I have long been interested by emerging DNA technology and its implications in the true crime sector. One such instance of DNA cracking a decades old cold case is the case of a Baby Boy Doe and Gail Ritchey.
In 1993, a baby, affectionately named by the locals “Geauga’s Child,” was found dead in the woods. Over 20 years later, his mother is charged with his death. For the citizens of Geauga County, Ohio, this justice was long overdue. But for Gail Ritchey and her family, this potential murder charge is terrifying and fails to acknowledge Gail’s mental health. Documentary filmmaker Jessica Earnshaw (Hulu’s Jacinta) follows the Ritchey family and their defense team as they prepare to face trial.
Earnshaw delicately handles this difficult case with a mix of captivating storytelling and authentic, raw emotion. The film will leave you heartbroken for both the unnamed, abandoned baby boy and his mother who many claim took his life. Overall, it’s a film that calls for reform — of the justice system, our understanding of mental health, and the conservative Christian values held by Ritchey’s community.
Baby Doe focuses on Denial of Pregnancy (DoP), a proposed addition to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, which leads to symptoms including psychological distress, unassisted delivery and neonaticide. Shockingly, Ritchey’s case is not the only case of a young mother abandoning her newborn child after struggling with DoP. The film touches on a few other cases similar to Ritchey’s — one in which a young mother previously convicted of murder gets her conviction overturned by a female judge who believes reform is possible for her. DoP is an under-reseached disorder so many lawyers, including Ritchey’s, are unable to present this evidence in court.
Many of the women struggling with DoP highlighted in the film come from conservative Christian backgrounds where sex before marriage (and even more so, pregnancy before marriage) is strictly not allowed. Gail was one of these girls; raised by devout parents and an active, committed member of both her church and her youth group. When Gail became pregnant with her baby, she was not yet married to Mark, the father of “all the children.”
The film touches on abortion, something that Gail probably never saw as an option given her religious views, subtly asking the audience if one course of action is better than the other. One was perfectly legal at the time of her pregnancy, the other could land her life in prison.
Ultimately, Baby Doe brings into question the legalism of many conservative Christian parents versus the love they have for their daughters. Gail’s own mother says that she would have been disappointed if Gail had come clean to her during her pregnancy while another girl’s father seems to be more upset that his daughter had sex than he was that she was charged with killing her baby. Earnshaw highlights this problem, showing rather than telling the audience that this response rather than a response filled with love and support is a large contributing factor to DoP.
The filmmakers expertly balance the tension of Gail’s current life as a pillar in her community and the gravity of what she did in 1993. Throughout the 100 minute run time the audience falls in love with Gail and her family, understands the gravity of DoP, and mourns the loss of a baby boy discarded on the side of the road. Earnshaw crafted an incredible narrative that will make audiences think deeply about both the law and community expectations, leaving you deeply conflicted over where Gail — and many other women like her— ended up.
