Ray has a solid alibi: he was working in a secure facility at the time of the one of the crimes and both the security guard and his supervisor can account for his whereabouts during his whole shift. Ray’s record allows him to be admitted into the system faster than usual but he trusts authority and the justice system and believes the mistake will be easily cleared up. Ray is still on parole when he is arrested and charged with robbing and murdering two restaurant managers in the middle of the night. Consumed with guilt, he confesses and turns himself in two years later, determined never to break the law again.

One day in his twenties, and desperately in need of a vehicle in order to get a decent job but with no money to buy one, Ray uncharacteristically takes a car for a test drive and steals it off the lot. He treats everyone with kindness and compassion no matter how they treat him. Faced with racism and the legacy of Jim Crow, as well as very limited opportunities for his future due to his economic status, Ray nevertheless follows his mother’s lessons. The story flashes back to Hinton’s youth in rural Alabama where he grew up both poor and black. Although he is devastated, he knows he is guaranteed an appeal and still has the chance to prove his innocence and save his life. Maintaining his innocence on the stand, he is sentenced to die in the electric chair. In Jefferson County Jail in 1986, Anthony Ray Hinton awaits his sentencing. Stevenson characterizes Ray as “thoughtful, sincere, genuine, compassionate, funny” and emphasizes the necessity of hearing his story in order to reform a highly flawed criminal justice system. Hinton was charged and found guilty of two murders, despite a solid alibi and a lack of evidence against him. He outlines the details of Hinton’s wrongful conviction and death sentence. Stevenson is the founder of the Equal Justice Initiative and attorney to Anthony Ray Hinton.

The Sun Does Shine opens with a forward by Bryan Stevenson.

The Sun Does Shine: How I Found Life and Freedom on Death Row. The following version of the book was used to create this study guide: Hinton, Antony Ray with Lara Love Hardin.

Book the sun does shine