A sequel to the popular "Making a Murderer" documentary series about a Wisconsin murder case is set to premiere Oct. 19 on Netflix.
The first "Making a Murderer" recounted the story of Steven Avery and his nephew, Brendan Dassey, who were convicted in the 2005 slaying of Wisconsin photographer Teresa Halbach. Avery and Dassey are serving life sentences in the killing.
Halbach's remains were found in the Avery family's Manitowoc County salvage yard. Avery insists police framed him. Dassey has argued detectives coerced him into confessing that he helped Avery rape and kill Halbach.
The documentary won Avery and Dassey legions of fans and spurred demands for their release.
The 10-episode sequel, "Making a Murderer Part 2," will follow their appeals. The premiere date is Dassey's birthday.
Netflix says Emmy-winning filmmakers Laura Ricciardi and Moira Demos had "exclusive access" to Avery, Dassey, the men's family members and their legal teams. It says the second season explores the "emotional toll" the appeals take on all of them.
Dassey was 16 years old when he confessed to Wisconsin authorities. His attorneys argued that he is borderline intellectually disabled and that police manipulated him into confessing, but the U.S. Supreme Court refused without comment to take his case in June. One of Dassey's attorneys has said the fight to win him a new trial will continue.
Avery was denied his request for a new trial last October. Avery's attorney said she planned to present new evidence and new testimony, but a judge found no grounds to warrant a new trial. Avery is appealing for a new trial.
The first multi-part "Making a Murderer" debuted in 2015, sparking conjecture about the pair's innocence. Those who worked on the cases said the filmmakers left out key pieces of evidence and presented a biased view, but Ricciardi and Demos defended their work.
Local school staple “Lost on a Mountain in Maine” from 1939 hits the big screen nationwide
Most Maine schoolchildren know about the boy lost for more than a week in 1939 after climbing the state's tallest mountain. Now the rest of the U.S. is getting in on the story.
Opening in 650 movie theaters on Friday, "Lost on a Mountain in Maine" tells the harrowing tale of 12-year-old Donn Fendler, who spent nine days on Mount Katahdin and the surrounding wilderness before being rescued. The gripping story of survival commanded the nation's attention in the days before World War II and the boy's grit earned an award from the president.
For decades, Fendler and Joseph B. Egan's book, published the same year as the rescue, has been required reading in many Maine classrooms, like third-grade teacher Kimberly Nielsen's.
"I love that the overarching theme is that Donn never gave up. He just never quits. He goes and goes," said Nielsen, a teacher at Crooked River Elementary School in Casco, who also read the book multiple times with her own kids.
Separated from his hiking group in bad weather atop Mount Katahdin, Fendler used techniques learned as a Boy Scout to survive. He made his way through the woods to the east branch of the Penobscot River, where he was found more than 30 miles (48 kilometers) from where he started. Bruised and cut, starved and without pants or shoes, he survived nine days by eating berries and lost 15 pounds (7 kilograms).
The boy's peril sparked a massive search and was the focus of newspaper headlines and nightly radio broadcasts. Hundreds of volunteers streamed into the region to help.
The movie builds on the children's book, as told by Fendler to Egan, by drawing upon additional interviews and archival footage to reinforce the importance of family, faith and community during difficult times,... Read More