The Trials of Gabriel Fernandez

If there is ever a docuseries that will make your heart break, this is truely it. Omg, this poor boy that is the focus of this series just did not deserve the unfair life that he had. The short time he spent on this earth was just a living hell and unfortunately, he is in a much better place now.

I don't understand how this was able to go on for as long as it did really. But that just shows the cracks that are in the system and how these monsters are able to treat and keep this poor child for so long.

It is an important series to watch but at the same time the hardest one I have personally watched, just because this poor boy never really knew love or had someone be caring towards him. Like, I watch series about the worst of the worst humanity has to offer but I still find that those who do things like this to both children and animals deserve to be in the worst circles of hell honestly. They just have no redeemable quaility about them at all.

We all know that the social service and child services are broken, but this just proved how broken it is in the worst way possible. Really, it boggles my mind thinking how they did not check up or see what was going on. I mean, there were multiple kids in that house but on Gabriel was tortured. How does that go unnoticed? How do they not ask the other kids what is happening?

Teachers, security guards, and so many witnesses all came forward recounting the state they saw this poor boy in. Telling not only social services, but the police as well and still nothing was done? It really does make you so upset and fell like some unjustice was served towards you as well.

The entire series is just the court trial of Gabriel's parents, the social workers that were "working" (which I say very very loosely) and even the police that were supposed to be involved in his case.

This 6 part series does it's job in making you mad. That is really what it is trying to do. Make you upset and feel like there is a level of injustice served that is personal to you. What this does, is trying to make everyone more aware of the cracks that are in the social service system.

The genius in tacking such a tragic event and use it to fuel people's anger and having it channelled into this amazing push towards calling for accountability towards the system and not allowing for childern in these horrific enviroments to slip through the crack again.

The good to come out of this is that there is Gabriel's law which is coming into effect in California in the next couple of years, which is to establish an online database where agencies who are meant to protect children can share information and allegations of harm against children.

For this, all I can say honestly, is be prepared. Like I said, these are the worst of the worst stories to be told. And I watch serial killer and true crime docuseries all the time... So it really says something when I consider something to be a hard watch. That being said, it is something I think everyone should try to watch if they can stomach it. It is so important that we all learn from the mistakes made by the services we count on to serve justice and keep everyone safe.

Gabriel deserved justice for what happened to him. Though that justice was served too late for him, his legacy will remain forever and be what helps save so many other children in his situation for the future.