>> ms. simon, would you raise your right hand. >> you've been in therapy for 18 months now, correct? >> yes. >> are you ready to tell your story? >> yes. at one point i remember thinking like this is my life right now. like i'm doing this for a 15-year-old? like how is this even possible? i'm his. he owned me. he owned me up until today when i got here to finally tell what happened. he never thought i would come up here and tell the truth. he thought i would cover for him. >> reporter: of course, by taking the stand in her own defense to tell her story, abby simon knew she was opening herself up to what would, no doubt, be an intense cross-examination by prosecutor helen brinkman. the question we put to abby before the trial. challenge you every which way to sunday. accuse you of all kinds of things. are you ready for that? >> the best part is i can just tell the truth. i can just be honest. i don't have to remember what i was supposed to say. i can just tell the story. >> reporter: but the prosec

ms. simone, randall pinkston spoke to the film's director, lisa simone kelly. daughter. ♪ ♪ >> i made a pledge to my mother when she passed away that to make sure that she would be remembered properly in the way that she deserved and the way she should be remembered. >> i put a spell on you ♪ >> you have said she was one of the greatest entertainers of all time but she paid a price. >> yes. >> what price? >> oh my goodness, being rich, awards, so many material rewards and goals at a many artists go for not to mention their own personal satisfaction. my mom forewent many of those things in order to stand up for what she believed in. ♪ no colored people in this country ♪ ♪ got to be second class fools ♪ >> she trained as a classical pianist, that was her goal. she had to get a job at some point and the owner of the club told her "you have to sing" which became her singing career which led to her fame but she made a very political decision shortly after the deaths of the girls in the birmingham in church bombing. >> athat's correct, my grandmother was a minister w

ms. simone, is an oscar contender. i talked to her daughter. and her need to tell her mother's story now. >> it was a labor of love that my husband and i worked on for about ten years. >> i want to shake up people so bad, that when they leave a night club where i perform, i just want them to be in pieces. >> i made a pledge to my mother when she passed away, that to make sure that she would be remembered properly, in the way that she deserved and the way she would be remembered. ♪ i put a spell on you >> you've said she was one of the greatest entertainers of all time but she paid a price. what price? >> yes, oh my goodness, her heart her peace of mind, self-actualization, wards, being richard, so many material rewards and goals that many artists go for. not to mention, their own personal satisfaction. my mom, forewent many of those things in order to stand up for what she believed in. society no colored people in this country get to be second class fools ♪ >> in temps of the civil rights movement her dream of being a classical ploou sition, he

. >> after we reviewed the video that simon showed us, we approached ms.n, advised her that the incident had been caught on tape and it had been determined she was the primary aggressor in this situation. we placed miss brown under arrest. >> she pleads guilty to assault and aggravated menacing. she serves five days in county jail. even though fulmer's video is useful to the police, hendrickson warns once again against taking matters into your own hands. >> confronting the suspect in this type of situation isn't advisable. if you can keep your distance while you're on the phone with the 911 dispatcher. that way you're not put ing yourself in harm's way. for simon to exit the people, put himself into a dangerous situation. >> as for simon, he has second thoughts about his actions that day. >> it's probably something i should have just let go and just keep driving because it wasn't worth all the hassle. it wasn't worth what it was. >> it's not good to lose your cool with another driver. and you really should take a deep breath before you scream at a police o