This is one walk to remember. But first, the nightline 5. Number one in just 60 itits crepe day. Day for our family at dennys. A Family Tradition we started about 22 minutes ago and now we can continue that tradition at home with dennys delivery. See you at dennys or dennys. Com good evening. Thank you for joining us. Rarely do we see the inner workings of the russian Justice System. A machine shrouded in secrecy and where its reported fewer than 1 of criminal trials end in not guilty verdicts. Now one americans twoyear odyssey in a moscow jail after an online order changed his life forever. Moscows Detention Center 3. According to him, its worse than hell. Reporter few americans have ever seen inside it. But for one texas man because of a product he ordered online it has been home for almost two years. Hes been severely beaten twice. Right now im just tired and just want this to be over. Reporter this story charts one couples fight against the russian Justice System and how through drawings love can endure, transcending even the solitary confines of a jail cell. I just want them to give my husband back. Reporter this courtroom hearing is one of galen grandstaffs rare moments out of prison and to see his wife. This 352yearold americans nightmare began two years ago p while living and working with his wife in moscow he ordered a cleaning product online. And i ordered a bottle of cleaning chemical. He says he was offered the cleaner while he was buying medicine to treat his crohn thes disease on the chinese website ali express. We got a parcel that we ordered and we opened the door. Immediately just a couple of minutes later banging on the door and we had four Customs Officials together with witnesses, translator. Their oncall attorney. They all just rushed into our apartment, accusing gaylen that he smuggled something that is prohibited in russia. Reporter what grandstaff says he didnt realize was that the cleaning product contained gamma butyrolactone, known as gbl. An industrial solvent, gbl is sold as an Illegal Party drug and sometimes as a muscle builder. Its banned in russia and many other countries as a narcotic. Of course when they first told us this we were i mean, we just we couldnt believe it. Reporter Russian Police charged grandstaff with largescale drug smuggling. The offense carries a possible 10 to 20year prison sentence. I didnt know what was at risk. When they first came to my home i was also assured no one would take this seriously. Its so contrary to what we hear, you have rights. You dont have rights here. Reporter grandstaff was taken to jail that night. It was the start of almost two years inside. His wife anna left reeling and at the mercy of the russian Justice System. Their life in russia now their personal hell. We met in South Carolina in myrtle beach in 2007. Reporter they moved to russia in 2011 to be closer to annas parents. Gaylen like his wife worked as an english teacher. A former firefighter, for years he enjoyed his life in moscow. Now, though, he was a foreigner in a russian Detention Center. The prisoners have their own rules. If you dont go along with it, then they mark you. You become what they call a red inmate. Ive been attacked by a number of individuals who group together because i dont conform to their criminal lifestyle. Despite my illness, i went for several months without any medical intervention whatsoever. I was harassed by guards on a constant basis. Reporter forbidden from writing in english, he turned to his hobby as an cartoonist to convey his experiences to anna. When gaylen was put was first arrested, he started drawing this cartoon bears that he would send to me in his letters because i call him bear. Hes a bear in them and he just uses them to show whats around him and how he feels. There are sad bears. There are happy bears. There are bears that are sleeping on the floor. Ive been here for 62 days. I only got to walk outside 15 times. If you dont receive a food package, then there is no food for 24 hours. Here the majority of people are narcotics dealers. Very different. Its bad. We dont have anything in common. Well see each other on monday, which is day 503. But whos counting, right . I really miss our mornings together. My past life, it seems very far away to me now. I know im only complaining. I wish i had never come to russia. Im too old for this. This one was drawn specifically for our anniversary. I dont want to remove it. I like it here. It kind of reminds me. Of him. Reporter grandstaffs case might seem extraordinary, but experts say in fact it resembles tens of thousands of other drug cases affecting ordinary russians. Human rights monitor eva merkocheva has been following the case. Reporter but there seemed to be problems with grandstaffs case from the start. Investigators accused grandstaff of buying the gbl for bodybuilding, a claim that seemed at odds with the largescale drug smuggling charge. Grandstaff was caught in a machine designed to convict. In russia fewer than 1 of criminal trials end in not guilty verdicts. They will convict him. Just a matter of time, for how long. Whether its 