True Crime Book Store

True Crime & Justice
E-mail Discussion Lists

Return to the True Crime Website

The Ultimate True Crime Book and Media Store

Featured Books and Films

Search Now:

(new true crime sections coming soon)

Attention true crime writers and true crime publishers if you would like to have your book featured on our site and true crime lists, please send a review copy:
Kari & Associates
PO Box 6166
Olympia, WA 98507

Terrify No More --In a small village outside of Phnom Pehn, little children as young as five years old were forced to live as sex slaves. Day after day their hope was slipping away. Tireless workers from International Justice Mission (IJM) infiltrated the ring of brothels and gathered evidence to free the children

Crime Scene Investigation: Crack The Case With Real-Life Experts -- "Concentrate on what cannot lie: the evidence" is sage advice from one of the many popular TV shows based on investigative skills-an audience that now averages 30 million viewers each week and growing. Viewers sit glued to their TVs to watch forensic experts peer through microscopes and dust for fingerprints.

Mother's Day by Dennis McDougal -- Theresa Cross Knorr had several husbands, one she killed, until she ended up as a single mother with 2 boys and 3 girls. Then she began to torture and kill the girls as they became old enough that their beauty made her angry. June l985, while her teenage sons held their half-sister down, Theresa beat daughter Sheila, l9, and then stuffed her into a 2' X 2' storage locker. After 3 days, the knocking, kicking, and cries stopped.

Faces Of Evil -- Every day, Lois Gibson is able to put power, control and a sense of justice back into the hands of victims of violent crime, heinous rapes, kidnappings and murders. Gibson, herself the victim of a violent rape, uses her skills to coax from the memories of victims the most intimate details possible and, with the stroke of a pencil, reconstructs the faces of their tormentors. Lois Gibson is a twenty-two-year veteran forensic artist with the Houston, Texas police department and affiliated with the FBI and U.S. Marshall's Service.

The Encyclopedia of Canadian Organized Crime: From Captain Kidd to Mom Boucher by Peter Edwards, Michel Auger September 14, 2004

A Perversion of Justice: A Southern Tragedy of Murder, Lies and Innocence Betrayed by Kathryn Medico , Mollye Barrows -- The accused killers were children: 12-year-old Alex King and his brother Derek, one year older, the two youngest defendants ever to stand trial for murder in Florida's history. The boys had already confessed to the brutal slaying of Terry King, their own father, who was beaten to death with a baseball bat on a November night on the outskirts of Pensacola. But in the course of the seemingly open-and-shut legal proceedings, a shadowy third player began to emerge. A convicted pedophile named Rick Chavis had befriended young Alex and was now, bizarrely, going to be tried separately for the same crime; a monstrous human predator who had seen two confused youths as perfect, easy prey. The explosive case that riveted a nation is now the true crime book of the year -- a shocking, spellbinding account of innocence destroyed, blood spilled, and ... A Perversion of Justice.

Facing the Wind: A True Story of Tragedy and Reconciliation by Julie Salamon -- In the morning of Feb. 21, 1978 -- Bob Rowe, a Mill Basin, NY, stood by the bed watching his son sleep, lifted a baseball bat and smashed his head. Jennifer, 8, worried her brother was sleeping late; her father coaxed her into bed with Christopher her 12-year-old brother. With swift blows, he used the bat to kill them both. Rowe called his wife at work, urging her to hurry home. When she arrived, Rowel bashing her head in with the bat. He was found not guilty by reason of insanity, and after several years in a mental institution was released. He later remarried and had another daughter.

September Sacrifice "If I'm ever late for work, call the police!” an Albuquerque, New Mexico bank teller Girly Chew, 36, told her boss. The Malaysian-born beauty lived in mortal fear of her pathologically deranged husband had had taken out a restraining order against.

17 true crime stories of in Texas in Carlton Stowers book: " Death in a Texas Desert ... and other true crime stories from the Dallas Observer. " An engrossing collection of true crime stories from a top crime writer. From the award-winning pages of the Dallas Observer, these 17 macabre tales account notorious events in history like the search for the alleged murderer Ira Robinson, the legacy of racist killer Bobby Frank Cherry and the last, angry days of George Hennard the crazed man who opened fire in Killeen's Luby's Cafeteria killing 23 patrons.

American Taboo: A Murder in the Peace Corps by Philip Weiss -- On October 4, 1976, a brutal murder shocked the tiny island nation of Tonga. A young Peace Corps volunteer was stabbed 22 times; another volunteer was identified at the scene, but despite the evidence against him, Dennis Priven was never convicted of a crime. Deborah Gardner, a beautiful, free-spirited young victim; a brooding villain who carried a dive knife; an exotic, Gauginesque setting: it's surprising that the most compelling passages in American Taboo concern the inner workings of a government bureaucracy. But the Peace Corps officials did everything in their power to hush up her murder, then funded the aggressive defense that helped Priven go free. Weiss's account captures the Corps' initial spirit of idealism found itself besieged by political and financial pressures. Was Dennis Priven an evil genius who planned the murder-and his defense-to ensure he would escape punishment? Or was he, as a psychiatrist hired by the Peace Corps contended, a budding schizophrenic? Weiss' answer is regrettably perfunctory: "He was a brilliant madman allowed to stay too long in the wrong spot who had lost control and then manipulated everyone around him with coldness and creativity."

