Martin Lee Anderson

Martin Lee Anderson wasn't a saint, but he also didn't deserve to die. Ultimately, he was a 14-year-old kid who fell in with the wrong crowd, and got placed in a boot camp by his family to get back on the right track. We went to Panama City to find out if it's possible for the boot camp guards accused of killing him to get a fair trial. What we learned is that the town is over 75% white, and incredibly divided among racial lines. Of the 1,400 residents that made the jury pool, the majority, too, are white. And sadly, the prevailing opinion is, that the guards are innocent, that Martin Lee Anderson deserved it. We found that everyone in the area knows of the case, and already has their minds made up about it.

What we didn't expect was that randomly dropping by his grandmother's house would lead to her welcoming us in and engaging us in an hour long conversation. And the first interview she's given anyone since Martin's death.

What I found most disturbing though is that on one side of town, he was referred to by his full name -- Martin Lee Anderson. On the other, usually it was, "that boy." I'm sure you can figure out which side is which.



"If the jury felt they did wrong, then they will be punished," said Reto Williams, 63, of the seven boot Bay County Boot Camp guards and a nurse who are charged in the death of her grandson, Martin Lee Anderson. Williams believes their fate is now in God's hands, and God will guide the jury in making the right decision. "They didn't know he was a god-fearing woman's grandson."



The doors of the Bay County Boot Camp are now closed. In the wake of 14-year-old Martin Lee Anderson's death, it sits silent -- deserted and overrun by weeds. Caught on tape, seven guards were seen manhandling Anderson, hitting him, pinning him to the ground, and holding him up against this wooden pole in the corner of the yard, where he was supposed to be running laps.



Martin Lee Anderson is buried about a block away from his grandmother's house.



Cassandra Johnston, 39, talks to a regular during the lunch rush inside her Panama City restaurant Cassandra's Place. "This thing's fixin' to be ugly," said Johnston about the pending boot camp trial. "I've been here since day one. Everybody's pretty much got their own opinion depending on what race they are."



While Pastor Woodrow Wilson sits patiently in the chair, Panama City Mayor - Pro Tempore Jonathan Wilson, Sr., puts the finishing touches on his brother's haircut at Wilson Brothers Barber Shop. Jonathan Wilson remains hopeful that the guards will get a fair trial and justice will prevail in the case of the Bay County Boot Camp guards accused of killing Martin Lee Anderson.