Opinion: What the new Amazon doc about Lorena Bobbitt gets wrong about prosecutors
Lorena and John Bobbitt were married in 1989. By Radley Balko Radley Balko Opinion writer focusing on civil liberties, the drug war and the criminal-justice system Email Bio Follow Opinion writer March 8 The new Amazon documentary “Lorena” is mostly a well-narrated peek into one of the more salacious tabloid stories of cable news age — John Bobbitt’s abuse of his wife, Lorena, and her act of retaliation in cutting off his penis.
The problem is that the documentary paints Ebert as, if not a hero, at least as a sympathetic figure. That’s because just before Lorena Bobbitt’s trial was set to begin, a former customer of the nail salon where Lorena Bobbitt worked called Ebert’s office to describe an interaction the two had on the morning before the infamous penis-cutting. She described bruises on Lorena Bobbitt’s arms and behavior that seemed consistent with someone in crisis.
Lorena Bobbitt’s acquittal was far from a given. To this day, the jury’s foreman says he thinks she was guilty. Fulfilling his ethical duty to turn over exculpatory evidence doesn’t make Ebert a hero. Instead, we should be asking why he pursued a case that could have imprisoned a woman he appears to think didn’t deserved to be convicted.
Malaysia Latest News, Malaysia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Wrong spire: May's office gets wrong city on anniversary of spy poisoningWrong spire: UK PM Theresa May's office gets wrong city on anniversary of spy poisoning
Read more »
Wrong spire: UK PM May's office gets wrong city on anniversary of spy poisoningBritish Prime Minister Theresa May's office posted a picture of the wrong E...
Read more »
Opinion | The naysayers were wrong about the Trump economyNaysayers have been predicting a U.S. recession for months, but the latest GDP growth report strongly contradicts that pessimistic view.
Read more »
What Amazon gets from Arlington County in HQ2 dealCNN News, delivered. Select from our newsletters below and enter your email to subscribe.
Read more »
Opinion | Ilhan Omar is getting off the hookDemocrats won’t stand for “all hatred.” Glad we clarified that.
Read more »
Opinion | AOC is right: Congress is (still) getting rich at your expenseOpinion | Lynn Stuart Parramore: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is right about corruption in Congress - NBCNewsTHINK
Read more »
Opinion | Israeli electioneering threatens to trigger new conflict with the PalestiniansOpinion: Israeli electioneering threatens to trigger new conflict with the Palestinians. How far will the Israeli prime minister go in order to stay in power?
Read more »
Elizabeth Warren's new plan: Break up Amazon, Google and FacebookSen. Elizabeth Warren released an aggressive plan on Friday to break up tech giants like Amazon, Google and Facebook, targeting the power of Silicon Valley with her populist message as sprawling Internet giants face mounting political backlash ahead of the 2020 presidential election.
Read more »
Exclusive: Mexican central bank in talks with Amazon about new mobile paymentsMexico's central bank is in talks with Amazon.com Inc to launch a new gover...
Read more »
Opinion | Progressives are starting to define a new realism for our national security strategyThe weakest response of Democrats to Trump would be to defend the old foreign policy consensus.
Read more »