Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall said publicly that he was never interviewed for the prison documentary The Alabama Solution.
But footage included in the film appears to show otherwise.
APR reviewed the documentary and confirmed that Marshall appears in what the film presents as a filmed interview with director Andrew Jarecki. During the exchange, Jarecki’s voice can be heard asking questions, and Marshall responds directly, indicating an on-camera interview setting.
Extensive statements by Marshall from that exchange appear twice in the finished film, which is currently streaming on HBO Max. The footage appears beginning at approximately 1:03:00 and again around 1:29:00. The interview appears to have been filmed inside the attorney general’s office in Montgomery in 2021.
Like most documentaries, the film uses edited excerpts of interviews rather than presenting full, uncut conversations.
As Alabama’s attorney general, Marshall has legal oversight related to the state’s criminal justice system and has been a central figure in defending the state against federal scrutiny of its prisons.
Marshall made the comments in an interview with CBS 42, where he disputed the documentary’s portrayal of Alabama’s prison system.
“That’s one of the fallacies; I was never interviewed for the film… They pulled footage from different interviews over the years of me, but never sat down with me,” Marshall said.
When asked whether he had met with the filmmakers or families featured in the documentary, Marshall added, “Never met anybody with the film or any of the family members that were interviewed.”
The documentary, directed by Jarecki and Charlotte Kaufman, examines violence and conditions inside Alabama prisons using cellphone footage recorded by incarcerated individuals, along with interviews with inmates, families and state officials. The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.
Director Jarecki has said he invited Marshall and Governor Kay Ivey to view the documentary alongside families featured in the film and to attend the Academy Awards ceremony. Jarecki said the invitation was extended in hopes of opening a dialogue about conditions inside Alabama’s prison system.
The accuracy of Marshall’s statements has also been challenged by Sandy Ray, whose son died inside an Alabama prison and who appears in the documentary.
Ray’s son, Steven Davis, died inside William E. Donaldson Correctional Facility after what she describes as a violent encounter with corrections officers.
Ray is among several family members featured in the documentary who allege failures in accountability within Alabama’s prison system.
In the video statement, Ray accused Marshall of misrepresenting his involvement in the documentary.
“You lied in your video when you said you weren’t interviewed for The Alabama Solution and never met the filmmakers,” Ray said.
Ray also disputed Marshall’s claim that he had not been given an opportunity to meet with families featured in the documentary.
“I called your office more than a dozen times, asking to meet with you and to find out if you were going to press charges against your officer who killed my son,” she said.
Ray said she attempted for more than two years to arrange a meeting with the attorney general’s office regarding her son’s death. According to Ray, a meeting was eventually scheduled, but Marshall did not attend.
The documentary arrives amid continuing scrutiny of Alabama’s prison system. In 2020, the U.S. Department of Justice concluded that violence, overcrowding and understaffing inside Alabama prisons created unconstitutional conditions.
Marshall has criticized The Alabama Solution, arguing that it relies heavily on footage recorded by inmates using contraband cellphones and does not present the full perspective of law enforcement officials.
The dispute comes as Marshall prepares a campaign for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Tommy Tuberville.
Marshall’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from APR regarding Ray’s statement or the footage included in the documentary.
