The American justice system isn't perfect. Richard A. Jones was wrongfully convicted of aggravated robbery, based on the testimony of eyewitnesses, because he happened to look just like the guilty man. After spending 17 years in prison, the real criminal confessed to the robbery. Jones was freed, and is suing the state of Kansas for $1.1 million.
Then there's the Central Park Five - five juvenile males wrongfully convicted of the assault and rape of a female jogger, based on coerced, false confessions. They spent 6-13 years in prison, before the real culprit confessed, and their sentences were vacated. They sued the city of New York for $41 million.
But perhaps the most famous case of wrongful imprisonment is Steven Avery, from Manitowoc County, Wisconsin. Avery spent 18 years in prison after being wrongfully convicted of sexual assault and attempted murder. In 2003, he was fully exonerated by DNA evidence. Avery was freed from prison, and filed a lawsuit against the county, only to find himself right back in prison: In 2005, he and and his nephew Brendan Dassey were charged, and convicted for the murder of Teresa Halbach.
Filmmakers Laura Ricciardi and Moira Demos spent over a decade filming a documentary about Steven Avery. When Making A Murderer premiered on Netflix, it became an internet sensation. Viewers were captivated by the case, and - if you're like me, tore through the ten episodes in a couple days. Did the shady cops frame Steven Avery, the town pariah, "making him a murderer"? Was the quiet, introverted Brendan coerced into a false confession? Who killed Teresa Halbach? Will Brendan ever get to go to Wrestlemania?
Today Netflix tweeted a video teaser, and announced the second season of Making A Murderer will debut on October 19. The ten episodes will provide an "in-depth look at the high-stakes post-conviction process, exploring the emotional toll the process takes on all involved," according to the streaming service. The returning filmmakers, Ricciardi and Demos, issued a statement describing the focus of the series:
"Steven and Brendan, their families and their legal and investigative teams have once again graciously granted us access, giving us a window into the complex web of American criminal justice. Building on Part 1, which documented the experience of the accused, in Part 2, we have chronicled the experience of the convicted and imprisoned, two men each serving life sentences for crimes they maintain they did not commit. We are thrilled to be able to share this new phase of the journey with viewers."
In Making A Murderer, Part Two, viewers will watch Avery's new cutthroat lawyer, Kathleen Zellner, try to prove he was wrongfully convicted for Teresa Halbach's murder. Also, Dassey's postconviction lawyers, Laura Nirider and Steven Drizin, from Northwestern University's Center on Wrongful Convictions of Youth, will fight to prove his confession was involuntary.
Do Avery and Dassey have a chance of regaining their freedom, like Richard A. Jones and the Central Park Five? We'll find out when the second season hits Netflix on October 19. And you'll probably have watched all ten episodes by October 20.
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