Free Chol Soo Lee Movement

The Free Chol Soo Lee Movement was a grassroots campaign that emerged in the 1970s to advocate for the release of Chol Soo Lee, a Korean immigrant who was wrongfully convicted of murder in the United States. This movement, fueled by activism and legal efforts, highlighted issues of racial bias, flawed justice, and the power of community mobilization.

Chol Soo Lee's story began in 1974 when he was accused and subsequently convicted of a San Francisco Chinatown murder. Despite a lack of physical evidence linking him to the crime, Lee was found guilty largely based on eyewitness testimony and a coerced confession that he later recanted, claiming it was obtained under duress and language barriers. 

The Free Chol Soo Lee Movement was sparked in 1977, when a Sacramento investigative reporter, K.W. Lee, shed light on the problematic police investigation and the trial. Supporters, including activists, community members, and even journalists, began to question the validity of Lee's conviction. Many believed that his case was marred by racial prejudice, as the trial occurred during a time of heightened anti-Asian sentiment in the U.S.

However, the case became much more complicated when, while serving his life sentence, he was convicted and sentenced to death in May 1979 on a first-degree murder charge for defending himself during an armed prison yard assault by an Aryan Brotherhood gang member.  

The movement led to the first breakthrough in September 1982, a re-trial of the original Chinatown murder case, in which the jury found him to be innocent.  However, despite the acquittal, he remained behind the bars because of his guilty verdict in the prison yard murder case, which was also set for a re-trial. Due to mounting legal costs, Lee agreed to a downgraded second degree murder without admission of guilt and was released based on the time served in March 1983.

Unfortunately, this important case for justice-for-all failed to gain much attention then and is now largely forgotten.  One of the reasons is that Lee was not a paragon of virtue expected of a symbol of racial justice movement.  Contrary to the Asian model minority stereotype, he continued to struggle with the law even after being released from death row, including an arson conviction in 1991. 

In the end, the Free Chol Soo Lee Movement left an enduring legacy by illustrating the importance of standing up against injustice and rallying for those who have been wrongly accused. It highlighted the potential of grassroots activism to challenge the status quo and effect meaningful change, while also underscoring the need for continued efforts to address systemic injustices within the legal system.