Chicago Police Commander Jon Burge and his “Midnight Crew” of detectives are accused of torturing over 100 Black criminal suspects using such brutal methods as electroshock between 1972 and 1991 with tacit approval of city leaders, including Mayor Richard M Daley.
‘AREA 2’ investigates one of the biggest police scandals in U.S. history.
The docu-thriller, currently in post-production, chronicles the epic fight for justice through the journey of torture survivor Ronald Kitchen. When officers pick up 22-year-old Ronald outside his home in 1988, they tell his family, “he’ll be back in 45 minutes.” He ends up on Death Row, tortured into signing a false confession to a quintuple murder. Detectives force him to falsely implicate his grandmother’s godson, who gets life in prison based on Ronald’s tortured statement. How can Ronald and his mom fight for his release when it seems everyone disbelieves his story or does not care if he was tortured?
Director James Sorrels tells the story of numerous individuals impacted by the scandal, including torture survivors, family members of murder victims, accused officers, prosecutors, journalists, a former IL governor, a former Chicago mayor and several key people who have never before shared their extraordinary perspectives.
Their stories illustrate the devastating, widespread repercussions of the torture and coverup: victims traumatized for life, innocent men sentenced to death, convicted murderers set free, victims’ families denied closure, police-community trust deteriorated, and taxpayers on the hook for almost $250 million in legal fees and settlements.
“James Sorrels and his team have created the definitive documentary investigating police torture and government coverup at the highest levels in Chicago. ‘AREA 2’ is a devastating movie that needs to be seen.”
- Andrew Davis, director of ‘The Fugitive’
“ ‘AREA 2’ feels especially needed at this moment. It’s a story that speaks to the degrading power of silence and complicity. For years, a group of Chicago police detectives brutally tortured Black men and, while people knew about it, no one said anything. Even after a crusading journalist published in-depth stories about it. This film powerfully hones in on the steep price of silence.”
- Alex Kotlowitz, journalist and documentary filmmaker, author of ‘There Are No Children Here’
TEAM
James Sorrels
Director, Producer
Before James began development on AREA 2 in 2013, he wrote and directed a mini-series that appeared on Chicago Access Network TV (CAN-TV) as well as numerous award-winning short films. While working for years as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) and paralegal, he honed the investigative skills that have helped him uncover previously unreleased material concerning the Chicago police torture scandal. The Woods Fund Chicago awarded AREA 2 a grant in 2022 for the project’s value as a tool to influence public policy. In 2017 the Points North Institute at the Camden International Film Festival selected James for its fellowship and Kartemquin Films awarded AREA 2 an Emerging Fund grant by the Sage Foundation.
Bob Hercules
Co-Producer
Bob is a Peabody Award-winning filmmaker whose work has been seen widely on PBS, BBC, Netflix, Amazon, IFC, and in film festivals around the world. He is also co-owner of Media Process Group, a Chicago-based production company. Hercules co-directed Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise, which premiered at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival and went on to win 19 awards on three continents and a Peabody Award in 2018. The film was nominated for an NAACP Image Award and aired on PBS’ American Masters and on the BBC’s Storyville series in 2017. Hercules also made two films focusing on dance: Joffrey: Mavericks of American Dance and Bill T. Jones: A Good Man. The Joffrey film, narrated by Mandy Patinkin, tells the full story of the groundbreaking ballet company and their many rises and falls. It premiered in January 2012 at the Dance on Camera Film Festival at Lincoln Center and aired on PBS’ American Masters in 2012. A Good Man aired on American Masters in 2011 and played at many film festivals including IDFA, Silverdocs, Full Frame, DOXA and the Southern Circuit.
IMDB
Keith Walker
Executive Producer, Co-DP
Keith is a gifted visual storyteller with over 35 years of experience as a D.P. Most recently he was D.P. on Little Richard: I Am Everything (Sundance 2023). Keith was the Emmy-nominated D.P. for Dawn Porter’s John Lewis: Good Trouble for CNN films. In 2018 Walker received a Peabody Award for his D.P. work on Bob Hercules’ Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise. He also D.P.’d Mavis (the Mavis Staples story) for HBO Films in 2016. In 2011 Keith was D.P. on Bill T. Jones: A Good Man, directed by Bob Hercules and Gordon Quinn. Keith is known as Oprah Winfrey’s “favorite D.P.” He has shot numerous segments for her over the years including her revelatory interview with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle and her 2023 interview with Adele for CBS.
IMDB
Fabián Caballero
Editor
Fabián is an Argentine-Bolivian documentary film editor based in Ventura, CA. He takes an interest in projects highlighting the personal stories of those impacted by geopolitics and international relations. Most recently, he edited Bernardo Ruiz's documentary film, El Equipo, which aired on Independent Lens in the fall of 2023. Other past work includes co-editing Barbara Kopple’s Emmy-nominated Desert One (2019), a film about the United States’ failed mission to rescue the American hostages held in the U.S. Embassy in Iran. He was also a co-editor on The Interpreters, an Emmy-nominated film about the struggle of Iraqi and Afghan interpreters who worked with U.S. forces during both wars.
IMDB
Joshua Simon
Producer, Cinematographer
Joshua is a New York based filmmaker. Joshua runs Spinach Pie Productions which has collaborated on film projects with several non-profit organizations and foundations, including Harlem Grown, The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and The National Wildlife Federation. He has also produced several short documentaries including "Then & Now" about Tessa Venell’s remarkable recovery after a traumatic brain injury and "Everything She Says Means Everything" about photographer Spencer Tunick and artist Kristin Bowlers’ protest installation at the 2016 Republican National Convention. Joshua was a 2017 Points North Institute Fellow in his role as producer on AREA 2. He received his bachelors in sociology from Brandeis University.
IMAGES
IMAGES
In 2009 the chief judge of Cook County Criminal Courts released Ronald and his co-defendant from prison, and granted each of them a certificate of innocence.
Ronald fell in love with roller skating as a kid in the 1980s. After his exoneration, he immediately strapped on skates and headed to the rink to feel his freedom. Here he teaches his daughter to skate, years after his release.
Activists and men who allege they were tortured by the Midnight Crew speak to the press after Chicago City Council passes “Reparations for Burge Victims” in 2015.
Ronald shares his journey with students at Whitney Young High School.
Chicago police academy cadets hold photographs of three officers who were murdered in cold blood in 1982. The murders of Officers William Fahey and Richard O’Brien ignited one of the biggest manhunts in Chicago history. City leaders praised young Lt. Jon Burge for capturing the suspects - brothers Andrew and Jackie Wilson - but what happened to detainees in Burge’s “Area 2” police station haunts Chicago to this day.
Director James Sorrels interviews Patrick Fitzgerald, the former US Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, who prosecuted Commander Jon Burge for perjury and obstruction of justice.
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