Synopses & Reviews
Jennifer Thompson was raped at knifepoint by a man who broke into her apartment while she slept. She was able to escape, and eventually positively identified Ronald Cotton as her attacker. Ronald insisted that she was mistaken-- but Jennifer's positive identification was the compelling evidence that put him behind bars. After eleven years, Ronald was allowed to take a DNA test that proved his innocence. He was released, after serving more than a decade in prison for a crime he never committed. Two years later, Jennifer and Ronald met face to face-- and forged an unlikely friendship that changed both of their lives.
In their own words, Jennifer and Ronald unfold the harrowing details of their tragedy, and challenge our ideas of memory and judgment while demonstrating the profound nature of human grace and the healing power of forgiveness.
Jennifer Thompson-Cannino lives in North Carolina with her family. She speaks frequently about the need for judicial reform, and is a member of the North Carolina Actual Innocence Commission, the advisory committee for Active Voices, and the Constitution Project. Her op-eds have appeared in The New York Times, The Durham-Herald Sun, and The Tallahassee Democrat.
Ronald Cotton lives with his wife and daughter in North Carolina. He has spoken at various schools and conferences including Washington and Lee University, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Georgetown Law School, and the Community March for Justice for Troy Anthony Davis in Savannah, Georgia.
Erin Torneo is a Los Angeles-based writer. She was a 2007 New York Foundation for the Arts Nonfiction Fellow.
The authors received the 2008 Soros Justice Media Fellowship for Picking Cotton. In 1984, Jennifer Thompson was raped at knifepoint by a man who broke into her apartment while she slept. She was able to escape, and because she had studied his face intently during the attack, she later identified Ronald Cotton as her attacker. Ronald insisted that she was mistakenbut Jennifer's positive identification was the evidence that compelled a jury to put him behind bars. After eleven years in prison, Ronald was allowed to take a DNA test that proved his innocence. He was released after serving more than a decade in prison for a crime he never committed. Two years later, Jennifer and Ronald met face to face. They forged an unlikely friendship that changed both of their lives.
In their own words, Jennifer and Ronald unfold the harrowing details of their tragedy, and challenge ideas about memory and judgment while demonstrating the profound nature of human grace and the healing power of forgiveness. "Picking Cotton is a brave, important book. It puts human faces on the problem of wrongful conviction caused by faulty eyewitness testimony and shows how even good people with the best intentions can get things terribly wrong."Elizabeth Loftus, Ph.D, Past President, Association for Psychological Science and author of Eyewitness Testimony
"Picking Cotton is a brave, important book. It puts human faces on the problem of wrongful conviction caused by faulty eyewitness testimony and shows how even good people with the best intentions can get things terribly wrong."Elizabeth Loftus, Ph.D, Past President, Association for Psychological Science and author of Eyewitness Testimony
"This book will break your heart and lift it up again . . . a touching and beautiful example of the power of faith and forgiveness. Its message of hope should reverberate far beyond the halls of justice.”Sister Helen Prejean, csj, author of Dead Man Walking
“What happened in this book will change what you think of the criminal justice system in this country, and challenge you to help fix it. Each of them tells an extraordinary story about crime, punishment and exoneration, but its their shared spiritual journey toward reconciliation and forgiveness that is even more compelling and profound.”Barry C. Scheck, Co-Founder and Co-Director of The Innocence Project®
“Few people have done more to put a human face on issues involving wrongful convictions than Jennifer Thompson-Cannino and Ronald Cotton. Yet through their shared pain, they have been able to forge a friendship that most of us search our lives for.”Janet Reno, Former United States Attorney General
“[A] remarkable testament . . . powerful . . . A must-read.”Studs Terkel
Review
"Few stories of wrongful convictions have happy endings, but the one told by Ronald Cotton and Jennifer Cannino is far different. It is the powerful account of violence, rage,
redemption, and, ultimately, forgiveness." --John Grisham “This book will break your heart and lift it up again...a touching and beautiful example of the power of faith and forgiveness. Its message of hope should reverberate far beyond the halls of justice.”--Sr. Helen Prejean, csj, author of Dead Man Walking
“What happened in this book will change what you think of the criminal justice system in this country, and challenge you to help fix it. Each of them tells an extraordinary story about crime, punishment and exoneration, but its their shared spiritual journey toward reconciliation and forgiveness that is even more compelling and profound.” --Barry C. Scheck, Co-Founder and Co-Director of The Innocence Project®
“Few people have done more to put a human face on issues involving wrongful convictions than Jennifer Thompson-Cannino and Ronald Cotton. Yet through their shared pain, they have been able to forge a friendship that most of us search our lives for.”--Janet Reno, Former U.S. Attorney General“[A] remarkable testament...powerful...A MUST read.”--Studs Terkel
Review
"Few stories of wrongful convictions have happy endings, but the one told by Ronald Cotton and Jennifer Thompson-Cannino is far different. It is the powerful account of violence, rage, redemption, and, ultimately, forgiveness."
—John Grisham"The story of Jennifer Thompson-Cannino and Ronald Cotton, as told in first-person voices in this gripping, well-written book, is exceptional."
—St. Petersburg Times“Even the most cynical reader will be impressed with Cottons resilience and grace.”
