Mother reveals seeing her son’s accused killer in Netflix’s Unlocked series

A mother has opened up about how difficult it’s been seeing her son’s accused killer starring in the Netflix series Unlocked: A Jail Experiment. 

Part reality show, part documentary series, Unlocked: A Jail Experiment follows a group of 46 real inmates at Little Rock’s Pulaski County Regional Detention Facility as they spend six weeks in a unit where their doors are unlocked, granting them freedom and privileges.

Led by Arkansas sheriff Eric Higgins, the social experiment aims to examine whether more autonomy can foster a community-oriented living environment. But the show has proven divisive, with some questioning whether criminals should be allowed to take part in a reality series. 

This week, a woman named Hailey Shackelford has spoken out against Unlocked: A Jail Experiment after discovering that one of the prisoners who took part in the show — Jordan Parkinson — was charged with capital murder for the 2022 death of her son Jadon Shackelford. 

Speaking to Fox16, she said, “I understand they’re trying to make a show but there’s real people involved, real people that are hurting by seeing one of the people that murdered my son. I don’t think somebody that’s done such a violent crime should get any sort of reward.”

Jordan, who is just 20 years old, is one of many inmates in Unlocked: A Jail Experiment, having been arrested for the fatal shooting of Jadon in January 2022 in Little Rock. Jordan has since been released on bond after one of his peers, Evan Franklin, was identified as the shooter. 

For Shackelford, it’s been difficult to see someone associated with the crime on a Netflix series. She went on to say that she hasn’t been able to make it through a full episode without turning it off, and that she wishes she had been warned about the show before being blindsided. 

“It does something to you seeing somebody that took your child from you,” she added. “If it’s hurting me and doing that, I know it’s doing the same to other families.”