Ross Goldstein.

As I've said before, I think that Ross Goldstein should have been addressed in the documentary. Since the DVD extras have a seven-minute clip of an edited sequence addressing Ross Goldstein and the other suspects, we know what would have been in the documentary, had Jarecki addressed this subject in the finished film.

Here's what was in the omitted sequence:
- Debbie Nathan discusses how abuse cases in the 1980s often included allegations of "sex rings" that involved a large number of abusers.
- A news clip shows the arrest of Ross Goldstein, with the prosecutor stating that Jesse Friedman brought "some friends of his" into involvement with the molestation.
- Peter Panaro recounts how Ross Goldstein's story backed Jesse's, that the children were being misled, and that he had no involvement in any molestation.
- Fran Galasso states that Jesse and Ross Goldstein did drugs together, and that there was "some amount of a homosexual overtone" between the two.
- Elaine Friedman states that Ross Goldstein "was in my house twice, maybe, if that much."
- Jesse recounts that as soon as Ross Goldstein was out on bail, he was offered a deal if he would testify against the Friedmans. Ross Goldstein initially rejected any sort of deal, and maintained his innocence.
- The police then accused two more teenagers, and "were looking for three more adults that they said were involved." (That's a total of eight people alleged to be involved in the abuse.)
- One of the accused additional teenagers recounts being taken into custody by police, and questioned. According to him, he was interrogated for hours (he estimates 10 hours) and was not allowed at his request to contact his parents or an attorney. He says that he was threatened, and that the police tried to intimidate him.
- Fran Galasso states, "many more we believe were involved, but were not arrested, because they were not able to be identified, ... because the children were not able to pick them out of line ups, and yearbooks, and things of that nature."
- The accused additional teenager says that Galasso was "cruel," and that "she was assuming that the only story was the one inside of her head, and didn't want to hear anything to the contrary."
- Panaro describes Goldstein's agreement to take a plea deal a few weeks before trial. Goldstein testified before the grand jury, and was prepared to testify against the Friedmans at trial. In exchange for his testimony, he was allowed to plead guilty and get only six months in jail, and five years probation, after which his record would be expunged. This is in alternative to the 25-year prison term he would have faced if convicted at trial.
- The accused additional teenager says that detectives alluded that Ross Goldstein had implicated him. He states that Ross Goldstein "fabricated a story, and implicated two of his friends that he knew had nothing to do with this." He further states that when he and the other accused additional teenager saw Ross Goldstein driving around later, they followed him. "We wanted to ask him whether or not he was aware that he lied flat out about us, and why. And he had no answer as to why, but he did admit that he lied."
- A title card states that Ross Goldstein refused to be interviewed for the film.

So that's what would have been in the film had Jarecki addressed the Ross Goldstein part of the story. It does not help make the case against the Friedmans 1) that the Friedman case was one of those that was alleged to involve some sort of sex ring that included at least eight people, and perhaps "many more"; 2) that Ross Goldstein had been over to the Friedman's house only "twice, maybe"; 3) that Ross Goldstein initially denied any sort of involvement in molestation, but, facing the possibility of a 25-year sentence, agreed to plead guilty and testify in exchange for a short jail term, and then getting his record wiped clean; 4) that Ross Goldstein also implicated two other teenagers who denied involvement, and were never charged; and 5) that Ross Goldstein later admitted lying to police, and refused to be interviewed for the film. The omission of the Ross Goldstein sequence, rather than covering up for the Friedmans, actually hurts them. As a reviewer for Slate put it (www.slate.com/id/2096296/):

Those people who believe in the Friedmans' guilt often cite, as damning evidence, the film's failure to reveal that another young man, Ross Goldstein, was arrested for abuse. What the new DVD materials elucidate is just how spurious the case against Goldstein was. If anything, Goldstein's arrest bolsters the case for Jesse Friedman's innocence. Here, Jarecki reveals how Goldstein, then 18 and a friend of Jesse, was intimidated into becoming a witness against the Friedmans. When he initially refused to cooperate in interrogations, the police arrested him and charged him with being Jesse's accomplice. This meant that he could face up to 25 years in prison if convicted. The police then offered the teenager a plea bargain: In exchange for testifying against Jesse, Goldstein would receive a mere six-month sentence. Within a few weeks, he accepted this offer.