10, whether its 20. So its totally up to the judge now. Reporter in march, almost 600 days into grandstaffs detention, the judge suddenly unexpectedly called an unscheduled hearing. In the familiar courtroom cage grandstaff thought nothing had changed. Then suddenly the judge began reading out problems with the prosecutions case. Police had never searched his computer, never established what grandstaffs agreement with the seller was. She was sending the case back for further investigation. A miracle was sequelly unfolding before grandstaffs eyes. [ clapping ] grandstaffs release was so unexpected anna wasnt even in court. Its okay. This is a little more like it. I can get used to being on this side. Its still a bit surreal. Kind of hard to grasp. Sometimes i feel like theres one of me here and one of me still in a cell somewhere because it just cant be real. Reporter how did grandstaff become one of the very few to avoid conviction . He believes it was a combination of his lawyer and the presence of the media, including abc news. I think the good defense coupled with publicity, i think that paid off. Reporter grandstaffs nightmare, though, is still not over. The case is formally still open. Prosecutors have appealed the decision to free him. Im very nervous even about going back to the appeal. Im uneasy because i could walk into court free that day and walk back out in handcuffs. Reporter for now the husband and wife will appreciate every moment together. And one final drawing. I have one new one you havent seen. Im still working on it. But its my favorite one of all. Grandstaff remains unable to leave russia as prosecutors seem to have ignored deadlines to resolve his case. It means he could be in limbo for months or even years to come. Up next, vida. A lifetime in the making, the groundbreaking director charging forward by changing how we see latin ex on screen. I was there, just not always where i needed to be. Is she alright . I hope so. So i talked to my doctor about humira. I learned humira is for people who still have symptoms of Crohns Disease after trying other medications. And the majority of people on humira saw significant symptom relief and many achieved remission alitt a4 eks. Humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. Serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened; as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. Before treatment, get tested for tb. 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Reporter on this hollywood set there is no question whos in charge. Tanya saracho, making her directorial debut for starz hit series vida. A show that is unapologetically latin, queer, and female. I didnt grow up with like what was your favorite latina show . You know, growing up. I dont have an example. So to now be a part of reinjecting us back into that narrative, it feels very powerful. Reporter one of the only latina show runners in the business saracho began her tv career writing for shows like how to get away with rd and hbos look where she also wrote and played the role of ceci. Whos this adorable reporter when you first came to hollywood to be a writer what was that experience like for you . I wasnt prepared mentally, emotionally. Also culturally i didnt understand what it was to be the only person of color in the writers room at first. Reporter but now with the help of her own show shes pioneering a new way of making television. Changing not only whats on screen but whos creating it. Starz is letting me build it how i want it, you know, with the right people behind the scenes and in front of the scenes. Reporter sarachos femaleled ambition coming on the heels of an industrywide dilemma surrounding the lack of diversity and opportunity in hollywood. A recent study found that of the top 1,200 films produced over the last decade only 4 of the directors were women. 46 in total. Of those four were black, two were asian, and only one was hispanic. Those numbers triggering many in the industry to speak out. From the popular hashtag oscarsowhite to actresses joining the plea for inclusion. From ellen pompeo during a round table with porter magazine. I think its up to all productions to make sure your crew looks like the world we see. As caucasian people its our job. Reporter to viola davis at the emmys. The only thing that separates women of color from anyone else is opportunity. Reporter for saracho opportunity breeds authenticity. Which is why she has hired mostly lgbtq women of color to write and produce vida. My writers room is all latinx. I use the term latinx because its a gender inclusive term that doesnt use terms like latino or latinas. Female, latina, all women, all brown women, all latinas. Reporter the show focusing on the chaotic lives of two sisters forced to return to their childhood home in East Los Angeles after their mothers death. Emma, after we bury mommy we can both go back to not talking but for today just please. Reporter the series unpacking provocative themes reflecting the issues that resonate with the writers. Like sexual identity. When you find the right person you realize you dont have