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Openly gay college student Matthew Shepard (Shane Meier) was murdered in an act of a hate crime with a senseless violence and such cruelty that attracted global attention. His death has changed the whole world forever.

In 1998, a young gay man by the name of Matthew Shepard (Shane Meier) was robbed, viciously beaten, and left tied to a fence to die. Although he was soon found by the Police and hospitalized, he soon died. This movie recounts the events after the conviction of the two men responsible for this hate motivated murder. Matthew's parents, though satisfied by the conviction, are finding the sentencing phase of the trial more difficult. The parents initially want to request the death penalty for their son's murderers, but the mother, Judy (Stockard Channing), starts to reconsider. As they struggle with their decision, they decide to reexamine the life of their son and rediscover his personality, his struggle to accept his homosexual sexual orientation as a natural part of his being and above all, his generous humanity to others. All of this leads the parents to appeal to the court the way their son would have wanted, not out of vengeance, but to represent best of what their son was and the tragedy of his loss.—Kenneth Chisholm (kchishol@rogers.com)

In this dramatization of an actual event, young Matthew Shepard (Shane Meier) is mercilessly slain by a pair of men who targeted their victim because of his homosexuality. Capital punishment looming, the killers' fate lies in the hands of Matthew's parents, Judy Shepard (Stockard Channing) and Dennis Shepard (Sam Waterston). As the grieving couple attempts to make the choice that will best serve Matthew's memory, they recount his rocky adolescence, life-long struggle for acceptance, and personal views on life.—Jwelch5742