Although he wants to believe that Steve did nothing wrong, he doesn’t understand the choices Steve made and is no longer sure who Steve is. After the trial, however, Steve’s father moves away. During a supervised visit to the jail, Steve’s father shares both his affection and his emotional turmoil with his son before telling him that everything will be OK. Although she and Steve’s father try to be upbeat, Steve feels that she is mourning him as though he were dead.Īfter his arrest, Steve’s relationship with his father is tense. She tells him that she knows he is innocent, regardless of what happens.

Throughout the trial, Steve’s mother leaves cleaned shirts and underwear for him.

Steve’s parents visit him regularly in jail, and Steve wishes that he could tell his brother, Jerry, that he loves him. Steve didn’t think he was a monster, but now he’s not so sure. She may have convinced the jury that Steve was human, but she couldn’t convince herself. But Kathy O’Brien refuses to return his hug. He reaches to hug his lawyer, the woman who showed the world that he is not a monster. The testimonies finally wind to a close and the jury delivers a verdict. He slowly loses hope that he will be acquitted and struggles to cope with the reality that he may spend the next two decades of his life behind bars. (The script comprises most of the novel’s text, interspersed with brief journal entries.) As the trial progresses, Steve alternately chronicles the courtroom proceedings and the brutality of his fellow inmates. On the witness stand, he denies all connection to the murder.Īn aspiring filmmaker, Steve copes with the stress of jail and the trial by writing a movie script about his life and experiences following his arrest and detention. Because he gave no signal after leaving the store, Steve doesn’t believe that his peripheral involvement makes him guilty of criminal activity. Steve was supposed to make sure no police officers were in the store before the robbery occurred. In his journal, Steve secretly admits to being involved in a drugstore robbery that left a man dead. Thankfully, Steve’s lawyer, Kathy O’Brien, is doing her best to make the jury see him as a human being. But not everyone agrees with Steve, least of all Sandra Petrocelli, the attorney who is prosecuting him for felony murder. Steve may have made some poor decisions in the last 16 years, but he’s not a monster.

Tony monster walter dean myers