He immersed himself in the Bible and held onto his faith, convinced he would be freed one day. She later married and gave birth to triplets she never stopped hating Ronald Cotton.Ĭotton, too, tried as best he could to get on with his life–in prison. Convinced Cotton would never get out of prison, Thompson moved on with her life as best she could. Found guilty, he was given two life sentences and fifty-four years. Two years later the appellate court vacated Cotton’s sentence citing an error in the trial, and he was retried for raping Ms. Cotton, who had a shaky alibi and a minor criminal record, was tried and convicted he was sentenced to life plus fifty years for first-degree rape, first-degree sexual offense, and first-degree breaking and entering. Thompson identified Cotton in a police lineup, even though she was unsure he was her rapist. At the police department, she gamely assisted in the development of a composite sketch, and Ronald Cotton was arrested shortly thereafter. Cunningly, she was able to escape and her assailant fled. During the assault she made it a point to look at her assailant and memorize what she could about his appearance. In 1984, then Jennifer Thompson, a white woman and young college student, was raped at knife point by a black man who broke into her apartment while she lay asleep. In a way, of course, it is an old, old story. Picking Cotton: Our Memoir of Injustice and Redemptionīy Jennifer Thompson-Cannino and Ronald CottonĮven without its provocative title, Picking Cotton would be a winner.
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