Just Ask My Children is a historical drama which is based on a true story: a case of wrongful conviction.
This historical drama was shown on US television in 2001 and released on DVD in 2002.
Here is some basic information about it:
** Directed by Arvin Brown
** Written by Deborah Serra
** Run time: 91 minutes
The cast includes the following:
** Virginia Madsen as Brenda Kniffen (mother)
** Jeffrey Nordling as Scott Kniffen (father)
** Ryan Wilson as Brian Kniffen (age 6) – younger son
** Dan Bird as Brian (age 12-15)
** Gregory Smith as Brian (age 16-20)
** Cody Dorkin as Brandon Kniffen (age 9) – older son
** Scott Bailey as Brandon (age 15-23)
** Barbara Tarbuck as Marilyn Kniffen – Scott’s mother
** Adrian Sparks as Richard “Dick” Kniffen – Scott’s father
** Maree Cheatham as Corene Oliver – Brenda’s mother
** Spencer Garrett as Alvin McCuan – a father
** Karina Logue as Debbie McCuan – a mother
** Diana Castle as Vera Bradley – a social worker
** Robert Joy as Sam Bennis – a district attorney
** John Billingsley as Andrew “Andy” Gindes – a prosecutor
** David Allen Blackburn as Dr Bruce Woodling
** John Mahon as Judge Marvin Ferguson
** Scott Paulin as Kevin Conway – the first defense attorney
** Graham Beckel as Denver Dunn – a private investigator
** Casey Biggs as Michael Snedeker – the second defense attorney
As stated above, this television movie is based on a true story. When it begins, we already know how it is going to end.
The basic facts are part of the public record. They are not a secret. I feel free to mention some of them here.
This historical drama takes place in Bakersfield, Kern County, in the state of California.
The story begins in 1982 and ends in 1996. It is one of the Kern County Child Abuse Cases.
One morning in 1982, police officers raid the house where the Kniffen family lives. They arrest Brenda and remove the children who are at the time 6 and 9 years old.
Having completed this raid, the police officers move on to the place where Scott works and they arrest him as well.
The parents as well as the children are frightened. They do not understand what is going on.
In the police station, the parents are told that they are charged with a serious crime: sexual molestation of their children.
At the same time, police officers also arrest a couple who are friends of the Kniffen family: Alvin and Debbie McCuan.
In this movie, the focus is on the fate of the Kniffen family, while the fate of the McCuan family remains in the background.
When Scott and Brenda are confronted with the charge, they both deny it. They both say this charge is absurd:
“Just ask my children.”
Hence the title of the movie.
When a social worker talks to the boys, they deny the charge at first, but when they are put under pressure, hard pressure, they give in and say what the social worker wants to hear.
The parents are released on bail while they are waiting for the trial to begin, but the boys are not returned to them. They are kept in isolation by the authorities and the parents are not allowed to see them.
The trial takes place in 1984. Scott and Brenda hope this will be the end of the story.
They are confident the judge and the jury will understand that the charges are absurd and let them go home. They trust the system, but the system fails.
During the trial both boys testify against them – although it is obvious that they are very reluctant to do this – and the jury finds the parents guilty.
The judge hands out some very long sentences: Scott and Brenda get 240 years each; Alvin gets 268 years, while Debbie gets 252 years.
Scott’s parents offer to take the children in, but this is not allowed, so the children are moved from one foster home to another.
While Scott and Brenda are in prison, Scott’s parents do everything they can to help them. Among other things, they contact a private investigator, Denver Dunn.
At first, he is skeptical. He does not believe Scott and Brenda are innocent, but once he has taken a closer look at the case and the evidence, he changes his mind.
Now he believes they are the victims of a wrongful conviction.
He contacts a lawyer and convinces him to take the case. In 1996, when they go to court again, a new judge overturns the old conviction:
Scott and Brenda are released and exonerated.
They are happy to be released, but they had to spend twelve years in prison for a crime which they did not commit!
Alvin and Debbie McCuan were also released and exonerated, but this fact is not shown, because the main focus of the drama is on the Kniffen family.
This drama explores the case in great detail. We follow the authorities as they plan their moves in the case.
We follow Scott and Brenda while they are in jail and we see what this experience does to them.
We follow Scott’s parents and we see how they try to support their son and their daughter-in-law.
Finally, we follow the boys Brian and Brandon and we see what this experience does to them.
While this historical drama is based on a true story, it is not a documentary film. It is a dramatized version of events.
Not everything happened exactly as portrayed here, but the basic story is true.
What was the origin of the charges?
How did the whole thing start?
As explained in the drama, the whole thing could be traced back to Debbie McCuan’s step-mother Mary Ann Barbour, who is never shown in the movie.
Mary Ann Barbour suffered from mental and psychological problems, but the court refused to allow her medical record to be introduced as evidence.
Just Ask My
Children is an excellent drama about a horrible case. What is so good about it?
(1) It is captivating, dramatic, and emotional.
(2) The script is well-written and the actors play their roles well.
(3) It is based on a true story.
What do reviewers say about this drama?
Here are some results:
67 percent = Rotten Tomatoes (the audience)
71 percent = IMDb
On Amazon there are at the moment 93 ratings of this product; including 30 with reviews.
The average rating is 4.6 stars, which corresponds to a rating of 92 percent.
In my opinion, the first two ratings are too low, while the rating on Amazon is more appropriate.
I want to go all the way to the top with this product. I think it deserves a rating of five stars (100 percent).
PS # 1. Some books:
Satan’s Silence: Ritual Abuse and the Making of a Modern American Witch Hunt
by Debbie Nathan and Michael Snedeker
(1996 = Hardcover)
(2001 = Paperback)
Mean Justice: A Town’s Terror, a Prosecutor’s Power, a Betrayal of Innocence
by Edward Humes
(1999 = Hardcover)
(2012 = Paperback)
The Witch Hunt Narrative: Politics, Psychology, and the Sexual Abuse of Children
by Ross E. Cheit
(2014 = Hardcover)
(2016 = Paperback)
Wrongful Convictions and Forensic Science Errors: Case Studies and Root Causes
By John Morgan
(2023)
PS # 2. Witch Hunt is a documentary film released in 2008 about the American judicial system. It is produced and narrated by Sean Penn.
PS # 3. I am Innocent by J. R. Nash is an annotated encyclopaedia of wrongful convictions (2008).
PS # 4. To find more information about the topic, you can visit the following website:
The National Registry of Exonerations
This website was established by the University of Michigan.
PS # 5. How to Create a Sex Scandal is a documentary film which premiered in 2023. This film is divided into three episodes.
PS # 6. The Outreau Case: A French Nightmare is a documentary film which premiered in 2024. This four-part documentary is available on Netflix.
** Language = French
** Subtitles = English
*****
Just Ask My Children
The outrageous true story of
innocent parents jailed for 12 years
A family torn apart
by a system out of control
A television movie
which premiered in 2001
*****
No comments:
Post a Comment