Can you imagine a convicted killer walking away from a minimum security prison in this day and age? I know times are crazy, but our nation’s continued obsession with locking people up and throwing away the key, makes the idea of prison escape pretty unbelievable, particularly for a murderer. But, walk away from prison is exactly what Norman Porter did after having served 25 years of his sentence as an exemplary prisoner. After his escape, he reinvented himself as a poet, handyman and church-goer in Chicago under an assumed name. In 2005, he was re-captured after 20 years of freedom.

Killer Poet by Susan Gray, which won Best Documentary at this year’s Boston International Film Festival, delves into Porter’s story with testimony from Porter himself, to the family members of his victims, to the police who have been involved in his case over the years, to the lives he touched in a positive way while he was living in Chicago. The central question of the film is can a person change from a thieving murderer to model citizen? The best part of the movie is that it allows you to draw your own conclusions.

I’m still sad when I think about Darryl Hunt’s story and the many innocent people who are sent to death row due to prejudice and a faulty justice system, but there are also many more who are guilty but due to their poor decisions in youth, are given up on by us. We are supposedly a Christian nation but forgiveness, both giving and receiving, continues to prove elusive.

I know there is a lot going on in the world and while we wrestle with big issues, the comparatively smaller ones get pushed to the back seat. But, “The United States has the highest documented incarceration rate, and total documented prison population in the world.” (cite) Regaining our standing in the world means health care and education for our citizens, the end of occupying sovereign nations, being a good example of democracy by encouraging free and fair elections, and finding ways of rehabilitating criminals rather than damning them to a concrete cell for life. Where do we start to repair what is wrong here? Norman Porter would like for us to start with him and I’m not sure he’s wrong.

For my Massachusetts friends, there are upcoming screenings on October 7. Details here. And another at the Northamption Film Festival on October 25. Watch the trailer>>