Natasha Cornett was committed to the Charter Ridge Behavioral Center in Lexington, Kentucky. Though diagnosed as Bipolar and dangerously disturbed, she was released after eleven days because she had no insurance.
Cornett, and some of the other teens, approached school authorities for help because of bullying and harassment, but were told that they were "freaks" and deserved it.
The parents and friends of several of the teenagers called the Kentucky authorities and the Virginia Highway Patrol with a description of the car the teens were travelling in, and a warning that the teens were armed, and that one was violating parole. Nothing was done. According to the New York Times Research study on rampage killers, it is common for friends, families and others to contact the authorities prior to a murder being carried out, only to be rebuffed by the police.
The teens were pulled over for speeding near Gate City, Virginia by a state trooper who failed to search the car or detain the teens, despite the fact that he thought they were dangerous.
The film explores the roots of the teenagers' violence, the failure of the authorities and social support systems to address these problems, and the way in which every safeguard failed along the line to the Lillelid's deaths. It's not simply a story of teen viciousness, though it is that, but also a story of social safety nets' collapse--and the way in which "normal" people suffer when troubled teens' problems aren't addressed.
In a general sense, of course, all of this is true, but I had the impression that the "trigger man," Jason, was a violent act waiting to happen, and while this particular tragedy might have been averted had this particular sequence of events been altered - had Napoleon's horse not thrown a shoe, so to speak - at some point Jason was going to kill or be killed. I'm not sure "the system" can be blamed for his severe pathology.
However, my rather more teleological read of the story is a matter of interpretation and in no way detracts from the binding spell created by this disturbing, profound, superior documentary film, which is available for purchase here. I highly recommend it.
UPDATE
An interesting TV news segment on the film is available here. A trailer for the film will be out next week.
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Article comments
1 - NERO
Nice article. I agree completely. Like you I felt that Jason was the bad apple that spoiled the whole bunch. After watching the movie I didn't feel that Karen Howell or Crystal Sturgill were capable of murder at all. Natasha Cornett comes across like a troublemaker and a drama seeker, but not a killer.
I think the Satanic stuff was overemphasized as well
2 - Klaatu
I have seen two of these cases personally. I was a Legal Asst and 4 kids murdered one of their mothers and the other case was 5 kids murdered a young man....
3 - CJ
I think that it's a shame that the innocent people in this case were sentenced like they were. The system shouldn't base it's decissions on how much money a person has, but instead on the case at hand. We all know that this wouldn't have happened if they would've had the money to defend themselves. The system is unfair and fails in so many ways.
4 - Truth
I knew half of these teens. I think that they got off easy. They took it upon theirselves to kill a whole family. Not that one life is more important than another but these monsters killed one child and shot another in the eye. They believed in Satan and drank blood and killed animals. They should have got the death pentelty. And money has nothing to do with being a cold blooded murder. They will burn in HELL for what they did.