*Ava DuVernay is speaking out about the settlement she and Netflix reached with the former prosecutor in the Central Park 5 case, which she profiled in the Emmy-winning four-part limited series “When They See Us.”
As Deadline reports, former prosecutor Linda Fairstein sued for unspecified damages after claiming the depiction of her in the film made her look like a “racist, unethical villain who is determined to jail innocent children of color at any cost.”
Netflix and DuVernay were unsuccessful in attempt to dismiss the case. U.S. District Judge Kevin Castel concluded last fall that there was “clear and convincing evidence that defendants were recklessly indifferent to the truth,” leading to the cancellation of the trial.
PEOPLE reports that Fairstein settled the lawsuit one week before the trial, which was set for June 10.
In a statement, Fairstein said as part of the settlement, $1 million will be donated to The Innocence Project from Netflix. Additionally, a disclaimer will appear at the beginning of “When They See Us,” reading: “While the motion picture is inspired by actual events and persons, certain characters, incidents, locations, dialogue, and names are fictionalized for the purposes of dramatization.”
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Duvernay released a statement to Deadline stating, “After years of legal wrangling and millions of dollars spent, [former prosecutor Linda Fairstein] walked away with no payment to her or her lawyers of any kind, rather than face cross examination before a New York jury as to her conduct and character. I believe that Linda Fairstein was responsible for the investigation and prosecution of the Central Park Jogger case that resulted in the wrongful conviction of five innocent Black and Brown boys.”
Per Deadline, below is DuVernay’s full statement on the settlement:
Days before my legal team and I were scheduled to refute Linda Fairstein’s defamation lawsuit in front of a New York City jury, she had her husband call to pull the plug.
After years of legal wrangling and millions of dollars spent, she walked away with no payment to her or her lawyers of any kind, rather than face cross examination before a New York jury as to her conduct and character. The deal she proposed involved her receiving a cash payout, as well as having a disclaimer at the top of the series WHEN THEY SEE US on Netflix which would state that everything to do with her in the show was fabricated. We refused both. She also wanted an agreement that my co-writer Attica Locke and I would not talk about her in the future, and in turn, she wouldn’t talk about us. I agreed to keep her loss quiet as long as she would also agree not to talk about the Exonerated Five ever again. She refused this, and instead opted for no agreement regarding confidentiality at all. Her desire to continue to push her narrative of guilt about the Exonerated Five, and not accept an agreement of silence, allows me to share what I feel about her claims for the first time.
I believe that Linda Fairstein was responsible for the investigation and prosecution of the Central Park Jogger case that resulted in the wrongful conviction of five innocent Black and Brown boys. As the head of the Manhattan Sex Crimes unit, Linda Fairstein was in the precinct for over 35 hours straight while the boys were interrogated as adults, often without parents present. Linda Fairstein knew what was going on inside those interrogation rooms and controlled who entered, blocking one of the mothers from being with her 15 year old son. Linda Fairstein is the woman whose boss, legendary NY District Attorney Robert Morgenthau, entrusted with the case, later telling The NY Times that “his trust in her was misplaced” and that she disappointed him. Linda Fairstein to this day maintains that the Exonerated Five are guilty despite the fact that DNA evidence never matched any of the boys, but perfectly matched a convicted serial rapist who admitted his guilt and who always acted alone.
Throughout this legal ordeal that she instigated, Linda Fairstein painted herself as the victim, as someone who has been wronged by our storytelling in WHEN THEY SEE US. She has suggested that the false story she tells about these wrongfully incarcerated men is the only right one, and that their experiences are not worth being heard or believed. She claimed that the series resulted in the loss of her publishing contract and other positions of power she’d held. WHEN THEY SEE US did not get Linda Fairstein cancelled. Linda Fairstein’s own actions and words are responsible for everything that she is experiencing. In the days leading up to her defamation trial, Linda Fairstein decided that she was not willing to face a jury of her peers. It’s a phenomenon that often happens with bullies. When you stand up to them, unafraid, they often take their ball and go home.
I hope that one day Linda Fairstein can come to terms with the part she played in this miscarriage of justice and finally accept responsibility. In the meantime, I thank Netflix for its unwavering support of artists, of this project and for its generous $1 million donation to the Innocence Project, benefitting the wrongfully incarcerated. I continue to believe, respect and salute Korey Wise, Antron McCray, Raymond Santana, Kevin Richardson and Councilman Yusef Salaam, who represents their beloved New York City’s 9th district, Harlem.
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