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What Set Me Free (The Story That Inspired the Major Motion Picture Brian Banks)
A True Story of Wrongful Conviction, a Dream Deferred, and a Man Redeemed
by Brian Banks
ebook
1 of 1 copy available
Discover the unforgettable and inspiring true story of a young man who was wrongfully convicted as a teenager and imprisoned for more than five years, only to emerge with his spirit unbroken and determined to achieve his dream of playing in the NFL.
At age sixteen, Brian Banks was a nationally recruited All-American Football player, ranked eleventh in the nation as a linebacker. Before his seventeenth birthday, he was in jail, awaiting trial for a heinous crime he did not commit.
Although Brian was innocent, his attorney advised him that as a young black man accused of rape, he stood no chance of winning his case at trial. Especially since he would be tried as an adult. Facing a possible sentence of forty-one years to life, Brian agreed to take a plea deal—and a judge sentenced him to six years in prison.
At first, Brian was filled with fear, rage, and anger as he reflected on the direction his life had turned and the unjust system that had imprisoned him. Brian was surrounded by darkness, until he had epiphany that would change his life forever. From that moment on, he made the choice to shed the bitterness and anger he felt, and focus only on the things he had the power to control. He approached his remaining years in prison with a newfound resolve, studying spirituality, improving his social and writing skills, and taking giant leaps on his journey toward enlightenment.
When Brian emerged from prison with five years of parole still in front of him, he was determined to rebuild his life and finally prove his innocence. Three months before his parole was set to expire, armed with a shocking recantation from his accuser and the help of the California Innocence Project, the truth about his unjust incarceration came out and he was exonerated. Finally free, Brian sought to recapture a dream once stripped away: to play for the NFL. And at age twenty-eight, he made that dream come true.
Perfect for fans of Just Mercy, I Beat the Odds, and Infinite Hope, this powerful memoir is a deep dive into the injustices of the American justice system, a soul-stirring celebration of the resilience of the human spirit, and an inspiring call to hold fast to our dreams.
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
July 2, 2019 -
Formats
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Kindle Book
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9781982121327
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9781982121327
- File size: 2246 KB
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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June 1, 2019
Affecting story of false imprisonment and redemption. Banks was living something of a dream as a popular teenage football player attending Long Beach Polytechnic High School, "a public school with private-school level expectations" that was heavily scouted by college coaches. Then he had an encounter with a fellow student that ended in bad feelings--and not just that, but a rape charge. "Maybe Mom is right," he thought for a moment, sure he did nothing wrong. "Maybe there's nothing to worry about." Instead, at 16, he was sent to jail, with bail set at more than $1 million, then finally imprisoned for six years when his attorney urged him to accept a plea bargain. As he relates, Banks made good use of his time by attending school in prison and living what he calls three lives: one of memory of freedom, one of "just surviving jail, continuing to read, continuing to try to stay on the path of enlightenment," and one of being uncertain of any kind of future as he awaited trial. Freed with the help of an initiative called the California Innocence Project, Banks secured a voice recording from his accuser recanting her charge--then, having discovered that he had long since passed his prime years for playing college ball, worked hard to secure his dream of playing pro. The author has since become an advocate for the wrongfully imprisoned, his life the subject of a film to which this book is a tie-in. What is striking about this inspirational narrative, one in a vast library of books set behind bars, is the author's refusal to submit to rancor or bitterness. Innocent and certain of the rightness of his cause, he behaved in an exemplary way, which should have had greater effect but did not in a legal system that seems bent on punishment instead of rehabilitation. In a time of widespread demands for judicial reform, this deserves wide attention.COPYRIGHT(2019) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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