It looked like he was having a panic attack or something? One of the brother's stated he later nearly died?? It isn't really explained what happened to him, but early on in the film, he states that he's "always been nervous." I assume he was having some sort of collapse or episode?
shareIt was an anxiety attack. Other documents show that questioning was taken into the judge's chambers where the prosecutor was "rattled" by Lyman's episode. It essentially made any corroborating confession by Lyman invalid because of what the jury witnessed.
Inadvertently pissing people off since 2008
Thanks for the info. It was a real heartbreaking moment in the film.
shareI agree - it also showed how callous the prosecution was. You can imagine that when they got his original statement they had him just as scared and wouldn't let him go without signing. Without the judge there to put an end to it, they would have carried on despite his obvious distress.
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