Printer Friendly

Email to A Friend

Thursday October 18, 2007

Lights, camera, justice?

by stacey palevsky
staff writer

Each time filmmaker Yoav Potash screens footage documenting Deborah Peagler’s case, the audience reaction is similar.

“People’s basic feeling is: How on earth can the system that I’ve seen work so well on television fail so miserably in reality?” Potash said.

“Life Sentence,” the documentary’s working title, tells the story of Joshua Safran and Nadia Costa, lawyers trying to free Peagler from prison. While documenting aspects of the case, Potash also completed a half-hour PBS documentary about life inside the prison where Peagler is incarcerated.

The filmmaker and the two lawyers began speaking to Jewish audiences last spring, with the film serving as a catalyst for discussions about Judaism and justice. The appearances have been made possible by a small grant from the S.F.-based Jewish Family and Children’s Services to help Potash use the film to educate audiences about domestic violence and the plight of battered women in prison.

“I want people to wake up and see the reality of our criminal justice system,” he said. “There’s a huge need for change.”

Upcoming events:

• Sunday, Oct. 21, 7:30 p.m., Jewish Community Center of the East Bay, 1414 Walnut St., Berkeley. $8 members / $10 general public.

• Monday, Oct. 22, 7 p.m., Jewish Community High School of the Bay, 1835 Ellis St., San Francisco. $10 general public, free for JCHS parents and students who pre-register by phone, (415) 345-9777.

• Thursday, Oct. 25, 7:30 p.m., Congregation Kol Shofar, 215 Blackfield Dr., Tiburon. $10 donation.

• Sunday, Nov. 4, 7:30 p.m., B’nei Tikva, 25 Hillcroft Way, Walnut Creek. $10 donation.

• Thursday, Nov. 8, 7 p.m., Drew School, 2901 California St. (at Broderick), San Francisco. $10 donation.

For more information, check www.freedebbie.org.

Did you find this article interesting? Subscribe to our FREE newsletter and you'll be notified each week when "J." goes online. We'll tell you about the most important stories of the week and give you a link to each one.

This page contains a BETA version of Amazon contextual links. They are marked by the dashed underline.  Your purchases support our site. At times they point to items which are not related to the actual link. Please alert us by email if you discover objectionable links.