Brendan Dassey's Family Fights For His Release

Since Steven Avery is the main subject of Netflix's Making a Murderer , the docuseries spends the bulk of its time discussing the complexities of his murder conviction and speaking with his immediate family members. But, his nephew Brendan Dassey is not ignored by the documentary or some viewers who have sided with him since watching the series. In fact, a Change.org petition calling for Dassey's exoneration already had nearly 5,500 signatures as of Dec. 29, 2015 — just 11 days after the series was released on Netflix. Dassey's story has clearly struck a chord with many people. But, what does Brendan Dassey's family think of Making a Murderer?

Although neither of Dassey's parents, Barbara Tadych and Pete Dassey, has made a public statement or been interviewed about the series (Bustle reached out to both his parents but has not yet received a reply), social media indicates that the family is pleased with the fact that Making a Murderer has brought the case into the national spotlight. As we saw in the documentary, both parents stood by their son and continued to visit him in prison. While they awaited a decision in 2007 on where he would serve his sentence, Pete Dassey stated that Green Bay Correctional Institution was his strong preference because it would make family visits easier.

On what appears to be Tadych's Facebook page (according to pictures she posted prior to the show's release as well as her friendships with several other Dasseys and Averys), she has been actively posting about her son's case. Tadych has shared the Change.org petition multiple times and implored her friends and followers to do the same. "[H]elp my baby boy. He wants to come home where he belongs," she wrote in a Dec. 28 post. Tadych also posted a link with instructions on how to send mail to Avery and Dassey in prison. Since the Change.org petition came about after the series aired, it seems likely that she's pleased with it and its overall response. Tadych has been vocal about Dassey's case for a long time — for example, she shared this letter from him on Dec. 2, 2014, but the new awareness about her son's case means that her posts will be shared by people all over the country, not just locals.

Brendan Dassey's half-brother, Brad, has also posted about his sibling's case. On Dec. 20, he shared a GoFundMe Link to support Avery and Dassey. In the comments section, he wrote: "[C]heck out the entire 10 hour series on Netflix. It will change your mind if you knew how corrupt Manitowoc is." Bustle reached out to Brad who declined to comment on the show or his brother's case.

The campaign has since been removed, likely due to Go Fund Me's rules about not hosting pages for "the defense or support of anyone alleged to be involved in criminal activity." Regardless It's clear that Dassey's family has never stopped fighting for his exoneration, and Making a Murderer has given them a network of supporters all over the country.

Images: Netflix (2)