Netflix’s documentary Tell Them You Love Me tells the story of former professor Anna Stubblefield and her complicated prison sentence for initiating a sexual relationship with Derrick Johnson, a non-verbal person living with cerebral palsy. They met in 2009 when Derrick’s older brother, John, learned about facilitated communication. Anna became Derrick’s communicator, which led to a sexual relationship that Derek could not fully consent to.

While the Netflix true crime documentary focuses on the story between Anna and Derrick from the beginning, the documentary only briefly mentions how much time Stubblefield actually served. The time Anna served is significantly less than the initial sentencing, only a fraction of it. Anna created a new life for herself after she was released, but it does not change the fact that the actual sentencing depicted the damage she caused against Derrick and his family. The documentary builds up to the sentencing, making it that much more satisfying when the judge orders her to prison.

Anna Stubblefield Was Sentenced To 12 Years In Prison For Aggravated Sexual Assault

In Addition To Parole For Life

The jury ultimately found Anna Stubblefield guilty of aggravated sexual assault in the first degree, and the judge sentenced her to 12 years in prison. Before her sentencing, John read a powerful letter that addressed the damage Anna did from a personal perspective. Then, the judge read a letter from Anna’s now ex-husband. The letters John and the judge read before the official sentencing depicted the tragic harm Anna caused, with the documentary not shying away from recounting Anna and Derrick’s abusive relationship from start to finish. Focusing on the two letters before the judge’s sentencing impacts the audience more intimately.

I don’t think Anna understood the depth of pain she caused my family. She tried to lay claim to him and rename him. She tried to supplant Derrick’s life, a life steeped in the history and culture of his God-fearing, Southern-rooted African American family.

– Excerpt from John Johnson’s letter

Why Anna Stubblefield Was Released From Prison After Only 2 Years

An Overturned Conviction

Shockingly, Anna Stubblefield only served two of her 12 years in prison, escaping 10 more years of prison because of a technicality. A three-judge panel overturned her conviction after determining that omitting facilitated communication as a defense infringed on her rights. Facilitated communication is widely unaccepted; organizations from the American Psychological Association to the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association condemn the practice. The prosecution also disproved facilitated communication as a valid method during the trial. Since Anna had already served 2 years, she accepted a plea deal on a lesser charge and was freed.

Anna Stubblefield’s lesser charge only exists because the three-judge panel believed her trial was unfair. If the first judge had allowed facilitated communication as a means of defense, the jury would still have convicted Anna of aggravated sexual assault in the first degree. Her sentence of 12 years in prison would likely have remained the same. Anna’s release from prison after only 2 years was understandably upsetting to sexual assault survivors. The three-judge panel might have thought Anna had an unfair trial, and that may be true, but it is also unfair that she never served out her initial sentence even after being convicted of the heinous crime.

Now released from prison, Anna lives in obscurity and works remotely; it’s unclear where she is now. However, she still firmly believes that she did not speak for Derrick and that their relationship was entirely consensual. Tell Them You Love Me brings forward the fundamental issue of how technicalities in the justice system can lead to guilty people getting away with violent crimes.