The Weather Underground -- The Weathermen were born of sixties protest, but took cover their scheme to overthrow the U.S. government to violent extremes. The Underground petered out as its leaders aged during the seventies; by decade's end, most of them had turned themselves over to the authorities. Bernadine Dohrn became a (still fiery) gray-haired wife and mother. This film, rich in period captures the era. But the present-day interviews with the participants, contrasted with their radical selves, provide a look inside the organization itself.

Heart Full of Lies: A True Story of Desire and Death Liysa and Chris Northon married on a moonlit beach in Hawaii. Chris, their son, Bjorn, looked like his dad, and they were raising Liysa's son by a previous marriage. On a sunny morning in October 2000, Chris Northon lay dead while Liysa drove 4 hours to a friend's house. A book that leads the reader from Hawaii to the Northwest to Hollywood.

A Deadly Secret: The Strange Disappearance of Kathie Durst Without A Trace -- How could Robert Durst degenerate from a powerful New York City businessman to a cross-dressing fugitive wanted in a murder investigation?

Jihad In Brooklyn: The Nypd Raid That Stopped America's First Suicide Bombers -- New York July 31, 1997, two young, angry Palestinians-were proudly showing off the bomb belts they planned to detonate on a packed rush-hour subway train.

Dark Dreams: Sexual Violence, Homicide and the Criminal Mind by Roy Hazelwood, Stephen G. Michaud Profiler Roy Hazelwood reveals the motives and thinking that go into reprehensible crimes. He catalogs effective investigative approaches that allow law enforcement to construct psychological profiles of offenders. A woman disappears from the convenience store. Her remains are found near a torture device. A teenager is found hanging in a storm sewer. His clothes are neatly folded by the entrance and a stopwatch is found in his mouth. A married couple, with their toddler, pick up a female hitchhiker, kidnap her, and for 7 years kept her as a sexual slave. Whispers of Romance, Threats of Death by Carol Cook, Ted Schwarz After Carol Cook was raped in her Dallas home, she had trouble trusting new people. Then she met Gilbert Escobedo, a respected member of the Christian community. He became her trusted business partner, and her lover. But as Carol's feelings for him deepened, so did her suspicions that Gilbert had a secret life and a dark side. He was the Ski Mask Rapist who had once counted Carol among his victims. And he wasn't through with her.

Random Family: Love, Drugs, Trouble, and Coming of Age in the Bronx Adrian Nicole LeBlan -- The saga behind the headlines of gangsta glamour, gold-drenched drug dealers, and street-corner society. After ten years of reporting, Adrian Nicole LeBlanc immerses reader into the intricacies of the ghetto world. She charts the cycle of the generations, as girls become mothers, mothers become grandmothers, boys become criminals, and hope struggles against deprivation. Two romances: nineteen-year-old Jessica's infatuation with a successful heroin dealer, Boy George, and fourteen-year-old Coco's first love with Jessica's little brother, Cesar, an aspiring thug. The young couples try to outrun their destinies. Chauffeurs whisk them to getaways and nightclubs. They cruise in Lamborghinis and customized James Bond cars. Jessica and Boy George ride between riches and ruin, while Coco and Cesar stick closer to the street, all four caught in a dance between life and death. Friends get murdered; the DEA and FBI investigate Boy George's business activities; Cesar becomes a fugitive; Jessica and Coco endure homelessness, betrayal, prison, and poverty. The teenagers make family where they find it. Girls look for excitement and find trouble; boys, searching for adventure, join crews and prison gangs. Adrian Nicole LeBlanc has slipped behind the cold statistics and surrounding inner-city life with a riveting, haunting, and true urban soap opera that reveals the clenched grip of the streets.

Finding Susan is Molly Hurley Moran's pointed exploration of the disappearance of her sister and her family's descent into the surreal world of psychics and detectives they once dismissed as the stuff of Lifetime movies. Susan Hurley Harrison disappeared from upscale Ruxton, Maryland on August 5, 1994. Her body was discovered in the woods of northern Maryland two years later and her death was ruled a homicide. Although Susan's case drew substantial media attention-including a spot on Unsolved Mysteries-no one has been charged with her murder. In piecing together Susan's final years, Moran grew to believe her sister was a victim of domestic violence. A slender and stylish blond, Susan was haunted by her "lace-curtain Irish" ancestry and her mother's frightening drinking problem as she tried to rise into the upper-class world. A devoted mother and talented woman who enjoyed domestic arts, left her husband for wealthy Baltimore businessman Jim Harrison, with whom she shared a violent union. Mirroring elements of high-profile cases from Laci Peterson to Nicole Brown Simpson, "Finding Susan" is chronicle of that details the helplessness experienced by families of missing persons and calls attention to our blindness to domestic abuse.

.Murder In Hollywood: Solving A Silent Screen Mystery -- For more than eighty years, the famous unsolved murder of William Desmond Taylor, the legendary bisexual film director, has generated extensive debate and controversy. Murder in Hollywood goes beyond the killing to unknown details about the life of Taylor before his arrival in Hollywood, as well as the stories and histories buried by the crooked authorities and criminals involved the case.

