Storyteller Assignment

Bob Marley is the one who wrote “I Shot Sheriff”. The song, which was released for the first time in April 1973, tells of a man who kills a sheriff and then accuses him of shooting the deputy sheriff. The person counters by admitting he killed deputy sheriff rather than the sheriff. It would have been more serious if the deputy had been killed. The person against him wants to make that person guilty of shooting the deputy. Later, the person recounts that Sheriff John Brown was a hateful man and that John Brown would destroy any seeds planted by him. John Brown would intervene to stop someone from doing wrong. The individual then confesses to shooting the sheriff self-defense and asks the deputy where he was. This is an attempt to disprove the accusation. The deputy was not there when the suspect shot him. John Brown was being shot down by the person who claimed he killed him. To admit that he was innocent, the person stated “If you are guilty, I will be paid”.

The Wailers were Bob Marley’s original band. They sang the song. It was formed in the form of Bob Marley joining a group friends to create a band. It didn’t go well at the beginning. After just a few sessions of recording, the band was abandoned by two members. The group became extremely popular in Jamaica but it was hard for them to make ends meet financially. The group split in half, and Bob Marley married Rita Anderson on June 2, 1966. Marley moved to America near his mother’s house. He was only there for 8 months. After his return, Marley returned to Jamaica to rejoin a few members of The Wailers, McIntosh as well as Livingston. After the group’s reunification, two more members of The Wailers were added to the mix. Both of them were siblings. 1972 marked a significant turning point for the Wailers with Island Records. A Bob Marley Biography page states that the contract allowed The Wailers to record a full album for the first time. The Wailers then toured the United Kingdom as well as the United States. A second album was later released that year. Burnin’ was the name of the album. The song on it was “I Shot Sheriff”. It was a hit single in the US. Interesting fact: Bob Marley was nearly assassinated three years after his album “I Shot the Sheriff” came out. He was not in serious harm.

Kevin, a young male from Kansas, lived in a Kansas neighborhood. He has been arrested several times for engaging in fights. He decided to take a walk one day. John Brown was his sheriff. John Brown, who was the sheriff of the state Kevin lived and hated, is well-known. John Brown was trying stop Kevin from committing a crime against Jessica. Jessica was hurt by Kevin’s arm breaking after an argument. Jessica went to the sheriff and told them about her injuries.

John Brown didn’t stop Kevin and he let him run. John Brown began firing warning shots at Kevin as he ran away. Kevin was fortunate to dodge all of the bullets John Brown fired at him. Kevin shot John Brown immediately after turning around. John Brown was in such pain that Kevin shot him. He called several people to help him. Kevin was forced to flee because his life was in danger. He was lucky to find someone closer to him to spend the night. Kevin did not explain what had happened to him, except that he was tired. Kevin returned to his home in the morning following that night.

Kevin returned from work with a piece of paper. Kevin was visited by John Brown’s callers. They were looking for Kevin and Jessica stated that he was outside. They gave Jessica a paper. When Kevin returns home, they asked Jessica to return the paper. The paper contained an allegation that the deputy sheriff had been shot. Kevin was shocked to see the paper for the first time. Kevin said nothing when he first saw the paper. The paper contained information about Kevin being taken to court regarding what happened. Kevin could face up to 25 year imprisonment and/or a fine up to $250,000 for not taking action. Kevin was in an uncontrollable situation and went to court the week following.

Kevin, John Brown’s deputy sheriff, and other officials arrive at the courthouse. The judge allowed the sheriffs to speak first. The sheriffs said that the deputy Sheriff was shot. Next, John Brown was recorded. Kevin responded to the recording and said, “Your Honor, that wasn’t the deputy Sheriff, but I shot he.” Kevin replied, “Yes, it was self defense again.” He wasn’t the deputy sir. I will pay if guilty.” After Kevin answers, the judge said, “I see”, and he discovers why this happened. It all started with a fight between Kevin and his wife. Jessica arrives to help him.

Jessica tells Kevin that she is an aggressive person and gives him her broken arm. Jessica tells the judge about Kevin’s aggressive nature and how they got into a major argument. The judge is able to understand why John Brown was shot after listening to Jessica’s part. Kevin tried to escape from the sheriff as well, which created another problem. After Jessica has spoken to Kevin about his experiences, the judge decided to bring Kevin to court. Because of all his crimes, he is given a $10,000 penalty and 5 years imprisonment.

John Brown writes Kevin an email before Kevin goes into jail. In the letter, John Brown stated that Kevin would not be arrested and that he would only be interviewed about his wife’s beating. It goes on to say that Kevin made it seem like a much bigger issue than it was. Kevin’s anger management issues are evident in this story. He was so surprised that he went for a walk one day. Kevin is angry at the message. He thinks it could’ve been prevented. Kevin was finally sent to prison three days later.

Kevin was sentenced to prison after he confessed that he was guilty and paid the price. He is alone in jail, realizing why he did not deserve it. A few other inmates later find out what he did. The inmates discover the truth and beat him to death. Kevin dies. There is a news story that discusses Kevin’s passing and many details about Kevin’s personal life. It is a major news story in Kansas.

Jessica begins to weep when she hears the news. Although he did break her arm during the argument, Jessica didn’t want the matter to escalate to the point that someone died. Kevin clearly had issues, and she was aware of it. She just went too far to tell someone. She is even invited to talk on television, so that the public can also hear about it. People start to spread rumors about the story, which becomes a major topic of controversy. Even though Kevin claimed that he did not, there will be much discussion about Kevin shooting the deputy. People will talk about Kevin shooting the deputy, but Kevin said that he didn’t. Because the public isn’t privy to every detail of what happened, they can’t draw any conclusions. The public learns valuable lessons from the story, such as not to assume you are always right.