Every Fucking Day Of My Life (aka One Minute to Nine) - HBO Documentaries

May 2024 ยท 4 minute read

I watched this on YouTube after reading this thread, and it's stuck with me since. What a horrifying experience for Wendy and her kids. It's a miracle any of them lived as long as they did with that monster terrorizing them daily. It must have been quite cathartic beating him in the head and watching him slowly die.

I Googled the hell out of this case after watching and a few thoughts and standouts:

-The massive amount of holes in the walls that were covered by the boys' artwork. There was just so many of them, and you know each one equaled a fist or someone's head being slammed into the wall. Wendy and her boys talked about the abuse they endured, but those photos really brought it home. That gave me goosebumps.

-The neighbors saying what they witnessed over the years vs. Wendy's family saying they didn't know what was going on. Clearly Aaron didn't make a it a secret that he was beating the hell out of his wife, so I find it hard to believe her family didn't know. I vaguely remember Wendy's mother saying she had been in an abusive relationship when she was young, and that can obviously set your views on relationships askew. So I honestly wouldn't be surprised if she told Wendy to try to stick it out and not upset him, at least in the beginning.  Another comment thread I read about this documentary said that the neighbors called the cops numerous times, but Wendy would tell them everything was fine and turn them away. I know that there are police out there that do little to nothing in DV situations, but a lot of times, they can't because the abusers has made threats against the victim's kids, loved ones, etc. so they are understandably too scared to press charges(and I fully believe Aaron the wannabe serial killer and rapist would make good on these threats) and there's only so far the law can go. It's not an uncommon situation. The whole system is just frustrating and something needs to change, because too many women stay with their abusers because they are too scared to leave.

-The look of sadness on Wendy's face when she wasn't aware she was being filmed, only for her to plaster on a fake smile when Aaron called out to her. That was heartbreaking. I read an interview that was done with the director of the documentary, and he said that the home videos were heavily edited by Aaron. There were moments he caught where no one was smiling, the video would cut off abruptly, and then go back to the same scene where everyone was smiling. God only knows what he did to make them put on the front of "happy family" on film.

-Conversely, the look of true relief Wendy had during her last few days before prison. I know people disagree that she should have gone to trial and not accepted a plea, but I read that her public defender offered to go to trial and she declined, saying she didn't want to risk her son going to prison for 25 years, and she would gladly do 10 years because it meant her kids were safe. From the moment Aaron died, they were free, and I don't think prison could even take that feeling away.

-I read that the autopsy on Aaron showed fresh bruises and cuts on his knuckles and forearms, which meant he beat them literally up until he went to bed and they bludgeoned him to death. SMH.

-Anything and everything involving the dead deer *shudder*

-I know that some people are sociopaths and wired wrong and whatever, but I really, really wonder how people like Aaron become who they are. What has to happen to a person to make them want to inflict such pain and terror onto another human being? I wish there were some sort of interview with his family or people that knew him. But judging by his brother sending Wendy and her kids to hell at the trial, despite the insane amount of evidence of his abuse, I doubt they would provide much insight anyway.

I know that Wendy and Randy were released last year and have been privately and quietly since then. Wendy mentioned in her only interview after her release that she may talk about her story and do speaking engagements and stuff, but for now she just wants to focus on rebuilding her life and family. I truly hope the Maldonados have found the peace they so justly deserve.

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