A Black And White Killing: The Case That Shook America

Episode 1 (1x1)

Fecha de emisión: Ago 25, 2019

In 2016, outside a convenience store in Portland, Oregon, Russel Courtier, a member of white supremacist gang European Kindred, ran over and killed a young black man called Larnell Bruce. CCTV footage of the incident went viral and shocked America - not just because of its brutality, but because of the question at its heart: was Larnell Bruce killed because he was black? The events of that night aren’t disputed, but Courtier’s motivation was, and the jury had to decide if Larnell Bruce was killed because he was black In search of an answer, journalist Mobeen Azhar travels to Oregon to follow the trial and to delve deep into the heart of America’s far right movement. As the scars of racial injustice still run deep across the US, Larnell Bruce’s death soon became part of a very public battle about decades of racial tension rather than what happened to one young black man. Whilst a jury is asked to decide whether Courtier’s actions were affected by racist thoughts as he put his foot on the pedal, the whole of America watches and waits for the verdict. Uncovering a dark underbelly to the apparently liberal city of Portland, Mobeen comes face to face with neo-Nazis, and meets with members and former members of the European Kindred group. In the series, Mobeen also meets with some of the witnesses to the killing, and get to know the families of the defendant and the victim. Meanwhile in the court, as the prosecution produces a body of evidence, including the European Kindred cap worn by Courtier, the gang tattoo on his leg and crucial testimony from eye-witnesses, Courtier’s fate begins to look sealed. But in a dramatic twist the trial is flipped on its head, and it soon becomes clear that the case is anything but black and white.