Media & News
Justice For Jesse
Live.HuffingtonPost.com, April 26, 2013, Hosted by Mike Sacks
Jesse Friedman served 14 years in prison for a series of sex crimes he may not have committed. Filmmaker Andrew Jarecki, who told Friedman's story in the documentary 'Capturing The Friedmans,' is now working on a campaign to overturn his conviction....
Jesse Friedman Attorney Seeks Key Documents In 1988 Child Sex Abuse Case
HuffingtonPost.com, April 23, 2013, Newsday, By Ann Givens
A lawyer for Jesse Friedman, a Great Neck man whose 1988 conviction on sex abuse charges is being re-examined by the Nassau district attorney's office, has filed a motion asking a judge to release several key documents in the case....
Opinion: Liberating the Friedmans — A rotten conviction for child abuse must be overturned
New York Daily News, March 28, 2013, By Andrew Jarecki
Who do you believe? That was the slogan on the poster for my 2003 documentary, “Capturing the Friedmans,” about a father and son controversially imprisoned in the 1980s for allegedly molesting hundreds of children attending after-school computer classes in their Long Island home....
Epstein: A mom's journey with the Friedmans
Newsday, March 28, 2013
Hysteria ensnared Great Neck 25 years ago when scores of allegations of sexual abuse were lodged against Arnold Friedman, his son, Jesse, and a teenage friend. All three, after being presented with unspeakable charges based on the testimony of 14 little boys, pleaded guilty....
Uncapturing a Friedman
Salon.com, March 13, 2013, By Daniel D'Addario
“Capturing the Friedmans,” Andrew Jarecki’s documentary about a Long Island family caught in a firestorm of sexual abuse allegations, came out in 2003, and the intervening years have not been kind to one of its subjects....
Exonerating the Friedmans
TabletMag.com, November 21, 2012, by Tracy Levy
Filmmaker Andrew Jarecki is trying to overturn Jesse Friedman’s 1989 Great Neck molestation conviction....
Is Actual Innocence "Capturing the Friedmans," 25 Years Later?
HuffingtonPost.com, November 27, 2012, by Perry Binder
On November 25, 1987, I was sprawled out on my parents' couch, when my favorite high school teacher appeared on the TV news. Arnold Friedman was a retired NYC instructor who taught computer classes in his home for local kids....
New Filmed Evidence in Capturing the FriedmansCase Screens in Long Island
Slate.com, November 21, 2012, by Jeffrey Bloomer
Two years after a federal court excoriated his prosecution and declared it likely that he was wrongly convicted, Jesse Friedman remains branded by the state of Connecticut as one of its most serious threats to children....
A School Bus Driver’s Win: Does it Uncapture the Friedmans?
Dan Wise posted: "Film director Andrew Jarecki made Jesse Friedman famous in his haunting and acclaimed film released in 2003, “Capturing the Friedmans.”
Re-Capturing The Friedman Story
Mother of alleged victim speaks out, in light of new evidence suggesting the Great Neck father and son were wrongly convicted.
Hella Winston for Jewish Week
Arline Epstein was stunned by the recent revelation by her son claiming he was not in fact abused.
Sensational ’80s L.I. Abuse Case Getting Fresh Look
The Jewish Week, July 17, 2012, by Hella Winston
New evidence coming to light suggesting Jesse Friedman’s innocence.
Defendant and Attorney Complain About Secrecy in Investigation of Notorious Child Abuse Case
New York Law Journal, July 10, 2012
Nearly two years after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit took the unusual step of urging a "complete review" of what it suggested could have been the wrongful conviction of an innocent man in a notorious case of mass child molestation, the defendant and his lawyer have become frustrated at what they say is the secretive way in which the Nassau County District Attorney's Office is conducting the probe.
Jesse Friedman Case Re-Examination
Anton News, June 29, 2012
So far, four original complainants have recanted
The review of Jesse Friedman's case by the Nassau County District Attorney's office, while conducted to protect the confidentiality of those associated with the case, is uncovering new and important evidence that is being examined by a panel of experts appointed by District Attorney Kathleen Rice.
False Confessions: What Lies Ahead for the Wrongfully Convicted?
New York Law Journal, June 15, 2012, by Earl H. Nemser
...Later in 2010, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit issued an extraordinary "advisory opinion" in Friedman v. Rehal,4 finding that current scientific research demonstrated that victim reports of sex crimes were unreliable when induced by "suggestive memory recovery tactics." In Friedman these kinds of reports were used by the Nassau County District Attorney's Office to secure a guilty plea based on a confession later claimed to be false.
