When a gun went off inside Chol Soo Lee’s San Francisco hotel room in 1973, he never imagined it would lead to two wrongful murder convictions and a death sentence at San Quentin State Prison. Sandra Gin, Lone Star College-CyFair adjunct professor of communications and former KHOU 11 broadcast journalist is among three generations of reporters who have shared his story over the last 50 years, culminating in a national Emmy win for the documentary “Free Chol Soo Lee” at the 45th annual News & Documentary Emmy Awards held Sept. 26.
“This Emmy win represents a three-generational work of art and journalism. It began with K.W. Lee (no relation to Chol Soo Lee), an investigative print reporter, in 1977 who probed into the Korean immigrant’s wrongful murder conviction,” said Gin. “I followed the case from 1980 to 1984 and produced the first documentary on the case, ‘A Question of Justice,’ which won a regional Emmy in 1984 before ‘passing the baton’ to film directors Julie Ha and Eugene Yi in 2015.”
“Free Chol Soo Lee” won in the Outstanding Historical Documentary category against fierce competitors: “America & The Taliban,” “WWII,” “JFK” and “Oppenheimer & the Atomic Bomb.” Gin donated 35 raw videotapes from her 1984 documentary, significantly contributing to “Free Chol Soo Lee.” Gin has won 15 Emmy nominations and nine wins during her vast career in journalism.
“[Professor] Sandra Gin conducted compelling interviews with Chol Soo Lee when he was in prison and kept following him and his story after his release,” said Ha, in a Facebook post paying tribute to Gin’s past journalistic work. “[Professor] Gin’s work and passion paved the way for us to continue sharing Lee’s powerful story.”
The Emmy-winning documentary gives insight into Lee’s life in South Korea before immigrating to California, his struggles acclimating to a new country and his tragic story of fighting for his life inside California state prisons. Lee was released from prison in 1983 after a pan-Asian solidarity movement helped overturn his convictions. In the aftermath, he struggled to meet the community’s expectations and overcome the demons of his unjust incarceration. Lee later sought redemption before his unfortunate death in 2014.
“Chol Soo Lee’s story is a human story of struggle, triumph and loss,” said Gin. “I am privileged to have experienced a humanistic story that caused an unprecedented social movement of activism and reaped the rewards of our team’s work throughout my broadcast career. I am content in knowing three generations of journalists and storytellers made a difference then and now.”
“Free Chol Soo Lee” was directed by Ha and Yi and produced by Su Kim, Jean Tsien and Sona Jo. The documentary is free on PBS until Nov. 14. Watch it at https://www.pbs.org/independentlens/documentaries/free-chol-soo-lee/.
Lone Star College System enrolls over 90,000 students each semester providing high-quality, low-cost academic transfer and career training education. LSCS is training tomorrow’s workforce today and redefining the community college experience to support student success. Mario K. Castillo, J.D., serves as Chancellor of LSCS, the largest institution of higher education in the Houston area and has been named a 2024 Great Colleges to Work For® institution by the Chronicle of Higher Education. LSCS consists of eight colleges, seven centers, eight Workforce Centers of Excellence and Lone Star Corporate College. To learn more, visit LoneStar.edu.