to change anything about yourself. Reporter saracho started production in 2016, when starz tapped the mexicanamerican to bring vida to life. Whatever this crisis is, its not a real thing. Some people would say what youre doing with the show is radical. Do you see it that way . I think its radical but its sad. Its sad that its radical because the content, the world is the thing we havent seen before. And thats the way were making it. Reporter for saracho she says it feels like opportunity for women of color now rests on her shoulders. It feels a little bit like a responsibility. If i dont like open the door to the castle then you know, we might not get in. Reporter why is that so important to you . We dont often have an uncle, you know, a godfather, you know, someone who opens that door. Weve been told our own stories by other people with the dominant culture for too long. Were making herstory. Yeah. Reporter for the actors the cultural and gender nuance of the show is revolutionary. Youre part o a movement. Youre representing your community. And youre telling a story that has never been told on tv before. And amazing female empowerment. Like our boss is a woman. Theres a bunch of women in charge. Reporter among those women is writer jennifer gomez. I think vida the code switching. Like the bilingual thing we see on screen we havent seen before. [ speaking Foreign Language ]. It always breaks me up when you do that. Reporter do you think if its a latina cast or all latina show that all audiences might not think they relate . I wish the otherness that does involve the show didnt keep people away. Reporter the idea of otherness is front and center in her show. Ced plays eddie at one point coming face to face with a haunting reality. For ced, who identifies as gender nonbinary, this scene is personal. It was very triggering because i know so many people in my own community who have been killed and whove been beaten. Nows a chance i can be able to completely exorcise this out and heal myself through the acting process and through vida. Reporter these stories blurring the lines between art and real life. In this political moment theres a lot of tension. Theres a lot of negative stereotypes being put toward latinos. But thats why the show is so important, to show that you can have a bunch of brown people and theres no gang member and killing and this and this and that. Its just human beings. And if youre not exposed to these neighborhoods and these people and all see is cheap labor or like sexy femme fatales or gang members of course youre going to be scared. We never open the door and be like this is what a home here looks like. And we do that here. And i like that. That its like were just the same. What do you think needs to come next, then, in the realm of representation when it comes to hollywood . The talent is here. The stories are here. We just need the big gatekeepers, the big decisionmakers to realize our stories are worth it. East l. A. Brown queer world is worth it. Thats what we need for all of us to see us. You can watch vida on starz. And next, the wedding day walk to remember for one bride and her grandma. Yay. Good job. Try new clean freak it has three times the cleaning power of the leading spray to dissolve kitchen grease on contact. And its great for bathrooms just keep pumping the power nozzle to release a continuous burst of mist and make quick work of big jobs. It even works on stainless steel. It cuts through 100 of dirt, grease and grime. Available with easytoswap refills. To get three times the cleaning power, try new clean freak from mr. Clean. There was no hesitation, i went straight to ctca. After my mastectomy, it was maddening because i felt part of my identity was being taken away. When youre able to restore what cancers taken away, you see that transformation firsthand knowing that she had options that she could choose, helped restore hope. My team made me feel like a whole person again. Cancer Treatment Centers of america. Appointments available now. Cancer Treatment Centers of america. 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After qualifying purchases when you apply and are approved for the Hawaiian Airlines world elite mastercard. Plus, you earn miles on everyday purchases. Get closer to the travels and moments youll remember forever with this special offer. Need another reason . Enjoy an introductory no annual fee. To apply, visit hawaiianairlines. Com nd finaltoght, ary es lauren parks is walking down the aisle, which is actually the hallway of her grandmothers care fit. You see the bride shares a close relationship with her 95yearold grandma marie, who suffers from dementia and couldnt make it to the ceremony. So lauren brought the party to her. Wedding cake. Reporter sharing a cake and lots of smiles. Its wedding cake, grandma. Am i supposed to eat it . Yeah. Good for them. It was irish playwright George Bernard shaw who said, a happy family is but an earlier heaven. Thats nightline. You can always catch our full episodes on hulu. Honey, this gis ridiculously fast. 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