"In the subculture of adolescent boys, the greatest taboo is being homosexual," said FBI special agent Kenneth Lanning, a veteran of more than 1,000 such cases. b) or that nine obscene computer games were found in Friedman"s classroom such as "Dirty Movie" ("animation of woman who undresses, spreads her legs and then masturbates/ urinates"), and "Seasons Greeting" ("animation of Mickey Mouse, dressed in a Santa suit, appears with erection and ejaculates"). The signers are a 24-year-old law student and a 27-year-old businessman; their identities have been confirmed by the judge who presided over the trial, Abbey Boklan, who is now retired. Mrs. Friedman was out shopping for Thanksgiving dinner. It is as much about the peculiar Friedman family - Arnold and his wife, Elaine, and their sons David, Seth and Jesse - as it is about any "issues" at all. The family was distraught and destroyed. And its considerable pathos. GARDEN CITY, N.Y. Jesse Friedman, whose imprisonment for child molestation was captured in the award-winning documentary "Capturing the Friedmans," wants a new trial based on information revealed in the film. She served and held leadership roles in several Jewish not-for-profit organizations over the course of her life. "It is a sensitive time for the case because it is pending in front of the court, so I'm not sure if it's smart for me to be commenting," Jarecki wrote in an e-mail response to questions Newsday posed earlier this month. And he has worn his electronic ankle bracelet, thus far, for a year and a half. raided the Friedman home, looking for child pornography, they found piles Many assume that child sexual abuse must leave gaping tears and telltale scars, but due to the nature of children's bodies, even when there are physical signs, most disappear in a few days. The boy's mother remembered her son's reply. We did not exaggerate. I don't write this to make an argument either way, but rather to point up the major coup of Jarecki's film. Not because his family was in jeopardy, but because they took his pictures. "I have no agenda -- the motion is Jesse's and speaks for itself." Today, sixteen years after he was accused of child molestation, Jesse is out of jail. Sgt. Arnold died in prison in 1995. If this flawed documentary film has a certain "haunting" brilliance, as many movie critics have said, you are what haunts it. The children were unable to identify the two positively in police line-ups. these horrible things, reveals something so small, so indisputable and so The judge who presided over the original case has proven to be just as one-sided, the lawyers say. Instead, they said some of the methods were used by mental health experts in therapy after the children had provided their statements of abuse. Jarecki followed David for months. Jesse Friedman was accused in more than 200 of those counts. On the criminal justice system he states, "It's a human system. But you can say, from day one, that you started out with a flawed family.". Whatever the truth, the documentary captures a real story filled with very real pain. "He didn't talk. "Don't forget -- there never was a trial. Files were established for each child. Gary ____ was a student in Mr. Friedman's class from the time he was in 3rd Grade to the end of 6th Grade. During hours of interviews with David Friedman, Jarecki learned the family's history, and a film about kids' entertainment became one about alleged crimes against children. ", Silberg says "whether or not Jarecki wins an Oscar, it is children in our society who are the big losers when the public is misled about sexual crimes against children. In a publicity barrage, various officials in the case have been defending the way they handled it. Onorato, Det. The first detective sent out to interview one 10-year-old boy was surprised when the boy -- upon meeting the detective -- immediately handed him a flier that advertised Elaine Friedman's in-home day-care center. We believe that society benefits when the public has access to accurate information regarding child abuse and other forms of interpersonal violence. We weren't ''Big Brother.'' OUTCOME: The court vacated the order of pre-trial detention against defendant because the trial court's implied finding that defendant was a flight risk was not supported by sufficient evidence. What about the witness who was left out of the film? ", However, Jesse Friedman, now 34, is seeking a new trial to overturn his conviction based on information revealed in the documentary. Joel Friedman writes, "After 46 years as a faculty member at Tulane Law School, my wife and I decided to move to Scottsdale, AZ, as two of our three children are now living and employed in Tempe. "I said if you don't arrest him after what I just heard, I'm going to buy a gun and kill him.". Onorato said he just wanted parents to know all the things that could possibly go wrong if they proceeded to trial. The film shows her being mistreated by her sons for questioning Arnold's innocence. He knew the territory first-hand. But a few years ago O'Malley and his colleagues noticed that the volume of child porn seized by customs agents at O'Hare International Airport and other points of entry for overseas mail was dropping off. The documentary reveals Arnold had abused his younger brother when he was 8 and admitted having sex with boys. Now his close-set, ice-blue eyes stared straight ahead. "I also feel these issues are current for them. "I saw a huge, huge amount of anger that was harbored inside his heart towards Arnold Friedman and his son Jesse, and to Ross Goldstein," said the father. At his many appearances promoting the film, Jarecki has stopped short of saying that