—The Washington Post “Picking Cotton is the nonfiction title you must not overlook this year. It is as compelling as any fiction, yet the truth at its core will move you to tears.”
—The Louisville Courier-Journal"Picking Cotton is ultimately an uplifting story of hope."
—The Charlotte Observer
Synopsis
Jennifer Thompson was raped at knifepoint by a man who broke into her apartment while she slept. She was able to escape, and eventually positively identified Ronald Cotton as her attacker. Ronald insisted that she was mistaken-- but Jennifer's positive identification was the compelling evidence that put him behind bars. After eleven years, Ronald was allowed to take a DNA test that proved his innocence. He was released, after serving more than a decade in prison for a crime he never committed. Two years later, Jennifer and Ronald met face to face-- and forged an unlikely friendship that changed both of their lives.
In their own words, Jennifer and Ronald unfold the harrowing details of their tragedy, and challenge our ideas of memory and judgment while demonstrating the profound nature of human grace and the healing power of forgiveness.
Synopsis
The New York Times best selling true story of an unlikely friendship forged between a woman and the man she incorrectly identified as her rapist and sent to prison for 11 years.
Jennifer Thompson was raped at knifepoint by a man who broke into her apartment while she slept. She was able to escape, and eventually positively identified Ronald Cotton as her attacker. Ronald insisted that she was mistaken-- but Jennifer's positive identification was the compelling evidence that put him behind bars.
After eleven years, Ronald was allowed to take a DNA test that proved his innocence. He was released, after serving more than a decade in prison for a crime he never committed. Two years later, Jennifer and Ronald met face to face-- and forged an unlikely friendship that changed both of their lives.
With Picking Cotton, Jennifer and Ronald tell in their own words the harrowing details of their tragedy, and challenge our ideas of memory and judgment while demonstrating the profound nature of human grace and the healing power of forgiveness.
Synopsis
What happened in this book will change what you think of the criminal justice system in this country. Each of [the authors] tells an extraordinary story about crime . . . but it's their shared spiritual journey toward reconciliation and forgiveness that is even more compelling and profound.--Barry C. Scheck.
About the Author
JENNIFER THOMPSON-CANNINO lives in North Carolina with her family. She speaks frequently about the need for judicial reform, and is a member of the North Carolina Actual Innocence Commission, the advisory committee for Active Voices, and the Constitution Project. Her op-eds have appeared in the New York Times, the Durham-Herald Sun, and the Tallahassee Democrat.
RONALD COTTON lives with his wife and daughter in North Carolina. He has spoken at various schools and conferences including Washington and Lee University, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Georgetown Law School, and the Community March for Justice for Troy Anthony Davis in Savannah, GA.
ERIN TORNEO is a Los Angeles-based writer. She was a 2007 New York Foundation for the Arts Nonfiction Fellow.
The authors received the 2008 Soros Justice Media Fellowship for PICKING COTTON.
Reading Group Guide
1. Picking Cotton is told through a unique pattern of alternating first-person narration. The first section is Jennifers voice, the second is Ronalds and the final section alternates between the two voices. What did you think of this style? Why do you think the authors chose to present their stories this way?
2. This memoir opens with a graphic description of Jennifers rape and the hours following it. What did you think of the choice to describe the crime in such detail? Do you think that it was important for you, as a reader, to experience the crime from Jennifers perspective? What did Picking Cotton demonstrate about how rape victims are treated and/or how rape cases are handled in the hours and days after the crime?
3. Compare the experience of reading about Ronalds arrest and first trial from Jennifers perspective to the experience of reading about the arrest and first trial from Ronalds perspective. How were their recollections different? Was it important to read descriptions of the same events from two utterly opposite viewpoints? Did your sympathies change or grow from Jennifers descriptions of the events to Ronalds?
4. Were you surprised by what happened at Ronalds second trial? How did you react to the knowledge that Bobby Poole had been bragging about his crimes? How did you feel when Jennifer looked Bobby Poole in the eye and did not recognize him? How did you respond when Ronald was convicted a second time?
5. Throughout Picking Cotton, Ronald describes the extreme challenges of serving time in prison as an innocent man. He writes, “Put a man in a cage with beasts and throw away the key, and its usually not very long before the man is a beast himself.” In what ways does this apply to Ronalds time in prison? How did you react to his descriptions of prison life? What do you think sustained Ronald while he was in prison?
6. How much of a role, if any, do you think race played in this case?
7. In Picking Cotton, Jennifer comes to learn that memory can be “contaminated.” Did you realize this about memory? What actions by the investigating detectives inadvertently led to this happening? Have you ever experienced a situation where your memory proved unreliable?
8. What role does the act of asking for forgiveness play in the narrative? What about the act of granting forgiveness? Were you surprised by how strongly Jennifer felt about asking to be forgiven for her mistakes? Were you surprised that Ronald chose to forgive Jennifer? How did you feel about Jennifers choice to forgive Bobby Poole?
9. Jennifer writes of Ron, “To say we were friends just wasnt enough.” How would you characterize Ronald and Jennifers friendship? What purpose does the friendship seem to serve in both their lives? Were you surprised that they were able to become such good friends?
10. How do you feel about the reliability of eyewitness testimony after reading Picking Cotton? Did Picking Cotton change any of your opinions about the judicial system?