Summary: Chapters 21–Afterword

Although Hinton has endeared himself to the guards, he knows they will kill him if the order comes for his execution. In Chapter 21, “They Kill You on Thursdays,” Hinton’s appeal continues to bounce around the various levels of the court system, but Hinton remains patient. Bryan Stevenson continues to fight hard for Hinton’s freedom, and his efforts take their toll. Noticing how deeply involved his attorney has become, Hinton insists that Stevenson take a weekend for himself and not worry about the case. When Hinton once more begins to have second thoughts about continuing the fight, his friend Lester again offers encouragement, saying the two of them are “walking home together.” Hinton, however, has come to realize that innocence and guilt are relative, that everyone is “guilty of something . . . [but] innocent at the same time.” Stevenson decides to take Hinton’s case to the US Supreme Court. This move is a gamble because if the appeal fails there, it will be the end of the process. Hinton, encouraged by Lester, agrees to take the chance.

In Chapter 22, “Justice for All,” the petition is filed in October 2013. At the end of February 2015, Hinton receives a call from Stevenson. He tells Hinton that the Supreme Court has ruled unanimously to overturn the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals decision. Although Hinton is not yet free, he will be removed from death row. As Hinton leaves, the other inmates cheer for him, and he delivers a speech imploring them not to give up hope and to keep fighting for their lives and freedom. Sometime later, Hinton, now in county jail, receives a call from Stevenson with the news that he’s being released from prison. Hinton cries in front of hardened criminals.

In Chapter 23, “The Sun Does Shine,” Hinton’s reentry into life outside of prison requires some initial readjusting to the contemporary world not only because he’s no longer confined but also because he doesn’t understand modern technology. As a free man now, Hinton devotes his life to public speaking and advocating for the abolition of the death penalty. He is able to meet celebrities and visit the exotic places he only imagined while imprisoned. Remembering Lester’s unwavering support, he brings Lester with him on these adventures. In the afterword, Hinton speaks of the statistics of wrongful imprisonment and the death penalty. He lists the names of all inmates currently on death row and asks readers to recite these names and say “innocent” after every tenth name.

Analysis: Chapters 21–Afterword

Although Hinton often considers giving up, he never abandons his struggle throughout the memoir. Sometimes he is inspired by his moral principles or by the example of his mother, but he often relies on encouragement from friends like Lester and Bryan Stevenson. Hinton even considers the prison guards as family in a way, even though they might have been called to execute him. Despite any kinship he might feel with them, he is under no illusions about their relationship. In the same way he understands that some of his friends on death row are vicious killers, he knows the guards’ loyalty to the justice system will trump any personal affection they might have for him. After decades of a protracted legal struggle, Hinton’s case is finally resolved when Stevenson brings it to the US Supreme Court, which at last rules against Alabama and upholds what Hinton always believed would happen by revealing his conviction as invalid and rooted in discrimination.

Hinton’s post-incarceration life is at first hectic and frightening. He isn’t used to open spaces after so many years in prison, and readers may recall his remark to Lester from years ago: “It’s strange what you can get used to.” He is also bewildered by modern technology like GPS and debit cards, and in his first night as a free man he sleeps on a bathroom floor rather than in a bed because it reminds him of his “home” in prison. However, Hinton makes good on his promises to use his voice to help prisoners on death row, becoming an advocate for prison reform. Writing the book The Sun Does Shine is part of his attempt to use his voice to reveal the injustice of the death penalty, which he considers pointless and barbaric. The afterword, which consists primarily of the names of prisoners who as of 2018 face the death penalty, gains additional poignancy when readers consider that many of those individuals may have been executed since the book’s publication. By calling on readers to recite the names aloud, Hinton hopes the inmates will become more real, and by asking readers to recite “innocent,” he hopes to expose further the unfairness of the institution.