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Monday, July 9, 2007

Best John Grisham?

It's a close debate for me... since John has never written a true story, it is hard for me to compare this book to the many others I've read. Although I definitely recommended reading this... A true story about several wrongly convicted (some sent to Death Row) inmates in Oklahoma, 4 of which are exonerated after 14 years plus of being wrongly imprisoned.

This publisher's note sums it up nicely:

John Grisham's first work of nonfiction, an exploration of small town justice gone terribly awry, is his most extraordinary legal thriller yet.

In the major league draft of 1971, the first player chosen from the State of Oklahoma was Ron Williamson. When he signed with the Oakland A's, he said goodbye to his hometown of Ada and left to pursue his dreams of big league glory.

Six years later he was back, his dreams broken by a bad arm and bad habits drinking, drugs, and women. He began to show signs of mental illness. Unable to keep a job, he moved in with his mother and slept twenty hours a day on her sofa.

In 1982, a 21-year-old cocktail waitress in Ada named Debra Sue Carter was raped and murdered, and for five years the police could not solve the crime. For reasons that were never clear, they suspected Ron Williamson and his friend Dennis Fritz. The two were finally arrested in 1987 and charged with capital murder. With no physical evidence, the prosecution’s case was built on junk science and the testimony of jailhouse snitches and convicts. Dennis Fritz was found guilty and given a life sentence. Ron Williamson was sent to death row.

If you believe that in America you are innocent until proven guilty, this book will shock you. If you believe in the death penalty, this book will disturb you. If you believe the criminal justice system is fair, this book will infuriate you.

I was pissed off, crying and excited all at the same time! Couldn't put it down...

2 comments:

  1. Nice job on your updates... I'm so proud.

    Now can you please start Twilight and blog about THAT!?

    ReplyDelete
  2. I read this a few months back. It was a huge eye-opener for me as well. Great book. Brock

    ReplyDelete

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