Murder in the First (film)

Murder in the First is a largely fictitious 1995 film, directed by Marc Rocco, about a petty criminal named Henri Young portrayed by Kevin Bacon who is put on trial for murder in the first degree. The film also stars Christian Slater and Gary Oldman.

The escape plan fails due to the betrayal of a fellow inmate, Rufus McCain David Michael Sterling. Young is punished by being sent to the hole which is in Alcatrazs dungeons. Except forminutes on Christmas Day in 1940, he is left in there for three years. The solitary confinement causes Young to lose his sanity. On release back to the general population, he experiences a psychotic episode in the prison cafeteria and attacks McCain, stabbing him to death with a spoon in full view of the prison staff and the other convicts.Young is put on trial in San Francisco for first degree murder in what prosecutors and the publicdefenders office believe is an openandshut case. Public defender James Stamphill Christian Slater, a recent graduate of Harvard Law School, is given the case. After discovering the facts of Youngs case, Stamphill attempts to put Alcatraz on trial by alleging that its harsh conditions drove him insane. The trial becomes highly politicized and contentious. Eventually Young is convicted of involuntary manslaughter, not first degree murder. He is returned to Alcatraz where he subsequently dies. The film concludes with The Rocks associate warden Milton Glenn Gary Oldman conviction of mistreatment and ban from working in the US penal system. ........

Source: Wikipedia