AllMovie

Since his incarceration in 1982 for allegedly shooting a Philadelphia policeman to death, Black Panther Mumia Abu-Jamal has awaited execution on Death Row, vociferously protesting his innocence; he now qualifies as one of the most famous Death Row inmates in the world. Currently an author of five tomes and an on-air personality who broadcasts over the phone from prison, Abu-Jamal carries the support of no less than Nelson Mandela and the administrators of Amnesty International, who believe in and fervently argue his innocence. Filmmaker Marc Evans's documentary In Prison My Whole Life witnesses William Francome, a British man who was born on the same day as the shooting, traveling to the prison where Abu-Jamal is held to investigate the details of the man's case. The film witnesses Francome learning about the initial events of that terrible night that led to Abu-Jamal's arrest and conviction, the allegations that the trial itself was unfair, and the city where it all happened - and investigating the moral and ethical dilemmas that have turned Abu-Jamal into a touchstone for the global crusade against capital punishment. Participants include belletrist Alice Walker, social activist Noam Chomsky and rapper Snoop Dogg.