We have a system in place that is meant to serve the American people and incarcerate those who are a menace to society. A system like this seems good on paper, until the people in the system and those who contribute to it, taint it with their bias. We see this predominantly evident in the story written by Walter Dean Myers “Monster” and the documentary “Murder on a Sunday Morning”. Though these things show us the same theme, they have their individual differences separating them. In the book by Walter Dean Myers, we follow the story of a 16 year-old African American Steve Harmon, who lives in Harlem. He gets arrested and is put in custody for being an alleged accessory in the murder and robbery of Alguinaldo Nesbitt. Steve is labeled by the prosecution as a monster (this is how the book earns its title). Throughout the book we see Steve reflecting on his experiences trying to figure out who he is as a person. A teenager by the name of Osvaldo Cruz and a man by the name of Bobo Evans get a plea bargain and accuse Steve as being the look out to the crime. In …show more content…
The case involves the murder of a man's wife and stolen property( this would be the woman’s purse ). The man was talking to the homicide detectives and classified the murderer as African American, knowing this they called young Brenton to come as he was walking and the man told the police it was him, he was the murder. Brenton and his family suffered as he was thrown in jail. The whole investigation was done sloppily, the beat him to get him to say what would fit the detective’s story, and they drafted a paper to say he was admitting to the crime and made him sign it. At the end the jury found him not guilty, he was released. Shortly after, the police ran a more thorough investigation and found the man who committed the crime. The man was of Mexican descent ( note he was not African American
Throughout Walter Dean Myers’ book Monster, the reader has been led through a series of confusion within Steve Harmon’s head. Steve Harmon—a never convicted 16 year old—has been put on trial along with James King for the murder of a man named Mr. Nesbitt. He went through a large deal of stress through the case due to feeling that he is innocent. Throughout the trials, this led to the questioning of himself many times. Although many people believe to know themselves, people are truly unaware of who they are.
Steve’s lawyer, Miss O’Brien, must prove Steve’s innocence to a biased jury so that Steve will not have to have his whole life ruined. Because Steve is a black juvenile on trial for felony murder and even though is innocent, Steve and his lawyer must prove him innocent in the
Five percent of U.S citizens have been wrongfully convicted. The book “Monster” written by Walter Dean Myers is about Steve who is on trail for a murder that he didn’t commit. There is agreeance with the jury that Steve isn’t guilty because there is a lack of evidence of his involvement and it is inferred that Steve doesn’t have a criminal record. To begin with, there was a lack of evidence of Steve’s involvement. The author wrote “one of the men arguing she points to King”(Myers 114).
Harmon, a sixteen-year-old boy, was accused of felony murder along with James King, age twenty-two. People like Osvaldo Cruz and Richard “Bobo” Evans were called to the stand and readers assimilate the story behind Alguinaldo Nesbitt, the owner of the drugstore who was murdered. During the
My first impression when I was reading the book is that the environment in which one lives in can influence our decisions. The book describes Steve in general as a good guy from a harsh environment that has molded him poorly. Steve is a 16-year-old from the ghetto, and as one from the ghetto, he believes that surviving on the streets requires working on the side of the gang, not against it. Therefore, as a result, he has lived his young life doing jobs for the gang that has gotten him involved in small crimes, drug usage, and other poor choices. However, Myers' story shows it is clear Steve has made bad choices as a product of his environment and one can argue if Steve is "evil" because he has done these crimes as a result of his environment
“Don 't be afraid of losing people. Be afraid of losing yourself by trying to please everyone around you. "~ Lewis Howes. In the novel Monster by Walter Dean Myers, we are introduced to Steve Harmon, a sixteen-year-old dark-skinned boy who is the narrator of the book.
Hunter Thigpen Ms. Gourd Pre-AP 10 ELA March 27,2018 It’s what's on the inside that counts Steve Harmon, an african american teenager, was an outcast. Along with the horrible burden of segregation, he had to learn how to grow up while dealing with the mistreatment. So Steve is wrongfully accused of a crime ,and he is black and during this time everyone is very racist.so he is gonna experience a very unfair trial.
People wonder how other people think about them perpetually. In the book Monster by Walter Dean Myers, Steve realizes that people think that people that he is just like the others. The others are put on trial and they are immediately considered monsters. Steve Harmon is 16 and is put on trial for felony murder and Ms. O’Brien is his defense attorney, trying to persuade the jury that Harmon is innocent. Harmon and James King are the defendants for the case.
In today’s society, many people make bad decisions. In the novel, Monster by Walter Dean Myers, the narrator explains how one bad choice can lead to another. Steve Harmon, the narrator, was accused of being the lookout for a robbery which led to the murder of Mr. Nesbit and he goes on trial, debating whether he was an accessory to the murder. After reading the novel, one might think that Steve is not guilty because he didn’t kill Mr. Nesbitt and no witnesses saw him in the store. The jury has to decide if he was guilty for the murder, if he was guilty of being the lookout, and he even questions his innocence.
Steven Harmon, he is the protagonist of Monster. The novel starts off with Steve writing about the best time to cry and all of this stuff he is experiencing. He is a 16 year old African-American on trial for the murder of a drug store owner. He acts nervous in the courtroom when the antagonist of the novel, Bobo King gives him a dirty look. King is the other young man who is accused of taking part of the crime.
In today's society, lots of people do the wrong things. In the book, Steve Harmon is wrongly accused of murder and is on trial. Steve Harmon is a 15-year black boy who was at the wrong place at the wrong time. Steve was not the lookout was not responsible for MR. Nesbitt's death because he never confessed, Mrs. Henry didn't even see him in the store and he wasn't even in the store when it happened.