Indictment: The McMartin Trial
Encyclopedia
Indictment: The McMartin Trial is a made for TV movie
that originally aired on HBO on May 20, 1995. Indictment is based on the true story of the McMartin preschool trial
.
) defends an average American family from shocking allegations of child abuse and satanic rituals. After six years and $16 million, the trial ends with the dismissal of all charges.
:
Also writing for The New York Times, Seth Mydans said:
in the United States, recasting Ray Buckey as a victim of a hysterical conspiracy rather than a child abuser.
Television movie
A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
that originally aired on HBO on May 20, 1995. Indictment is based on the true story of the McMartin preschool trial
McMartin preschool trial
The McMartin preschool trial was a day care sexual abuse case of the 1980s. Members of the McMartin family, who operated a preschool in California, were charged with numerous acts of sexual abuse of children in their care. Accusations were made in 1983. Arrests and the pretrial investigation ran...
.
Summary
A defense lawyer (played by James WoodsJames Woods
James Howard Woods is an American film, stage and television actor. Woods is known for starring in critically acclaimed films such as Once Upon a Time in America, Salvador, Nixon, Ghosts of Mississippi, Casino, and in the television legal drama Shark. He has won three Emmy Awards, and has gained...
) defends an average American family from shocking allegations of child abuse and satanic rituals. After six years and $16 million, the trial ends with the dismissal of all charges.
Reception
John J. O'Connor, writing for The New York TimesThe New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
:
Also writing for The New York Times, Seth Mydans said:
Impact
The film is cited as a watershed in the shift of ideas about satanic ritual abuseSatanic ritual abuse
Satanic ritual abuse refers to the abuse of a person or animal in a ritual setting or manner...
in the United States, recasting Ray Buckey as a victim of a hysterical conspiracy rather than a child abuser.