The True Crime Files of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
by Arthur Conan Doyle, Stephan Hines
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, after creating Sherlock Holmes, started to believe that he could solve real-life crimes. Doyle was sometimes successful. Doyle's association as a student with Joseph Bell- a medical professor through close observation, could deduce information from his patients--gave him a model for Holmes and forensic methodology. The True Crime Files focuses on a couple British cases, involving men Doyle believed innocent. The first drew Doyle's attention in 1906, a shy half-British, half-Indian lawyer named George Edalji, who'd allegedly penned threatening letters and mutilated animals. The second case examined Oscar Slater, a German Jew and gambling-den operator convicted of bludgeoning an 82-year-old woman in 1908. Doyle's passionate writings about criminal probes, missives to the press and other background materials.

No Crueler Tyrannies: Accusation, False Witness, and Other Terrors of Our Times by Dorothy Rabinowitz
"In 1742, Charles-Louis de Secondat, Baron de Montesquieu, wrote, ""There is no crueler tyranny than that which is perpetrated under the shield of law and in the name of justice."" Two hundred forty-three years later, in 1985, Dorothy Rabinowitz, a syndicated columnist, encountered the case of a New Jersey day care worker named Kelly Michaels, accused of 280 counts of sexually abusing nursery school children -- and exposed the first of the prosecutorial abuses described in No Crueler Tyrannies. No Crueler Tyrannies recalls the hysteria that accompanied the child sex-abuse witch-hunts of the 1980s and 1990s.

Spies: The Undercover World of Secrets, Gadgets and Lies An illustrated guide to the deadly world of espionage. Agents, double agents and multiple agents are vital to waging war successfully and they often help nations avoid war altogether. Spies have affected the outcomes of wars and crucial battles throughout history. The book describes in detail: - The art of spy trade craft- Techniques spies use to gather and send secrets - Devices used to steal state secrets - How agents survive in hostile environments - Whether or not spies like James Bond really exist. Today, digital and space-based technology gathers untold amounts of raw data.

21st Century Complete Guide to the National Institute of Justice and the US Marshals Service of the US Justice Department: Crime Scene Investigation (CSI), DNA, Forensic, and Cold Case Investigation, Homeland Security and Terrorism (Core Federal Information Series CD-ROM) by US Government Privately-compiled collections of official public domain US government files and documents - not produced by the federal government. Over 54,000 allowing direct viewing on Windows and Apple Macintosh systems.

Handbook of Polygraph Testing by Murray Kleiner (Editor) Advances in Forensic Psychology & Psychiatry: Vol. 1 (Advances in Forensic Psychology & Psychiatry) by Robert W. Rieber (Author)

International Crimes by Nikos Passas

CSI - Crime Scene Investigation 2004 Calendar Essentials of Forensic Psychological Assessment by Marc J. Ackerman Quickly acquire the knowledge and skills you need to administer, score, and interpret key assessment instruments used by forensic psychologists. An authoritative source of advice and guidance on how to administer, score, and interpret tests.

The Real Body Farm: Inside the Legendary Forensics Lab Where the Dead Do Tell Tales by Bill Bass

Secrets of the Tomb: Skull and Bones,the Ivy League,and the Hidden Paths of Power Alexandra Robbins -- Yale's infamous Skull and Bones, a tiny, 200-year-old mysterious society that has spawned 3 US presidents -- William H. Taft, George W. Bush, and his father -- and has been attributed with some of the most staggering conspiracies in modern history. Founded in the 19th century, housed in an ominous cryptlike building referred to as "the Tomb." For membership Skull and Bones secretly taps a small number of Yale students sworn to secrecy about what goes on and how powerful the organization is. Bonesmen (members) are so protective of the secrets they must leave the room if the words skull and bones are uttered. It's said that the Tomb contains stolen relics such as Geronimo's skull, that upon graduation from Yale each member is given a substantial sum of money with strings attached. It has been said that Skull and Bones is the dark heart of a secret world government. Bonesmen who have gone on to positions of power and influence, including George W. Bush; his father, George H; US senators; CIA officials; cabinet members; and heads of major international corporations. Now, Bonesmen talk about what really happens and what influence the organization wields. It reveals who has been a member and what that meant. Robbins exposes the secret initiation rites and their impact on world affairs.

Hell's Angel: The Life and Times of Sonny Barger and the Hell's Angels Motorcycle Club by Sonny Barger (Author), Keith Zimmerman, Kent Zimmerman Narrated by the founding member, Hell's Angel provides a pass to the secret world of the notorious Hell's Angels Motorcycle Club. Sonny Barger recounts the birth of the original Oakland Hell's Angels and the four turbulent decades that followed. Hell's Angel chronicles the way the HAMC revolutionized the look of the Harley-Davidson motorcycle and built a worldwide bike-riding fraternity, a beacon for freedom-seekers. Dozens of photos, many from private collections and noted photographers, provide visual documentation to this extraordinary tale. Hell's Angel is the ultimate outlaw's tale of loyalty and betrayal, subcultures and brotherhood, and the real price of freedom.

Killing Pablo: The Hunt for the World's Greatest Outlaw by Mark Bowden -- Pablo Escobar, a notorious Colombian drug lord who became one of the narcotic trade's first billionaires. Pablo wound up running a massive smuggling empire. In the 1980s, he owned fleets of boats and planes, plus 19 separate residences in Medellin. He bought off police, politicians, and judges and killed those who wouldn't cooperate. In 1988 when a 1000 national police raided his mansions, Pablo fled in his underwear.

