MovieChat Forums > Sleepers (1996) Discussion > Question about the defense lawyer

Question about the defense lawyer

posted 12 years ago by Redman75
13 replies | jump to latest

I havent seen this for a long time but i always wondered why the defense would bring up the fact that there was sexual abuse taking place when they were kids. Would this not just establish a motive for murder?

[–] JoMiDe35 12 years ago

They wanted to show that a lot of former Wilkinson inmates would want to kill Sean Nokes.

[–] Ironhead5 12 years ago

I don't think this is correct. The defense was not creating a motive for murder and they weren't trying to justify murder -- remember, juvenile records were expunged after seven years so the judge and jury had no idea the defendants were even at Wilkensen. Rather, I think the prosecution had set it up so that Nokes was an upstanding citizen, and the defense was able to show that he was a scumbag. Sympathy for Nokes thus is reduced in the jury.

[–] ClarissaExplainsNothing 12 years ago

Exposing the abuse wasn't about getting the two guys off, they had a false alibi for that, it was about showing the true characters of Nokes and Ferguson.

[–] 12 years ago

[deleted]

[–] ashleynwaldron 12 years ago

Because the prosecution was making Noakes out to be this great guy, who was just going about his daily life when these two horrible thugs gunned him down. By showing the monster that he was, the defense took the gamble that most of the jury would think it was well-deserved, and the guy had gotten his just desserts.

[–] z99 11 years ago

I think it was primarily to take down Ferguson, but also to sway jury's sympathies away from the victim as well as give an idea that he might have had many enemies.

------------
23

[–] 11 years ago

[deleted]

[–] pullman1881 11 years ago

They also wanted in expose the school for a torture that went on there for years.

[–] TaRaNRoD (1579) 6 years ago

"also to sway jury's sympathies away from the victim as well as give an idea that he might have had many enemies."

Interesting point.

[–] jaystarstar 11 years ago

It was never established in the trial that John and Tommy HAD been inmates at Wilkinson's.

(Or Michael or Shakes for that matter. Remember, the 'official records' had all been destroyed.)

Certainly in real life a smart prosecutor would have figured it out and tried to establish they had been there, but of course in the movie Michael is writing the script for both sides (prosecutor and defense).

================

4) You ever seen Superman $#$# his pants? Case closed.

[–] redban (5155) 7 years ago

The defense brought up that Bacon's character had molested several children when he was a guard at the boys' home. Thus, he had a large amount of enemies who had a motive to kill him.

The defense never brought up that Tommy and John were one of those boys who got molested. All juvenile records are destroyed after 7 years, so nobody knew.

[–] TaRaNRoD (1579) 6 years ago

"All juvenile records are destroyed after 7 years, so nobody knew."

Here in Canada all your juvenile records are erased when you reach 18.

But I guess that for more serious crimes they keep them... I hope so.

[–] TaRaNRoD (1579) 6 years ago

I find it funny how going through that movie's board made me realize how much details in this movies are inconsistent.

I still love the movie, but if you think about it it sure is flawed. I always found some odd details (like the alibi or the obvious connection between the DA and the accused), but now I see even more stuff like that.

This been said, I still love this movie.