On the night of 4 February 1974 in Berkeley, California, nineteen-year-old Patricia “Patty” Hearst of the Hearst Publishing family is abducted, while her fiancé, Steven Weed, escapes. Her attackers lock her in the trunk of a car, then transfer her to a locked closet. One kidnapper announces that his name is “Cinque,” the general field marshal of the Symbionese Liberation Army (SLA), the group responsible for the recent death of Oakland Public School Superintendent Marcus Foster. They plan to trade Patty for the freedom of their two friends serving time in prison for Foster’s murder. Members of the group take turns brainwashing Patty with their philosophy and goals to improve society. One female captor explains that the SLA will demand that supermarkets distribute seventy dollars’ worth of free food to every needy person in California, paid for by Hearst family money. Cinque, the group’s black leader, forces Patty to record a statement, encouraging her father, Randolph A. Hearst, to support the SLA’s food program, but he responds on a newscast that the plan would cost $400 million to implement. As the days pass, Patty sleeps constantly and grows weaker. Cinque sends another message to the media, stating his goal of creating a world in which African Americans can live safely, have access to good education, and be free from corporate tyranny. In time, food is distributed to the poor, but riots erupt and people are injured. Cinque gives Patty a choice of joining the revolution or being executed. She must also choose an SLA member to rape her. Patty agrees to join, and accepts the group’s revolutionary ideals. They dress her in combat fatigues and give her a new name, “Tanya.” Patty records a message to her family, explaining that she has decided to join the SLA’s righteous cause. In preparation for a bank robbery, SLA member “Teko” demonstrates how to use a gun, and afterward, expects sexual favors. During the robbery, Cinque announces that he represents the SLA and Patty Hearst has joined the fight. After they collect money from tellers’ drawers, one of the robbers shoots a customer. Back at the hideout, they celebrate their successful heist, and Cinque compliments Tanya on becoming a symbol of the revolution. Nevertheless, Teko and “Yolanda” warn that they will be watching her closely. Cinque decides to move to Los Angeles, California, where there are more opportunities to recruit new members, and the group arrives there on 9 May 1974. When Teko attempt to shoplift goods at Mel’s Sporting Goods store, a security guard slaps handcuffs on one of his wrists, and Tanya rescues him by firing her gun. Escaping, they exchange cars twice by persuading drivers to help the revolution, and one of the drivers, a high school, tags along with them for excitement. Teko, Yolanda, Tanya, and their willing captive avoid returning to their safe house. In the morning, Teko uses a hacksaw to remove the handcuffs and gives them to the student as a souvenir. Staying at a motel in Anaheim, California, they watch a number of live television newscasts in which the police surround the SLA hideout and, during a shootout, set it on fire. Everyone in the house dies, and at first the media speculate that Patty Hearst is among the victims. As Teko drives back to San Francisco, he announces to Yolanda that their new aliases are “Frank,” and “Eva.” Patty will now be known as “Pearl.” Eventually, the three travel to Pennsylvania, but Frank grows annoyed that the group is lazy and not interested in planning more bombings. They return to San Francisco in November to meet new SLA members, and begin committing bank robberies. Frank determines that the SLA will now kill police officers. Believing that Cinque was a genius, Frank decides they need to recruit another black man to replace him. Meanwhile, FBI agents raid the SLA safe house and arrest Patty Hearst. As she sits in jail, a team of lawyers works on her defense. A gynecologist examines her for signs of rape. She collapses when she sees her family. Her attorney, F. Lee Bailey, insists that she speak to a few psychiatrists, but she claims that she is unable to describe her ordeal. Doctors determine that she is being truthful. At night, in an adjacent cell, Yolanda accuses Patty of telling authorities that she and Teko are to blame for SLA violence. She muses that they should have killed Patty early on. At the start of the trial, Patty is cross-examined. Although in tape recordings released to the public, she stated that she was not brainwashed, in court, Patty responds that she is not sure what happened during her ordeal. In closing arguments, the prosecutor states that Patty’s story is not believable. He doubts that in her nineteen months of captivity, she pretended to be a revolutionary, or was too fearful to contact her parents or sisters or try to escape. The jury finds Patty guilty of bank robbery and using a firearm during a felony. On 22 July 1976, she is sent to the federal prison in Pleasanton, California. During a visit, her father tells her that the Supreme Court denied her appeal. In response, she plans to fire F. Lee Bailey, and hire a new attorney named George Martinez. Her father believes the political climate will not support a pardon, but Patty insists that she will use the press, do interviews, and challenge the public’s perception of her.