Assault at West Point: The Court-Martial of Johnson Whittaker

Assault at West Point is a 1994 television docudrama about Johnson Chesnut Whittaker, one of the first black cadets at West Point, and the trial that followed an assault he suffered. The film features Samuel L. Jackson, who portrays a lawyer who defends Whittaker.

Plot

Johnson Whittaker, a black cadet at West Point, is attacked by three fellow students. The school administrators court-martial Whittaker in the mistaken belief that he staged his own attack, supposedly to avoid a philosophy exam.

The assault on him by fellow cadets quickly makes its way into the press and gained widespread attention. Richard Greener (played by Samuel L. Jackson), is the Harvard alumnus lawyer who defends Johnson at his trial and, since he is also black, has also personally experienced racism. Greener's partner, Daniel Chamberlain (played by Sam Waterston), does not share his determination but rather has a different agenda - acquiring fame.

The trial begins and the two lawyers are at odds with one another. The prosecutor, Major Asa Bird Gardiner, cross-examines Johnson, who manages to evade his tactics. On the day the verdict is to be delivered, the judge whose vote they had hoped would be favorable does not show up in court. The other two judges find Johnson guilty of assaulting himself so as not to participate in the exam.

The film closes in later years, with Johnson being interviewed by a reporter. The reporter asks Johnson what happened afterwards. Johnson tells him that he went on to become a school principal, while Greener is now retired. He also informs the reporter that Chamberlain later on went to defend lynching. "People will sometimes do anything to gather fame", states Johnson, to which the reporter replies, "I wonder what hidden agenda he was carrying". The film ends with the reporter telephoning the newspaper and telling them to hold the first page; he has a great story.

References

• Assault at West Point: The Court-Martial of Johnson Whittaker at the Internet Movie Database
• Rottentomatoes.com