Jesse Friedman, Resolutely Maintains Innocence
Great Neck Record, Friday, 25 May 2012
The Friedman child abuse case that gripped Great Neck, and the nation, almost 25 years ago continues to reverberate. Jesse Friedman, who served 13 years in prison and was paroled in 2001, has continued to assert his innocence and to fight to overturn his conviction.
Jesse Friedman fights to clear his name
News 12 Long Island Feature Interview, May 21, 2012
Jesse Friedman, Who Pleaded Guilty To Child Abuse 25 Years Ago,
Says He's Innocent
CBSNewYork, May 21, 2012
Now Free, He's Seeking To Clear His Name From Notorious & Infamous Case
Jesse Friedman
News 12 Doug Geed Blog, News 12 Long Island, May 20, 2012
You may remember the case of the Friedmans. A father and son from Great Neck convicted of alleged crimes that made national news when they surfaced in the late 1980′s.
Friedman seeks to clear name of sex abuse
Newsday, April 20, 2012
A man who served 13 years in prison after pleading guilty to sexually abusing a number of children at his father's Great Neck computer school says he will open a hotline seeking new information in the case in an effort to clear his name.
It's the right move to review Jesse Friedman's case
Newsday Editorial, August 17, 2010
Sometimes, the search for justice demands taking another look. Troubling questions raised by a federal appeals court over Jesse Friedman's high-profile conviction for sexually abusing children 23 years ago call for a review of the case.
Hypnosis Rigged Sex Case Against Him, Man Says
New York Times, October 20, 2007
The 2003 documentary "Capturing the Friedmans" raised questions about the prosecution of Jesse Friedman, who in 1988 pleaded guilty as a teenager to 243 counts of sex crimes against children he and his father taught in computer classes in their Long Island home.
Friedman appeals to reverse sex abuse guilty plea
Newday, October 4, 2007
Jesse Friedman's last chance to clear his name of child molestation charges now rests in the hands of a federal judge who heard evidence on his case at a hearing yesterday.
Hearing Ordered Over Whether Hypnosis Tainted L.I. Abuse Case
New York Times, July 24, 2007
A federal judge on Long Island on Monday ordered a hearing to determine if hypnosis may have played a role in persuading children to testify against Jesse Friedman, who served 13 years in prison for sexually abusing children in a 1980s case later made famous by the documentary “Capturing the Friedmans.”
Friedman says film shows his innocence
Seattle Times, January 9, 2004
By Frank Eltman, The Associated Press
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.
Inmates Lose Good Time for Program Refusal
D.O.C.S. Today Magazine, October 1999
Jesse was denied parole four times and lost part of his "good time" as well because it is NYS Department of Correctional Services policy to withhold good time for "...lack of proper participation in recommended assignments and programs." This meant he had to successfully participate in a sex-offender therapy program in order to be released on Parole. (Who defines what "successfully" means?) But he was not permitted to enroll in the treatment program because he said, "I didn’t do it," and was therefore considered still in denial. This is an article from the NYS Dep. of Corrections "magazine" DOCS Today October 1999 explaining the policy.
Dragnet Is Out For Porn Photos In Child Sex Case
Newsday, February 8, 1989
"Nassau police have traveled around the region to view child pornography seized in other jurisdictions" looking for anything which appeared to have been produced in Jesse's house. Detective Galasso loved to give vibrant quotes to the press such as, "Virtually every child who gave a statement said they were extensively photographed and videotaped during these sexual acts. Just about every class was videotaped." Even though Jesse's house was searched twice by authorities, and they did find his father's magazines, not one piece of home-made pornography was ever unearthed by detectives.
Little Joy in Victory For Boys' Families
Newsday, January 25, 1989
Jesse was kept waiting the afternoon he was supposed to plead guilty because the parents of the complainants had stormed the D.A.’s office demanding that he be given a bargain of thirty years, not 18 years. The families were insistent on there being a trial. On January 25, 1989, Newsday quoted the group of parents as saying they wanted to “ferret out the truth” during a trial. Jesse argues that the implication there is as follows: Individual parents knew, or had a real good suspicion, that their own son’s victimization stories were false, but that the other children were probably actually hurt. Each family wanted to hear what the other children had to say.