Edmund Perry

On June 12th, 1985 Officer Lee Van Houten was attacked by two young, black

men who tried to mug him. The youngest of the boys, Edmund Perry, my client was shot

by the officer. The jury has just convicted Edmund on charges of assault, battery and

resisting arrest, crimes of which are punishable with sentences of up to 30 years.

However I do not believe Edmund attentively committed the crimes because of his

remarkable character and academic achievements. Instead, he did it as a result of the

expectations of him at Exeter, his home in Harlem, and the local junior high school

Wadleigh, all of which are conflicting against each other.

Exeter is a prestigious school known round the world. When thinking about the

Academy, one may visualize a group of students discussing Homer’s Iliad or conducting

a chemistry experiment. These students, in our mind, seem to be happy on the green

lawns at Exeter. But such an institution is not always peachy and the students aren’t

always described as happy. “There are few rules. Smoking is allowed in the rooms

though not on the street; seniors must be in their dormitory by ten, all others by eight;

there is no "lights out" time.” (“Education”, 1931)Exeter’s style seems to be very hands off. They allow their students to do almost anything as long as they uphold the Academy’s strong reputation. At Exeter, Edmund was described as aggressive and serious by his peers and teachers. These seem to be traits that incriminate him because they lead one to think that he purposely attacked Officer Lee Van Houten. However, he had the aggressiveness and seriousness needed to survive at Exeter. Journalist Robert Sam Anson states, “Over and over again they pounded into the...

... middle of paper ...

..., 2010)Edmund is an intelligent,

good-natured boy who has a life ahead of him and will leave a mark on this world. The

judge should be lenient about Edmunds sentence for no man, young or old, evil or good,

should have to go through what he’s experienced in his short life of 17years. One should

walk around in another’s shoes before talking about the life they lead. Are you ready to

take on the challenges Edmund has?

Works Cited

Anson, Robert Sam. Best Intentions: The Education and Killing of Edmund Perry. New

York: Reed Business Information, Inc. Print

Asmar, Melanie. “Letter the First Sign of Racism for a Student” Concord Monitor. Web.

2 March 2008

Staff Writer. “Will the judge be lenient for a first time criminal offender?” Criminal

Defense Lawyer. Web. 13 December 2010

“Education: Exeter’s 150th” Times, 1851. Web. 15 June 1931.