Emmy-winning director William Gazecki (WACO: The Rules Of Engagement) delivers a searing indictment of the American legal system in this tragic story of teens, drugs and murder. Reckless Indifference explores how California’s controversial felony murder rule unjustly changed the lives of four teenagers forever. After participating in a backyard brawl which resulted in the death of a LAPD officer’s son, the ensuing trial led to life without parole sentences for the accused, even though the evidence against them was not clear-cut. Ten years have passed and they are still behind bars, though an appeal is pending. With revealing interviews from legal expert Alan Dershowitz, family members on both sides, and an exclusive recent interview with Brandon Hein from his jail cell, Reckless Indifference gives viewers an inside look into a trial that earned national attention but failed to bring justice to those involved.
Direction
Gazecki builds fury through methodical evidence stacking.
Writing
Structured like a legal thriller that outpaces fiction.
Director
William Gazecki
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Director William Gazecki previously investigated Waco—this continues his obsession with government narratives that don't add up.
The case helped fuel ongoing debates about California's felony murder rule, which was finally reformed in 2018—eighteen years after these sentences.