Overview

A riveting, in-depth account of one of New York City's most notorious crimes. On April 20, 1989, the body of a woman is discovered in Central Park, her skull so badly smashed that nearly 80 percent of her blood has spilled onto the ground. Within days, five black and Latino teenagers confess to her rape and beating. In a city where urban crime is at a high and violence is frequent, the ensuing media frenzy and hysterical public reaction is extraordinary. The young men are tried as adults and convicted of rape, despite the fact that the teens quickly recant their inconsistent and inaccurate confessions and that no DNA tests or eyewitness accounts tie any of them to the victim. They serve their complete sentences before another man, serial rapist Matias Reyes, confesses to the crime and is connected to it by DNA testing. Intertwining the stories of these five young men, the police officers, the district attorneys, the victim, and Matias Reyes, Sarah Burns unravels the forces that made both the crime and its prosecution possible. Most dramatically, she gives us a portrait of a city already beset by violence and deepening rifts between races and classes, whose law enforcement, government, social institutions, and media were undermining the very rights of the individuals they were designed to safeguard and protect.

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9780307266149

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This is a controversial and important book, presenting a powerful argument that the minority youths who are convicted of raping and nearly murdering the Central Park Jogger were innocent of that crime (though not necessarily of other violent crimes committed in Central Park that night). It demonstrates that our justice system is far from full proof even in the face of alleged confession, eyewitness and forensic evidence. Were these false convictions based on understandable mistakes? Or were they based on racial stereotyping? Read this fine book and make up your own mind. -Alan M. Dershowitz, author of The Trials of Zion <br><br> Gripping from start to finish, The Central Park Five is an unvarnished look at one of the most infamous crimes in New York City history. You may think you know the true story of the Central Park jogger, but you don't. Sarah Burns tells a harrowing story, in which her only allegiance is to the truth. -Kevin Baker, author of Dreamland

This is a controversial and important book, presenting a powerful argument that the minority youths who are convicted of raping and nearly murdering the Central Park Jogger were innocent of that crime (though not necessarily of other violent crimes committed in Central Park that night). It demonstrates that our justice system is far from full proof even in the face of alleged confession, eyewitness and forensic evidence. Were these false convictions based on understandable mistakes? Or were they based on racial stereotyping? Read this fine book and make up your own mind. -Alan M. Dershowitz, author of @lt;i@gt;The Trials of Zion@lt;/i@gt;@lt;br@gt;@lt;br@gt; Gripping from start to finish, @lt;i@gt;The Central Park Five@lt;/i@gt; is an unvarnished look at one of the most infamous crimes in New York City history. You may think you know the true story of the Central Park jogger, but you don't. Sarah Burns tells a harrowing story, in which her only allegiance is to the truth. -Kevin B

This is a controversial and important book, presenting a powerful argument that the minority youths who are convicted of raping and nearly murdering the Central Park Jogger were innocent of that crime (though not necessarily of other violent crimes committed in Central Park that night). It demonstrates that our justice system is far from full proof even in the face of alleged confession, eyewitness and forensic evidence. Were these false convictions based on understandable mistakes? Or were they based on racial stereotyping? Read this fine book and make up your own mind. -Alan M. Dershowitz, author of The Trials of Zion<br> <br> An important cultural document, and unquestionably worth reading...Burns's gripping tale may serve as an allegory for some of the most pressing criminal justice issues of our time. - The New York Times Book Review <br> Gripping from start to finish, The Central Park Five is an unvarnished look at one of the most infamous crimes in New York City hist

This is a controversial and important book, presenting a powerful argument that the minority youths who are convicted of raping and nearly murdering the Central Park Jogger were innocent of that crime (though not necessarily of other violent crimes committed in Central Park that night). It demonstrates that our justice system is far from full proof even in the face of alleged confession, eyewitness and forensic evidence. Were these false convictions based on understandable mistakes? Or were they based on racial stereotyping? Read this fine book and make up your own mind. -Alan M. Dershowitz, author of The Trials of Zion <br> Gripping from start to finish, The Central Park Five is an unvarnished look at one of the most infamous crimes in New York City history. You may think you know the true story of the Central Park jogger, but you don't. Sarah Burns tells a harrowing story, in which her only allegiance is to the truth. -Kevin Baker, author of Dreamland <br> Remarkable

Author Information

Sarah Burns graduated from Yale University in 2004 with a degree in American studies and went on to work for Moore & Goodman, a small civil rights law firm based in New York. She is now producing a documentary film with Ken Burns based on this book. She lives in Brooklyn, New York.

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