Jesse Friedman is innocent, but he has clearly taken his side. "Just about every class was videotaped. The Friedman case, for example, had unfolded during an era of national mass hysteria over purported instances of child sex-abuse in group settings. There is an option available on the DVD whereby you can hear Jarecki explain how he made his editing decisions as you watch the documentary. She also said that Mr. Jarecki omitted a tearful confession by Jesse Friedman in prison on Geraldo Rivera's talk show in 1989. The mother of the victim who spoke to The Times said her son appeared to recover quickly after he was molested at the age of 7 but had severe emotional problems when he became an adolescent. Arnie." Jesse Friedman was released in 2001. He's not self-absorbed, advocating for a second look at our justice system and the basic human sympathy to believe that at least some of our prisoners might be innocent. "If you were a favorite, you'd get your [his?] David Friedman Source He is forced to wear an electronic tracking device around his ankle and has a curfew. When he was 10, Jesse began psychiatric therapy. There's Frances Galasso, who supervised the investigation as head of the sex-crimes unit. "This is the constant reminder I live with every day," Gregory said, "that I was abused. Disclaimer: Inclusion in this website does not constitute a recommendation or endorsement. These two experiences came together unexpectedly years later for Jarecki, by then a father himself, during an "intense kids' birthday party" on Manhattan's Upper East Side. His court-appointed lawyer, James Schoren, describes him as a "meek, mild very pathetic person," who had psychological problems dating to his own abuse as a child. Something else betrayed him when that weakness was exposed publicly: the Aristotelian thing, his pride. It is clear that he leaves out a whole lot of important evidence," Cheit said. . Boklan ordered Friedman immediately jailed without bail pending sentencing Jan. 24. ", Contact: Joyanna Silberg, PhD, 410-938-4974. 3142(f)(1) (crimes of violence, offenses for which the sentence is life imprisonment or death, serious drug offenses, or felonies committed by certain repeat offenders), or when there is a serious risk that the defendant will flee, or obstruct or attempt to obstruct justice. . That's only occasionally a problem - for example, Witness Judd Maltin states in his sworn affidavit that these games were commonly available and that the ones found by the police came from Judd's own collection of computer discs which he had given to the Friedmans. We have migrated to a new commenting platform. To the father, the uncovering of what had happened to his son has shattered any illusions of the innocence of youth. Assorted pornography and erotic computer games were found at the home, according to court records. Voting for the Oscars closes on Tuesday. Pursuant to Judge Costantino's order, Friedman has been placed in segregation in the Metropolitan Correction Center. HN4In other cases concerning risk of flight, we have required more than evidence of the commission [**6] of a serious crime and the fact of a potentially long sentence to support a finding of risk of flight. He has entered and won film competitions by the dozen. Parents of many of the victims say they fear that the materials featuring their children will be distributed in the child pornography netherworld. Still, a raft of damning things are clear, some from my reporting, others from the film. Jesse Friedman, left, works with attorney Mark Gimpel, right, while preparingto file a motion to overturn a 1988 conviction on. Oscar-nominated documentaries usually don't grab much attention amid all the megastar, big-budget films up for awards. He said the judge, Boklan, had made up her mind before hearing the evidence. VEHICLE 1 THEN CONTINUED EAST OUT OF CONTROL WHEN THE RIGHT REAR STRUCK THE UTILTY BOX ON THE SOUTH EAST CORNER OF YAMATO ROAD AND BOCA WEST DRIVE. Victims recounted being held down by one attacker and raped by another. Sentencing before Boklan was set for July 6. Then she left the room so he would read what was on it. First, you choose your interviewees - and though you try to be fair, you can't talk to everybody. Did Jesse help his father perpetrate these horrendous crimes despite many of his friends vouching for his innocence? Arnold admitted to being attracted to young boys, but denied molesting them. "If he was truly repentant and remorseful for what went on, where are those pictures demanded one mother. Onorato denied pressuring the parents. Mr. Friedman, now 44, married and running an online book-selling business, was freed on parole in 2001 after serving 13 years and is now classified as a Level 3 violent sex offender, which bars him from being near playgrounds, schools, houses of worship and other places children may gather. It leaves out information that, if included, wouldn't leave that doubt," says Joyanna Silberg, child psychologist and vice president of the Leadership Council on Child Abuse and Interpersonal Violence. I did not shy away from showing the disgusting nature of Arnold Friedman's pedophilia, and I did not shy away from showing the disturbing failures in the police investigation.". "In the years I knew him there was never a scintilla, not a breath of this kind of thing," Speiser said, referring to the abuse case. But when Jarecki lured David to an interview on the front steps of his childhood home in Great Neck, N.Y. on Long Island, "he became a little wobbly and emotional" and mentioned, in passing, his mother's suicide attempt. At those trials, alleged child victims were repeatedly interviewed until they gave increasingly