Obsession: Celebrities and Their Stalkers by David Harvey -- One million women and 370,000 men are stalked each year. Offering glimpses into the Los Angeles District Attorney cases include stalkers who victimized Madonna, Gianni Versace, Steven Spielberg, David Letterman, and Janet Jackson. Detailed attention is given to the stalkers to understand their psychological impulses.

Living History by Hillary Clinton -- Hillary Clinton has much to say about her experience as first lady, the primary focus of the book. Beginning with a brief outline of her childhood, college years, introduction to politics, and her courtship with Bill Clinton, : life on the campaign trail, her tenure as leader of the President's Task Force on National Health Care Reform, meeting with foreign leaders, and her work on human rights. She addresses scandals that plagued the administration, from Travelgate to Whitewater to impeachment,. . Regarding the Monica Lewinsky scandal, she maintains her husband lied to her, and did not come clean until days prior to his grand jury testimony. She explains the aftermath and why she has elected to stand by her man.

Stung by Ross,Gary the case of Brian Molony, an assistant bank manager in Toronto who stole about $10 million in gold from his bank and blew it in Atlantic City and Las Vegas.

Fire Lover by Joseph Wambaugh On an October evening in South Pasadena, a horrifying wave of flames swept through a large home improvement center, snuffing out the lives of 4 innocent people, including a 2 year-old boy. Firefighters rushed to the scene, as a pair of equally suspicious fires broke out in 2 nearby stores. The true story of a nightmarish obsession -- and the hunt for a brilliant psychopath who lived a double life filled with professional tributes and terrifying secrets.

Serial Killers

Three Weeks In October: The Man hunt for the Serial Sniper Charles A. Moose -- In this New York Times bestseller, Charles A. Moose-the police chief who led one of the most suspenseful manhunts in American history-takes readers behind the headlines into the notorious "D.C. sniper" case that held the nation spellbound. Charles A. Moose is the chief of police in Montgomery County. Charles Fleming is the author of the national bestseller High Concept and the New York Times bestseller The Goomba's Guide to Life. Fleming has worked as a staff reporter for Variety and Newsweek, and has been a frequent contributor to Vanity Fair, TV Guide, Entertainment Weekly, Premiere, Playboy, Time, the Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, and other publications.

Sniper: Inside the Hunt for the Killers Who Terrorized the Nation Sari Horwitz and Michael E. Ruane -- For more than three weeks, the nation watched in disbelief as Washington, D.C., and its surrounding suburbs were held hostage by anonymous gunmen shooting innocent civilians at random. Sniper is the account of John Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo, and the massive manhunt that ended with their capture by a SWAT team in an early-morning raid at an interstate highway rest stop. Washington Post reporters retrace the steps of Muhammad and Malvo from their first meeting on the island of Antigua to Malvo's confession in a Virginia jail.

Killers on the Loose: Unsolved Cases of Serial Murder by Mendoza Antonio -- Authorities estimate that there are 35 - 50 serial killers on the loose in the US - with new reports of suspected serial killers constantly surfacing all over the globe. According to an FBI Behavioral Unit study, serial killing has climbed to an almost 'epidemic proportion'. This is the first look at serial killers at large, from one of the world's foremost authorities.

Lethal Shadow: The Chilling True-Crime Story of a Sadistic Sex Slayer by Stephen G. Michaud
Profiles James Mitchell De Bardeleban, from his initial arrest as a counterfeiter to the discovery that he was also a sadistic kidnapper, torturer, and sex murderer responsible for a 20 year reign of terror.

The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America by Erik Larson -- The incredible events surrounding the 1893 Chicago World's Fair, the stories of Daniel Hudson Burnham, (1846-1912),an architect and city planner, the architect responsible for the fair's construction, and H.H. Holmes, (really Herman Webster Mudgett), (1861-1896), a serial killer masquerading as a charming doctor. The activities of Dr. Holmes, believed to be responsible for scores of murders are remarkable. He created the World's Fair Hotel to lure victims. Burnham forced to overcome the death of his partner, gained fame as the chief of construction for the World's Columbian Exposition in 1893.

Perfect Poison by M. William Phelps -- In Northampton, Massachusetts, at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Kristen Gilbert was known as a dedicated nurse--so why were her patients dying? So many sudden deaths occurred while Kristen made her rounds that colleagues called her the "Angel of Death." Gilbert's facade concealed a manipulative liar and narcissistic sociopath. She sabotaged patients to strike back at staff she didn't like. She engaged in an affair with hospital security guard, James Perrault. When her husband objected, she tried to kill him with a lethal injection. August 1995 - February 1996, Kristen Gilbert may be responsible for 40 deaths.

Lethal Intent by Sue Russell
That rarest of serial killers - a woman - Aileen 'Lee' Wuornos always craved fame. Long before she was hunted and caught by Florida law enforcement, long before she confessed to killing seven men, she told friends that she wanted to do something "no woman has ever done before" and to have a book about her life. Lethal Intent reveals Aileen's devastating double abandonment by her mother before she was age two, the crimes of her father, and the myriad events that helped set her path of destruction. It even contests the widespread superficial judgment of Wuornos as a "man-hating lesbian" via new insights from men with whom she shared sexual and romantic relationships. Lethal Intent also explores the dynamics of her fateful relationship with Tyria Moore, the lesbian lover who knew Aileen was killing yet stayed by her side, and how those dynamics moved Aileen closer to a life of murder. Packed with exclusive material that sheds a different light on this cold-blooded serial killer, Lethal Intent contains new insights and intimate memories from her family, friends and childhood peers. (Peers who lost their virginities to Aileen, who began prostituting herself at a horribly early age.)

