Born on May 6, 1957, in Clifton, New Jersey, Ruben Carter had a difficult childhood. His first encounter with the law came when he stabbed a man that was allegedly molesting his friend. Carter's boxing career only put him the spotlight for more trouble. He reported being taken to the police station in every city he fought in as soon as he arrived.

In 1966 Ruben "Hurricane" Carter had twenty one knockouts to his credit, but on the night of June 6, 1966, no boxing records mattered. Carter and a friend were arrested for a triple murder. The judge overseeing the trial was trying the first, last, and only criminal trial of his career and the jury consisted of all whites.

Neither Carter nor his friend, John Artis could be positively identified by witnesses. The two men were convicted and Carter spent the next eight years in jail before being released. In the same year he published a book entitled The 16th Round. Two years later he was convicted again of the same crime and went back to prison. He was released again on November 7 1985 for the final time. Mr. Carter currently resides in Toronto, Canada, and heads the "Association in Defense of the Wrongfully Convicted." He also serves as a member of the board of directors of the Southern Center for Human Rights in Atlanta and the Alliance for Prison Justice in Boston. A movie "The Hurricane", starring Denzell Washington as Carter was made in 1999. In 2003, Carter was a featured speaker at the Canadian Association for People Who Stutter convention. 

Credit: mnsu.edu