"They wanted to make an example out of Iverson," said Iverson's high school basketball coach. "Only defendants not given bond are capital murderers" said James Elleson, Iverson's lawyer. Tom Brokaw and the public played a huge role in the release of Iverson. There were rallies and marches for all four black men that were incarcerated, and Brokaw did a special interview with Iverson from the jail. In this special, Iverson was very apologetic and somber. Brokaw even said, "I thought the sentence was surprisingly harsh."