Latin Kings: A Street Gang Story

The Latin Kings began in prison as a way to provide Latino inmates an organization to defend themselves against other prison gangs. Antonio "King Tone" Fernandez is the "Inca," or leader, of the Latin King Nation of New York State, which publicly espouses Puerto Rican nationalism. Tone's vision was to convert a fierce organization into one whose purpose was to improve the lives of the impoverished. However, the reality of the gang, as captured on surveillance tapes, includes murder, kidnapping, drug dealing and assault. The film shows the Kings at a time when Tone appears poised to purge the group of its violent past and redefine it as a civic-minded entity. District Attorney Deanna Rodriguez feels that Tone has adopted his ideals to conceal his criminal activities. LATIN KINGS explores whether Tone is a working-class hero or a charlatan.

Capturing this shadowy urban world through the lens of Jon Alpert, who spent more than a year with the Kings during the mid-1990s, LATIN KINGS features footage of the Kings on the streets and at their rallies, prayer meetings and strategy sessions. The documentary also contains intimate scenes of Tone, his girlfriend Myrna and his two children in their apartment, where he is confined under house arrest. Tone exemplifies the life of many gang members, whose public bravado and machismo contrast sharply with their insecure and impoverished private existence.

Winner of 11 Emmy Awards®, Jon Alpert has received international acclaim for his work in hot spots around the world, including Iraq (during both the Gulf War and Operation Iraqi Freedom), Nicaragua, Afghanistan, Cambodia, Vietnam, Cuba, the former Soviet Union and the Philippines. Among Alpert's previous multiple award-winning HBO documentaries are "One Year in a Life of Crime," "High on Crack Street: Lost Lives in Lowell" and "A Cinderella Season: The Lady Vols Fight Back."

LATIN KINGS: A STREET GANG STORY is produced and directed by Jon Alpert; camera and audio by Jon Alpert; editors, John Custodio and Jon Alpert. For HBO: supervising producer, Nancy Abraham: executive producer, Sheila Nevins.