Have you ever heard the expression you are a mere reflection of who you hang out with, this is perfectly portrayed in In Monster by Walter Dean Myers. Steve Harmon is a 16 year old who was accused of being involved in a robbery that lead to felony murder, leading to the death of shop owner Alguinaldo Nesbitt. Also involved in the robbery and on trial is James King, other participants in the crime that admitted to it are Richard (Bobo) Evans, and Osvaldo Cruz. When accused of being guilty of a heinous crime such as felony murder the defendant is most likely going to plead not guilty. But no matter what your role was in the crime, you are guilty. Throughout the entire book you have no idea whether Steve is innocent or guilty until the jury …show more content…
First off, While Steve is in jail, his mother comes to visit him, and she says “no matter what anyone says I believe you are innocent” (148). Now of course every mother is going to tell their child this but we really do not know if she is telling the truth and all fingers at the moment were pointing to Steve. During the trial when Bobo takes the stand he identifies Steve and said that he gave the signal (196). Even though Steve didn’t take the money out or pulled the trigger he was still an active participant. During the whole book Steve had many doubts about the case and did not have faith that they would be victorious (204). If Steve was truly innocent he should’ve had confidence that they would win and have nothing to worry about. When Steve was on the stand being questioned his attorney, O'Brien asked if he was in the store that day, Steve replied “ no I was not”, lying to the jury (223). Steve has admitted to being in the drug store in his journal entry (140). If Steve was truly innocent, why would he have to lie to the jury. The only answer for that is that Steve Harmon is