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Netflix Series on Jeffrey Dahmer Re-Traumatizes Victims' Families

Netflix's new series, "Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story" is the latest True Crime docudrama that has topped Netflix's streaming charts in the five days since its release, reports Vox. Families of his victims have had to reopen their past wounds. Multiple family members have spoken out against Netflix, saying no one had asked their permission to use their stories. Dahmer's first victim's sister, Rita Isbell, was portrayed in the show, and told Insider that she did not understand why the production did not donate a portion of the profits to the family members. Isbell's famous courtroom outburst in Dahmer's 1992 trial was recreated onscreen. Isbell said the re-creation brought back the pain and emotions she had felt. “If the show benefited them in some way, it wouldn’t feel so harsh and careless,” she stated. “It’s sad that they’re just making money off of this tragedy. That’s just greed.”


Dahmer's youngest victim, 14-year-old Konerak Sinthasomphone, escaped and ran to the police for help. However, Dahmer followed him and convinced the officers that Sinthasomphone was actually his adult boyfriend. Police returned the boy to Dahmer, perhaps due to systemic flaws of dealing with a victim who spoke no English. In the documentary, Milwaukee's police are shown to have a long history of alleged misconduct. In the opening moment, a violent encounter between police and a Black victim illustrated the racial tension that hovered over the city. Twitter users have shown disgust toward Netflix promotional Tweets that portray the insensitivities that many of the victim's families have felt.

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