Central Park Five Punishment

“You can forgive, but you won’t forget.” That impactful statement was said by the man who spent 13 years in prison as an innocent man, Korey Wise. The Central Park Five were five teenagers who were convicted for the assault and rape of Trisha Meili in 1989. Though in the end all five men were rightfully deemed innocent, they should have never been charged. On April 20, 1989, a group of over 30 black, male teenagers were messing around in Central Park when they were chased down and arrested by the police for the harassment of people in the park. Coincidentally, that same night Trisha Meili was found unconscious in a pool of her own blood after she had been bludgeoned with a rock, raped, and left for dead (“The Central Park Five: Crime, Coverage,

Mattias Reyes had confessed to the crime and was found guilty. But the damages were already done. The five men filed a lawsuit against New York city for malicious prosecution, emotional distress, and racial discrimination according to the article “The Central Park Five: Crime, Coverage, and Settlement” (1). The men won the case and were awarded $41 million dollars giving one million dollars to each man for each year they served in prison. Though this amount could change their lives drastically, the experience and title still lived with them. Many still believed them to be killers so they still bore the burden of being guilty even after they were proven innocent. According to the “The Central Park Five: Crime, Coverage, and Settlement” article from History.com, the case was not easily won (1). Though it seemed simple that the men would receive compensation the trial was long and grueling. Many still believed the five were guilty, including the officials on the case, so finalizing the case was very difficult. The officials continuously fought every proposed settlement and refused so many compromises. This caused the trial to go on for decades until a new mayor came into office and the case was finally settled (Finn 1). This trial only further caused emotional damage to the five men since they had to go through a rough trial for over a decade while continuously being accused of doing the crime even after being proven innocent. Additionally, the city of New York continued to deny any wrong doings and claimed the police and prosecutors were just doing their job (Weiser 1). Corporation counsel of the City, Zachary W. Carter also claimed that the police and detectives did what they could with the evidence they had and “acted reasonably.” But looking further at the case back in 1989, it is extremely clear that the officials working the case made decisions based on race and chose the easiest