“They are the worst of the worst,” a family member of a victim openly declares 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 men serving life sentences for crimes they committed before they reached the age of of the majority. This documentary provides viewers with insight into the perspectives of parents, child abusers, victims' families, and attorneys/legislators involved. We have recently learned about how the federal court system, state court system, and sentencing work, but here we can understand more about the system. We can listen to the authors tell their story and perspective on being arrested or placed in a dire situation with no way out. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Personal reflection after watching the documentary What I found interesting is how, from the beginning of the documentary, Bikel places a strong emphasis on confirming that children really cannot understand nature of the crime they committed. Bikel appears to have settled in the state of Colorado because the state once had a progressive juvenile justice system with an emphasis on rescuing even the most troubled children. As defense attorney Maureen Cain said, "These courts were founded on the principle that they don't really care about what the child did, we care about why he did it." is addressed to the court. This quickly changed, with what they called "the summer of violence" in 1993. The community, in constant fear of being killed every time they walked out the door, fought back, resulting in quickly convinced lawmakers to change the system. As a lawyer in the film states, "Young people who committed crimes committed as adults should be treated like adults." Since adults can be sentenced to life without the possibility of parole, young people should do so as well. The law was changed so that prosecutors, not judges, determined whether juveniles were tried as adults. Early in the documentary, a family member of one victim says these people were “the worst of the worst.” The worst of the worst are child rapists, torturers, terrorists, mass murderers and others who have committed crimes so appalling that even opponents of the death penalty might be tempted to make an exception. From what we saw in the film, I wouldn't consider them the worst of the worst, but rather hardened criminals, who our society considers extreme dangers to society. I say this because these young men's stories of extenuating circumstances are difficult to evaluate; due to physical and sexual abuse, terrible judgment, or simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Bikel places these men in a light where the viewer can see them as hardened criminals. According to Word Reference, this term is used to describe an individual who is so accustomed to a life of crime that it has become normal. “Rendered insensible or insensible; hard hearted” because no one leaves prison the same. The moment the camera panned to Jacob Ind's face, my immediate thought was, "He looks lost." To me he looked like he was in a trance or some sort of daze, it seemed like he still didn't fully understand his actions. Something Jacob said.