Til Death Do Us Part

The powerful and compelling footage showcasing these previously battered / abused women, subsequently incarcerated for killing their husbands - raises profound doubts about our Justice System, and society's generalized, sleepily comfortable illusion that Justice is fair in America. The film provides ample evidence that before 1992, the criminal trials of these women were grossly hampered by policies mandating exclusion within the trials of crucial evidence of a history of abuse, and also the practice of forced drugging of the accused who were then not capable of functioning adequately as witnesses on their own behalf. Also offered here are very reasonable suspicions that political concerns from the top down may likely have dictated the discriminatory denials of well earned paroles. Over a dozen forgotten women get to tell, in part, their stories here for what may be the first time.What cannot be garnered by watching the film is any reliable correlation between an offered emotional testimony and the reality of what actually occurred in that case - and that's what the criminal trials were, in part, supposedly required to have assessed through adequate representation in the defense, and observation and deliberation of an unbiased jury able to regard ALL relevant facts. I would recommend this film to any prospective criminal defense attorney, wanting to get a flavor for what "the system" is really like, as well as anyone who prefers to actively fight for the spirit of justice, and the ethics of law.The film suffers badly from an underfunded budget, and the audio and lighting are atrocious, but the editing is crisp and efficient and everything is discernible.

I'm an acquaintance of the Director and picked this up as soon as it was available. Some of the women's stories will hit you harder than you'd expect them to, but they are all moving. I highly recommend this to anyone who has had abuse in their life or the lives of their loved ones. I also recommend it to any organization who wants to raise awareness of battered women. This does its job of painting the picture of how bleak the situations are for these women with no where to turn, and for informing people of how backwards and frustrating the legal system can be to only a small portion of those who are lost within it.

This is a very informative documentary .... it becomes an important CALL TO ACTION for the HABEUS ACT - in the State of California there are at least 400 women still serving time, who, under new laws would be released. These women need to meet the 2010 deadline for a retrial.I had no idea of this until I saw this documentary- well done! I felt the piece showed a well-thought-out structure... how the women got in prison, how they live in prison and how they live if released. The two other people watching this documentary with me began a lively discussion on our prison system. Not exactly date-night material but certainly thought-provoking and factual without being "heartstring" manipulative.A must-see for anyone involved with women and prisons.

If you have seen "Sin by Silence", then I suggest you see this as well. Both are on the women from CWA and about the a year or two apart. I hope more info about these women and their issues and Habeus Corpus come out. As an Advocate, educator on Women and Domestic Violence this film is important part of the problem that still needs support.

Marva Wallace is a lair and should have stayed in jail for killing my father,she get out of a prison on a lie and should have rotted in there.

In the same vein as "The Thin Blue Line", Vita Lusty has created a ground-breaking first film. Exploring the cases of a cross-section of female California convicts, the film dissects how women who defend themselves or their children against the hand of murderous, psychopathic husbands receive life/death sentences from a criminal justice system that clearly favors men. Gritty, real, heart-rending, this is an example of filmmaking at it's finest--as a true catalyst for change.

This documentary is a really powerful (and depressing) look at the way women are injudiciously treated in the CA penal system. The system is inequitable to women who commit violent crimes, even if they are predicated by abuse and self-defense. This is a balanced, insightful examination of the CA judicial system's injustices. Would be VERY useful for Sociology classes studying similar systems of subversion/power relations and civil rights issues.