I admit that I am glad the boys won’t have to be put through reliving details of their captivity, but I don’t think Shawn Hornbeck did anything wrong. I truly believe that Devlin forced that boy into such submission he was to afraid to try and get away, even when he had his freedoms.
That is a very charitable interpretation. Without the trial, people are free to believe he was a completely innocent victim.
That’s why I say it’s for the best. If his motives were ignoble, he has to live with himself, but at least all the world doesn’t know it as well. That is a heavy burden at a young age, and the reason why courts seal juvenile cases.
and Shawn was only 11 when he was kidnapped, easy to forcefully and threateningly control.