Scream at the Sky: Five Texas Murders and One Man's Crusade for Justice by Carlton Stowers -- Rural Texas unsolved serial killing spree begins in late 1984, when a Wichita Falls nurse is raped and murdered. Eventually, there are 5 victims. Faryion Waydrip an acquaintance of the 3rd victim confesses. Paroled after 11 years a changed man, active in church and remarries. John Little begins working the long-unsolved murders in December 1999. 8 pages of b&w photo

Unsolved Crimes

Who Killed Jonbenet Ramsey?: A Leading Forensic Expert Uncovers the Shocking Facts -- by Cyril H. Wecht, Charles, Jr. Bosworth -- Best-selling author Charles Bosworth, Jr. collaborates with nationally renowned forensic pathologist Cyril Wecht to reveal the startling truth behind the murder in riveting detail. Includes a reproduction of the ransom note, the full text of the autopsy report, and eight pages of photos.

Black Dahlia Avenger: The True Story by Anonymous -- by Anonymous -- On January 15, 1947, the body of 22-year-old Elizabeth Short-dubbed the Black Dahlia because of her black clothing and the dahlia she wore in her hair-was discovered on a vacant lot in downtown Los Angeles, her body surgically bisected, horribly mutilated, and posed. Even the most hardened homicide detectives were shocked and sickened by the sadistic murder. Thus began the largest manhunt in LA history. For weeks the killer taunted the police-and public, sending notes to "catch me if you can." LAPD came up empty. Charges of police ineptitude gave way to rumors of corruption and cover-up at the highest levels. Meanwhile, a rash of lone women in LA were murdered, and their cases remained unsolved. Could the Black Dahlia Avenger be, in fact, a serial killer stalking the city streets?

Black Dahlia Avenger: The True Story by Anonymous
by Anonymous
On January 15, 1947, the body of Elizabeth Short, 22, dubbed the Black Dahlia was discovered in a vacant lot in Los Angeles, her body bisected, mutilated, and posed. The killer taunted the police to "catch me if you can." Charges of police ineptitude gave way to rumors of corruption and cover-up. Could the Black Dahlia Avenger be a serial killer stalking the city streets?

Mortal Evidence: The Forensics Behind Nine Shocking Cases by Cyril H. Wecht, Greg Saitz, Mark Curriden, Henry C. Lee -- Did Amy Grossberg and Brian Peterson, murder their child? A dead newborn is found in a motel dumpster. Authorities charge the infant's adolescent parents with murder. Dr. Wecht comes to a startling conclusion. Tammy Wynette died unexpectedly but no autopsy was performed. Did Sam Sheppard "The Fugitive" kill his wife? World-renowned forensic pathologist Dr. Cyril Wecht reviews nine famous cases, illustrating significant issues. He demonstrates how forensic pathology uncovers secrets that solve crimes. Dr. Wecht reveals the shocking evidence about JonBenet Ramsey's killer, insights into the murders of Nicole Simpson and Ron Goldman, and Robert Berdella's conviction for horrific torture and sex-abuse crimes against young men. Other cases covered include the death of casino mogul Ted Binion; the 1982 showdown between in Miracle Valley, Arizona; and Robert Curley's death by thallium poisoning.

Cracking Cases: The Science of Solving Crimes
by Henry C. Lee, Thomas W. O'Neil (Contributor), and Charles D. Gill- - Dr. Lee world-renowned forensic expert investigates five murder cases. Includes the OJ Simpson case, where Dr. Lee's scrutiny of blood evidence revealed Los Angeles Police Department missed blood drops on Nicole Simpson's back, a second footprint of a possible assailant, and the physical unlikelihood Simpson climbed a fence. The "Wood chipper murder" a pilot killed his wife, then ground up her body. Ed Sherman an English professor attempted to cover up the time of his wife's death by turning up the air-conditioning and claiming he was away sailing. In the Mathison murder, a seasoned Hawaiian police sergeant ran over his wife after a quarrel. Police sergeant MacArthur staged his wife's suicide. Dr. Lee gained respect through his testimony in the OJ Simpson trial. Dr. Lee presents a simply understood scientific account of the murders, blood-spatter evidence and blood identification, and DNA.

Injustice

The Smoking Gun: Day by Day Through a Shocking Murder Trial with Gerry Spence by Gerry Spence
The prosecution had a photo taken by the wife of the deceased at the time of the alleged murder with Sandy holding her rifle and smoke coming out the end of the barrel. The prosecution wanted Sandy to plead guilty. They had her 15 year old son charged with murder as well. Gerry Spence and his partner, Ed Moriarity took on the pro bono case. This is a true murder mystery thriller that portrays the nearly helpless state most of the poor of America find twhen they are confronted with the power of a cruel, and relentless justice system that has only one goal-to convict, whether the defendant in their sights is guilty or not. The Gerry Spence Web site

Homicide

Kill Grandma for Me James Defelice -- December, 1994, Wendy Gardner, 13, convinced James Evans, 15, her lover, to strangle her grandmother. Wendy took her little sister, stole her grandmother's money, and went on a three-day orgy. One of the most bizarre killings ever committed in New York.

