As promised, here is the press release for Reckless Indifference.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Marisa Spears
Phone: (310) 203-0606 ext. 18
Email: mspears@slextreme.com
Choices Releases Film on Controversial Felony Murder Case
Los Angeles, CA (August 15, 2006) - Choices, Inc. proudly announces the release of Reckless Indifference, an inside look behind one of the most controversial murder cases in recent memory. A searing indictment of the American legal system, the DVD features a new, updated Epilogue, along with an exclusive full-length interview with Brandon Hein available on the Choices website, www.choicesvideo.net. Hein was convicted under California's felony-murder law and has spent the last ten years in a California state prison, a sentence which law professor Alan Dershowitz terms "an outrage...I believe it's cruel and unusual punishment."
Reckless Indifference tells of a classic suburban nightmare of teens, drugs, parents, and prison. After a backyard brawl resulted in the death of a Los Angeles Police Department officer's son, the ensuing trial sent four teenage boys to prison for life without the possibility of parole, even though only one committed the crime. Described as a "heart-wrenching story [that] you will find yourself thinking about long after you've seen it," the film was recently named an Editor's Choice by Video Librarian magazine.
The documentary also reveals the naïveté, guilt, and denial of middle-class families caught in the criminal justice system. The prosecution exploited a little-known law to maximum effect. The "felony-murder rule" states that anyone present during the commission of a felony where death occurs is automatically liable for First Degree Murder. Four teenage boys - only one of whom wielded a weapon - now sit in Level IV Maximum Security State Prisons for the rest of their lives. This tragic story begets a "powerful portrait of suburban America, and the illusions suburbanites have about crime,
Choices Releases Award-Winning Film on
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punishment, the safety of their neighborhoods, and most of all, about their own children," says critic David Ralston of Movie Gurus. With revealing interviews with legal expert Alan Dershowitz and family members from both sides, Reckless Indifference presents a case study of a true American tragedy.
Larry Rattner, co-president of Choices, commented, "We look forward to bringing this important film to a larger audience." Choices, Inc. will release Reckless Indifference on DVD August 15, 2006. The DVD includes a lesson plan and guidebook for educators. SRP is $49.95, and orders may be placed at our website, www.choicesvideo.net.
About Choices:
Choices, Inc. is a specialty distributor of quality documentaries, educational programming, and feature films. The company believes that documentaries are highly effective teaching tools, and provides both lesson plans and guidebooks as a resource for educators. More information is available online at www.choicesvideo.net.
