CRIME STORY // A FILM REVIEW OF "KIDS FOR CASH"
When kids misbehave, there has to be consequences, correct? One bad action needs to be corrected by a positive reaction, letting the child know that what they did was not okay and hopefully they can learn from their mistake. Kids misbehave often simply because they're kids, and it's up to us (re: adults) to help them learn from their mistakes. But when is punishment too much? When is one reaction not justified here in the states? The powerful new documentary KIDS FOR CASH exposes two corrupt small town Judge's actions and how one of them sentenced over 3,000 kids in his tenure before being brought up on charges that they both were profiting from their rulings. America. Home of the brave.
Former Judge Mark Civarella ran for office on the platform that he would reduce crimes in his state committed by juveniles. He mentions things like murder and rape, but once he gets into office he starts jailing kids for offenses such as "fighting at school" and "putting up a fake MySpace profile (the last of which ended up serving 4 years. 4 YEARS!)." The tragedy of Columbine only furthered fearful support for his tactics of zero tolerance as one kid after another was sentenced in his courtroom. People involved noted that it didn't matter if a kid had legal counsel or not. They were guilty once they stepped in his courtroom. However, once the investigation begins, many questionable things came to surface, such as an alarming number of kids were talked out of having legal counse; and "finder's fee's" were paid to the Judges, to the tune north of 3 million dollars. What did these kids do to deserve such awful and biased treatment? And why did no one care about what he was doing until it became clear that he was making money? Unethical treatment of a child's welfare is fine as long as no money is passed? How did we fail them so badly?
Director Robert Mays both captures your attention at each turn and enrages you with the facts of this case. Also troubling is how Mark Civarella and his co-hort (and possible ringleader) Former Judge Michael Conahan appear willingly throughout the film, pleading their case as if they did nothing wrong. It's actually incredible that Mays and his crew got them to participate (without their lawyers ever knowing) for 4 years as the case went on and on. We also follow five of the families affected by the scandal and their stories are heartbreaking. Seeing what they went through is more than troubling; it's embarrasing and full of pain and wasted years of life. Will these kids end up back in school after "learning their lesson" behind bars? Statistics say no, and at least in one of these cases the child is no longer with us to have that opportunity. One of the most powerful scenes is when Civarella is outside the courtroom after receiving his sentencing and one boy's mother screams and flails at him, pushing out all of the anger and hate she has been bottling up inside for the last four years. She screams at him for ruing her life and taking away her son (he ended up taking his own life). I broke down watching this. Mark Civarella? Stone faced.
Mays does an extrodinary job presenting this case in new and fresh ways, even if you already think you know it by heart. The real question remains: How can we stop failing our own children and shape them into the leaders they need to become? How can we set an example for them, pave a path for them to walk on, show them the difference between right and wrong? I'm not sure what the answers are, but the actions these two judges show here are not it. Zero tolerance is not the answer. Can we finally start admitting that we don't have the answers, accept our mistakes and can we finally start asking questions? I hope so. Our future generations are depending on it.
MATEO'S GRADE: A
Directed by: Robert Mays
Rated PG-13: Adult Language
BOTTOM LINE: Kids for Cash is a twisty, hard hitting documentary. One that call for justice and deserves answers for all of the questions it presents.