Study Guide

The Story | People | Artists | Art Forms | Enrichment Activities

Raymond Santana[more]

Before: Fourteen-year-old Raymond was a native of Harlem whose family moved to New York from Puerto Rico after he was born. Growing up, Raymond was popular and well-liked at school. Although he was good at sports, he was more interested in drawing, taking art classes, and sketching in his free time.

Now: Raymond lives in the same apartment in Harlem where he grew up, and has a daughter who was born in 2004. In addition to working for one of the city's largest unions he works with the Innocence Project, an organization dedicated to exonerating wrongfully committed criminals and reforming the criminal justice system.[/more]

Yusef Salaam[more]

Before: At 15, Yusef was a tall and lanky young man with an artistic soul. Like Raymond, he had been drawing since he was young, and was also interested in jewelry making and wood sculpture. He had gone to a number of schools, including the LaGuardia High School of Music and Art, but was attending Rice, a private Christian school in Harlem at the time of his arrest. He was raised by his mother, a freelance fashion designer and part-time teacher at the Parsons School of Design, and had many friends, such as Korey Wise.

Now: Yusef lives in Harlem with his fiancée, and has five daughters. He works for a New York area hospital, managing the wireless system that doctors and staff use to communicate throughout the hospital.[/more]

Korey Wise [more]

Before: At 16, Korey had experienced his share of challenges. Raised in Harlem by his mother in a chaotic and unstable home, he chose to move out and live in a foster care group home in the Bronx for a few years. At the time of the crime he had recently returned to his family's apartment with his mother and brothers. He struggled in school, due to a learning disability and a hearing impairment—a possible side effect of physical abuse at home when he was a child.

Now: Considered an adult by the court system, Korey served his entire term in a maximum-security facility. He still struggles at times with speech, and makes ends meet with his Social Security disability benefits.[/more]

Antron McCray[more]

Before: Fifteen-year-old Antron was a painfully shy teenager. He was raised in Harlem by his mother and his stepfather, Bobby McCray, whose name he had adopted at an early age, and who he considered to be his real father. Despite the fact that he was tiny and slight, he was a good athlete. He played shortstop on a neighborhood baseball team that his stepfather coached and was a decent student at Career Academy.

Now: Antron's married and has six children. After prison, he moved away and legally changed his name in order to find work. Despite having been completely cleared of his conviction, both the police department and the prison system have turned down Antron's applications to work with them because of his conviction. He's searching for a solid job while paying the bills as a forklift operator in a warehouse.[/more]

Kevin Richardson[more]

Before: As the youngest boy in the family, fourteen-year-old Kevin was doted on by his mother and four sisters. Raised to be polite and thoughtful, Kevin attended Jackie Robinson High School where he played the saxophone and danced in a hip-hop dance troupe. He was known at school for being athletic, quiet, and respectful, and his teachers believed he had a strong moral compass.

Now: Kevin Richardson lives in New York City and works in environmental services at a geriatric center. He's still very close to his mother and older sisters.[/more]