lurid accounts of sodomy, other abuse and even satanic rituals. "I don't miss my old life.". Arnold Friedman was arrested on a variety of child-abuse charges, and his wife was arrested for attempted assault. Two are included in the film, one on camera and another on audiotape. Have you seen Andrew Jarecki's award-winning film? The mother was devastated by this sudden death," Mrs. Friedman said. "We want to unlock information that the DA was obligated to give us at the time," he said. ". He is scheduled to return to court Monday. We remand so that the district court can set [**7] conditions for Friedman's release under 18 U.S.C. Why didn't the boys tell anyone? "It predated home videotape, so he had never gotten a copy of it. He said Arnold fondled and later sodomized him. If an injustice was done to the Friedmans, you are honor bound to undo it. I'm not out trying to convince anybody of my innocence. One boy is deathly afraid of fire. Elaine, Arnold's wife, never enjoyed these games. And the testimony was compelling enough. There were signs, in retrospect, that the Friedmans were not an ordinary family. Physical evidence is typically rare in such cases. The children had not told police about being photographed or the presence of additional adults during the classes before March 25 when Arnold Friedman's plea was accepted, officials said. ", By March 1987 the sting was ready. In United States v. Jackson, for example, the defendant, who was arrested on a narcotics charge that gave rise to a presumption of flight under 18 U.S.C. You believe there is truth out there, and you make this film to go after it. Everything else about the case is up for debate, including the extent of his collection; whether he molested any of his computer students; and whether Jesse's indictment was anything but a horrendous case of guilt by association. They also did not find any of the hundreds of photographs and videotapes they alleged the Friedmans had made. The "Capturing" movie, which has already won many awards and is considered a likely Academy Award nominee, is basically about the agonizing process by which father and son decide to avoid that courtroom confrontation with you. Compulsive masturbation and fear of going to a specific place can also occur. The therapist used hypnosis, he said, to try and get him to the point where he could talk about what had been done to him without throwing up. I hate little kids," he declared without blinking. Some of them still wet their beds, take baseball bats to bed with them or are unable to sleep. We were the international Jewish Coalition Against Sexual Abuse/Assault (JCASA); and were dedicated to ending sexual violence in Jewish communities globally. The issue, said Galasso, is not Jesse's plight, but that of the victims. Was the abuse as reckless and open and repetitive as they said? Other high profile child molestation cases, such as the McMartins ended in a complete dismissal of the charges. The parents could simply pull up out front and his son Jesse would escort the kids into and out of the house. That kind of exposure would have been gratuitous, Morris says, because everything about the film speaks to his own preoccupations and artistic vision. ), The new DVD material, however, elucidates just how flawed the Friedman investigation was. It's a very powerful hold to have on someone, to have those pictures. What Arnold and Jesse admitted under oath: The film shows--but minimizes the fact- - that Arnold and Jesse admitted to molesting 13 boys, ages 7-11. ' Never would let me in.". McNutt, 38, an unemployed Vietnam vet, sheepishly told detectives at the scene: "I thought it would be fun to take." The parents fear the pictures will be circulated among pedophiles and will one day surface and embarrass the children. They said the children claim to have been extensively photographed. Soon the children found that Arnold knew they'd discovered the racy pictures. They often manage to find jobs such as teachers, police officers, doctors or nurses, or activities like scout leader or coach that bring them into regular contact with children. NEW YORK -- Two men whom Jesse Friedman pleaded guilty to sexually abusing as boys have written an open letter to Academy Awards voters, speaking out against the Oscar-nominated documentary about the Friedman family. We see him, through the home movies, playing on the beach with his kids, opening presents, etc. ", Apprised that Boklan was speaking out against the film, Jesse Friedman's lawyer, Mark Gimpel, released a statement that read, in part: "We have presented a detailed 77-page legal motion to the Nassau County Court, with approximately 900 pages of exhibits, that provides compelling evidence that Jesse Friedman pled guilty to a crime he did not commit. Shortly after arriving in Scottsdale, I was approached by the administration of Arizona State University College of Law to teach there. One young boy, who revealed what happened only after numerous visits by detectives, repeatedly pounded his head against a wall while describing the sexual abuse. 1987). I guess you could be a nice, sweet kid and be a child abuser, but it really made no sense. Kinky Friedman is a larger-than-life figure, a wise-cracking product of the land that he's lived on and loved most of his life. A photo showed Arnold Friedman and his son Jesse handcuffed to each other, the local sheriff standing next to them. We were just goofing around for the camera. Meanwhile, Arnold, Jesse, and Ross Goldstein, 18, a friend of Jesse's, would be indicted in Nassau County on a total of 464 counts of sodomy, sexual abuse, using a child in a sexual performance and endangering the welfare of a child.