Bully: Does Anyone Deserve to Die? by Jim Schutze --Combines natural details about the sawgrass marshes and alligators south of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, with observations about the fantasy lives of teenagers hooked on surfing, steroids, and instant gratification, 7 suburban kids who slide into moral depravity. At the heart of his tale is a kind of love triangle: the "bully," his best friend Marty, and Marty's girlfriend, who desires to rescue Marty from a destructive friendship with homosexual undertones. Schutze's account of the aftermath of the murder includes interesting details on how the police skillfully lured confessions from the kids involved.

Mother's Day by Dennis McDougal -- Theresa Cross Knorr had several husbands, one of whom she killed, until she ended up as a single mother with 2 boys and 3 girls. Then she began to torture and kill the girls as they became old enough that their beauty made her angry. June l985, while her teenage sons held their half-sister down, Theresa beat daughter Sheila, l9, and then stuffed her into a 2' X 2' storage locker. After 3 days, the knocking, kicking, and cries stopped. Theresa and her sons dumped the body. The summer before, Theresa dug a bullet out of her daughter Suesan's chest with a paring knife. When Suesan failed to recover, Theresa and her sons drove the girl to the mountains, doused her with gasoline, and set her on fire. Theresa got away with murder, until her youngest daughter, Terry Knorr Graves, found a cop who believed the story of her murdered sisters.

While Innocents Slept: A Story of Revenge, Murder and SIDS by Adrian Havill -- Death seemed to be part of Garrett Wilson's life. Both of his parents had died by the time he was in his early twenties. So friends shrugged when sadly, an infant daughter, and then a son, succumbed to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. Six years later, after he divorced his wife, Missy, and married another woman, his former spouse became convinced that their child's passing was anything but natural. Was it cold-blooded murder by Garrett, or a quest for revenge by his ex-wife? Missy's own investigation led to Garrett Wilson's arrest and eventual trial. Havill takes us through each stage of this intricate and chilling story all the way to the courtroom, where the jury's stunning verdict is given.

The Torso Murder: The Untold Story of Evelyn Dick
by Brian Vallee -- The "torso" murder trial of Evelyn Dick grabbed headlines in 1946 and 1947. Her husband John's head and limbs had been sawed from his body and burned up in her furnace. After she was sentenced to hang, lawyer J. J. Robinette appealed her case, won her a new trial and an acquittal. But, when police found the decayed remains of Evelyn's newborn baby encased in cement in a suitcase in her attic, the best Robinette could do for her was a manslaughter conviction and 11 years in prison. Evelyn Dick was released with a new identity in 1958. Valle interviews and research, answers many questions that surround this case and Evelyn Dick's new life.

Judgment Ridge by Dick Lehr (Author), Mitchell Zuckoff (Author)
The harrowing story of the murders of Half and Susanne Zantop, two beloved Dartmouth College professors who were savagely butchered in their home on January 27, 2001. The messy crime scene soon led investigators to James Parker and Robert Tulloch, a couple of popular teenagers from nearby Chelsea, Vt. But after being interviewed by detectives, the two promptly fled, leading authorities on a three-day manhunt that ended abruptly at a truck stop in Illinois. While the stunned and bewildered residents of Chelsea muscled their way through choking crowds of reporters (the already sensational story was made all the more lurid by the suspects' youth and the sleepy, idyllic setting) and came to terms with the unimaginable (two of their own townspeople were murderers), Parker and Tulloch were remanded to New Hampshire and arraigned on murder charges that were supported by an arsenal of incriminating evidence.

The Piano Teacher: The True Story of a Psychotic Killer by Robert K. Tanenbaum, Peter S. Greenberg -- Suzanne Reynolds dream ended in a gruesome encounter with eccentric New York artist, Charles Yukl. Fooled by his choirboy looks, Reynolds had no idea the man who taught her the piano was a woman-hating recluse who spent his days lost in fantasies of perversion. Yukl soon gained his freedom, a result of the plea bargain and a series of legal errors, and killed again. The Piano Teacher brilliantly portrays a madman set on fulfilling his own sadistic and homicidal dreams...and the flawed justice system that gave him the opportunities to do so.

Tender Murderers: Women Who Kill by Trina Robbins, Max Allan Collins -- "She wasn't even five feet tall, weighed 90 pounds, wrote poetry, and died young, riddled with bullets and with a machine gun in her lap." The infamous Bonnie Parker, immortalized in the movie Bonnie and Clyde, is only one of a select group of 20 women killers whose stories are told in Tender Murderers. Others include Charlotte Corday, of Marat-Sade fame; Belle Starr, the "Petticoat Terror of the Plains"; and Phoolan Devi, India's "bandit queen," who died as she lived. Trina Robbins, award-winning author and cartoonist, even includes a section on "Women Who Missed," such as Valerie Solanas, founder of the Society for Cutting Up Men and attempted assassin of Andy Warhol, and Amy Fisher, the "Long Island Lolita." From murderous moms and molls to plucky pirates and Appalachian ax-handlers, Tender Murderers is a rogue's gallery of fascinating female killers. Photographs are included.

