that team 100 percent includes readers like you who make it all possible: “This is a year to prove that we can pull off this merger, grow our audiences and impact, attract more funding and keep growing. More broadly, it’s a year when the very future of both journalism and democracy is on the line. We have to go for every important story, every reader/listener/viewer, and leave it all on the field. I’m very proud of all the hard work that’s gotten us to this moment, and confident that we can meet it.”

Let’s do this. If you can right now, please support Mother Jones and investigative journalism with an urgently needed donation today.

payment methods

We Recommend

Latest

Sign up for our free newsletter

Subscribe to the Mother Jones Daily to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

Get our award-winning magazine

Save big on a full year of investigations, ideas, and insights.

Subscribe

Support our journalism

Help Mother Jones' reporters dig deep with a tax-deductible donation.

Donate