Review of The Documentary Episode "When Kids Get Life"

“These are the worst of the worst”, a victim’s family member openly states at the beginning of the film. ‘When Kids Get Life’, written by Ofra Bikel, a Frontline documentary filmmaker who investigates the stories of five Colorado males serving life in prison for crimes they committed before reaching the age of majority. This documentary offers viewers a look into the perspectives of parents, child perpetrators, victim’s families, and the attorneys/legislators involved. We recently were introduced into how the federal court system, state court system, and sentencings work, but here we can understand more about the system. We get to listen to the perpetrators tell their stories, and their perspectives on being caught or placed in a dire situation with absolutely no way out.

Personal Reflection After Watching the Documentary

Something I thought was interesting was how from the beginning of the documentary, Bikel places a strong emphasis on confirming that kids really can’t comprehend the nature of the crime their committing. Bikel seems to have settled on the state Colorado, because the state used to have a progressive juvenile-justice system with an emphasis on saving even the most troubled child. As Maureen Cain, defense attorney, stated “These courts were founded on the principle that they don’t really care what the child did, we care why they got to court”. This soon changes, with what they called the ‘Summer of Violence’, in 1993. The community, in constant fear of being killed every time they stepped out the door, lashed back, and this soon enough convinced the legislature to change the system. As an attorney stated in the film, “youths who committed adult crimes ought to be treated as adults. Since adults could be sentenced to life without parole, so should the youths”. The legislative proceeded to change so that that prosecutors, not judges, would determine if juveniles were tried as adults.

At the beginning of the documentary, a victim’s family member states that these people were the “worst of the worst”. Worst of the worst consist of child rapists, torturers, terrorists, mass murdered, and others who have committed crimes so appalling that even death-penalty opponents might be tempted to make an exception. From what we’ve seen in the film, I wouldn’t consider them the worst of the worst, but more-so hardened criminals, who our society deems extreme dangers to society. I say this because these young men’s stories of extenuating circumstances are hard to evaluate; due to physical and sexual abuse, terrible judgement, or just being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Bikel places these men in a light as to where the viewer may see them as more of an hardened criminal. According to Word Reference, this term is used to describe an individual that is so used to a life of crime that is has become normal. “Rendered unfeeling or callous; hard-hearted” because no one leaves prison the same. The moment the camera panned onto Jacob Ind’s face, my immediate thought was, ‘He looks lost’. To me, he seemed like he was in a trance or a daze of sorts, he seemed like he still hadn’t fully grasped his actions. Something that Jacob said in the film really stood out to me as well. When Bikel interviewed him, he stated “All he wanted was something to end.” He continues saying how he didn’t understand the gravity of their deaths. He honestly didn’t think anyone would be affected, he even stated how he didn’t think they felt any pain. He was so disconnected with everything around him.

Bikel’s film tries to address both sides. Parents of a youth who was sentenced to life by association, and a victim’s mother. I empathized with the mother when she stated that parents, with convicted kids can still see them for Thanksgiving, while others only have a cemetery. I think the punishment/sentence should fit the bill but like I stated earlier in this case there were extenuating circumstances involved. Two of the men weren’t even directly responsible for the killings that were committed, but by association and bad timing they were given life in prison.

Overall, this documentary was informative. It gave me a deeper appreciation for life, and not to take it for granted. Getting a glimpse into the lives of these men, the families, and the system was both intriguing and sobering, because we see the shift in how the entire identity of children who commit heinous crimes gets lost. To society, they’re no longer viewed as children; they’re not even considered human anymore.