Down by the River: Drugs, Money, Murder, and Family Charles Bowden -- This is an American story about drugs, money, murder, and family. Lionel Bruno Jordan was murdered January 20, 1995, in an El Paso parking lot, the skeleton key to a multibillion dollar drug industry, two corrupt governments --the US and Mexico -- and a War on Drugs that is a fraud. Phil Jordan runs DEA intelligence, when his brother is killed. Amado Carrillo Fuentes runs the most successful drug business in the world, but when his usefulness to governments ceases, he dies. Carlos Salinas runs Mexico, but as he leaves office, his brother is jailed for murder and Salinas flees into exile. Sal Martinez, DEA agent and Bruno's cousin, does the secret work of the US government in Mexico, but when he seeks revenge, he is sentenced to federal prison. Beneath the policy statements and politicians is a world of lies, pain, and money. Reviewed by Karen Olsson

Dark Dreams: Sexual Violence, Homicide and the Criminal Mind by Roy Hazelwood, Stephen G. Michaud

Double Deal: The Inside Story of Murder, Unbridled Corruption, and the Cop Who Was a Mobster by Sam Giancana -- A provocative expos of organized crime and its unholy alliance with world leaders, intelligence agencies, and law enforcement, Double Deal is a forty-year saga told with unflinching honesty by mob insider and former chief of police Michael Corbitt. Growing up poor and angry, Michael Corbitt fought his way up the ranks of greasers and street gangs until he attracted the attention of Chicago crime boss Sam Giancana, who placed him on the Willow Springs, Illinois, police force.

Devil's Knot by Mara Leveritt -- Arkansas investigative journalist, Mara Leveritt, (The Boys on the Tracks) presents an affecting account of the 1993 West Memphis 3 murder convictions, controversial trial in the wake of 3 child murders in Arkansas. In May 1993, three eight-year-old boys were found mutilated and murdered in West Memphis, a small Arkansas town. The crime scene and forensic evidence were mishandled, but a probation officer directed the police toward Damien Echols.

When Kids Kill: Unthinkable Crimes of Lost Innocence by Jonathan Paul

Bernard-Henri Levy's Who Killed Daniel Pearl? a harrowing look at Pearl's life and tragic death. Levy acclaimed philosopher and best-selling author in Europe--in 2002 launched a one-year journey to understand Wall Street Journal reporter Pearl and the circumstances that led to his murder in Pakistan; traces a thread from Pearl's killers through Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence and, possibly, to Al-Quaida. At great personal risk, he follows the same steps that Pearl walked to the very farm house where the journalist was killed. Pakistan "has lost even the very idea of what a free press could be." Pearl: "a man who was ordinary and exemplary, normal and admirable." It is about a good man who died too soon as well as the terrible alliances that could perform such an act against him. Levy does not want Pearl's lessons to be lost to the world. He, like Pearl, seeks a "gentle Islam" that will resist the ring of blood and hate in what Levy calls "the beginning of the grand struggle of the century." --Patrick O'Kelley

The Kennedy Curse: Why America's First Family Has Been Haunted by Tragedy for 150 Years
by Edward Klein
Death was merciful to Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, if Jackie had lived to see her son, JFK Jr., perish in a plane crash on his way to his cousin's wedding, she would have been horrified by the familiar pattern of tragedy. On a day that should have been full of joy the Kennedy Curse struck. Edward Klein--explains why the Kennedys have been subjected to such a mind-boggling chain of calamities.

Encyclopedia of Murder and Violent Crime by Ph.D. Eric Hickey
A wealth of material on killing and other violent behavior, detailed information on criminal cases and nearly 500 entries that range from Antisocial Personality Disorder and the Beltway Snipers to the infamous Zodiac Murders.

The World's Most Mysterious Murders by Lionel Fanthrope, Patricia Fanthorpe Most unsolved murders have no apparent motives -- or too many motives. The murders of Sir Harry Oakes in 1943, one of the richest men in Canada, and Christine Demeter, found dead in a blood-soaked garage in Mississauga in 1973 -- remain unsolved. Who killed King William Rufus, Edward II, and the Princes in the Tower? Who was Jack the Ripper? Was James Hanratty really guilty of killing Michael Gregson? These mysteries and more.

The Rabbi and the Hit Man: A True Tale of Murder, Passion, and the Shattered Faith of a Congregation by Arthur J. Magida-- On the evening of November 1, 1994, Rabbi Fred Neulander returned home to find his wife, Carol, face down blood everywhere. Two trials and 8 years later, the founder of the largest reform synagogue in southern NJ was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison.

Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith by Jon Krakauer In 1984, Ron and Dan Lafferty murdered the wife and infant daughter of their younger brother Allen. The crimes were noteworthy for their brutality but the brothers' claim that they were acting on direct orders from God. Krakauer tells the story of the killers and explores Mormon fundamentalism. The mainstream Church rejected polygamy, fundamentalist groups took to the hills. When beliefs are challenged or their order defied, these groups are capable of fighting back with tremendous violence. Krakauer's research into the history of the church is extensive, but the real power of the book comes from jailhouse interviews with Dan Lafferty. America's fastest growing church, with an estimated membership of nearly 12 million believers worldwide, is galled that the best-selling writer has focused on Mormon fundamentalists, legions of excommunicated believers who include murderers Dan and Ron Lafferty. The church thinks Krakauer is smearing it with the excesses of these renegade factions.

American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, September 11, 1857 by Sally Denton -- In September 1857, a wagon train passing through Utah with gold was attacked. 140 people were slaughtered; 17 children under the age of 8 were spared. This incident in Mountain Meadows has been the focus of passionate debate: Is it possible that official Mormon dignitaries were responsible for the massacre? The author-herself of Mormon descent traces the emergence of the Mormons and the 19th-century tensions between their leaders and the US government. 1857 they were ruling an entire American territory, Utah, commanding their own government and army. The church began placing the blame on a discredited Mormon, John D. Lee, and Native Americans. Brigham Young, bore significant responsibility impelled by the church's financial crises, facing intense scrutiny and condemnation by the federal government, incited the crime by word and deed.

Journal of the Dead: A Story of Friendship and Murder in the New Mexico Desert by Jason Kersten -- 1999 in New Mexico's Rattlesnake Canyon. Raffi Kodikian and David Coughlin, having lost their way on a short hike in the desert, find themselves on the verge of fatal dehydration. According to a journal kept by Kodikian, they decide on a mutual suicide pact to spare each other excruciating pain before inevitable death. Kodikian survives after stabbing his friend. Soon he is rescued by rangers and charged with the murder of his best friend.

Red Zone: The Behind-the-Scenes Story of the San Francisco Dog Mauling by Aphrodite Jones January 2001, Diane Alexis Whipple bled to death in the hallway of her Pacific Heights apartment building when she was mauled by two Presa Canarios, a vicious breed of attack dog imported from the Canary Islands. The dogs belonged to lawyers Marjorie Knoller and Robert Noel, keeping them for a leader of the prison gang the Aryan Brotherhood. Jones takes us deep into the world of Paul "Cornfed" Schneider, who actually owned the dogs.

Sexual Assault

I Am the Central Park Jogger by Trisha Meili -- The 1989 raped and beaten jogger reveals her ordeal and her identity.

Rough Amusements: The True Story of A'Lelia Walker, Patroness of the Harlem Renaissance's Down-Low Culture
by Ben Neihart
A'Lelia Walker died in 1931 after a midnight snack of lobster and chocolate cake with champagne marked in New York. The daughter of multi-millionaire Madame C.J. Walker marketed the most successful straightening technique for African American hair), A'Lelia was America's first black poor little rich girl. A'Lelia's world, gay Harlem in the 1920s delves into the sexual subculture of 19th-century New York, mixed-race prostitution; the bachelorization of New York society; French Balls; and The Slide. Neihart traces A'Lelia's cultivation of the racial, social, and sexual risk that defined the Harlem Renaissance.

Dangerous Attractions by Robert Scott A walk on the wild side -- the rape and murder of an all American girl.

A Girl's Gotta Do What a Girl's Gotta Do by Kathleen Baty -- Sharing lessons she's learned--the hard way--along with proven tips from experts in street smarts, Baty gets specific about what to pack for a business trip, where it's safe to shop online, when to report a creepy coworker, and how to tell that guy who's bothering you to get lost--for good. Complete step-by-step instructions on how to stop an assailant in his tracks with words, hands, or, easy-to-use self-defense weapons, personal safety for women of all ages.

Traci Lords: Underneath It All by Traci Lords -- Traci Lords was the underage skin mag/porn queen who became the centerpiece of the adult video industry's greatest scandal. Nora Kuzma was a troubled confused, sexually abused teenager from Steubenville, Ohio; falls in with drugs and the wrong Southern California crowd, forges fake IDs to become Penthouse Pet of the Month at 16 and the '80s hottest adult star, then arrested, to become reborn as cleaned-up, psychoanalyzed/rehabbed purveyor of legitimate film, TV, and music career.

How to Stop a Stalker by Mike Proctor-- One out of every 12 women and one out of every 45 men in the US are stalked! This book gives you the means to protect yourself, and to put the stalker behind bars. Mike Proctor, Veteran of the Westminster, California, Police Department, explains stalking and what to do if you find yourself an unfortunate victim measures to aid in prosecution. Examples from actual cases. Of use to stalking victims, victim advocates, law enforcement officials, and employers.

Organized Crime

Mob Nemesis: How the FBI Crippled Organized Crime by Joe Griffin, Don Denevi -- In 1957 when Griffin joined the FBI, the Mob had an iron grip in American port cities. La Cosa, Nostra wasn't yet officially acknowledged. After a brief overview of the history of the American Mafia, Griffin describes fighting the Mob in Cleveland, Youngstown, Rochester, and Buffalo. He recounts the surveillance, stings, disappointments, and successes. He discusses feuds between law enforcement and the infiltrator in their Cleveland office. Joe Griffin won the FBI Medal of Valor. After serving the FBI for 30 years he is now CEO for Quest Consultants International, a Chicago based investigative consultation firm.

Mafia Wife: My Story of Love, Murder, and Madness by Lynda Milito, Reg Potterton
The memoir by Lynda Milito, wife of Louie Milito, a capo in New York's most powerful and notorious Mafia family, the Gambinos. In the 1950s and '60s, Louie Milito came of age with the Junior Rampers, a tough gang from Brooklyn. Louie graduated to becoming a made member of the Gambinos, a capo, and architect for some of the family's most bloody work. Louie was a trusted friend and colleague to family underboss Sammy the Bull Gravano. Since their teen years running the streets of Brooklyn through their reign in the inner circle of the Gambinos, Louie had no doubt that Gravano and family boss John Gotti would watch his back. But in 1988, Louie Milito disappeared. His body has never been found. Louie's wife, Lynda Milito, discovered Louie was killed by the people who were supposed to protect him. Lynda shares an intimate portrayal of living inside the world of the Mafia. Lynda recounts her lonely childhood, aching to find a comfort that would counter her loveless relationship with her mother. She confesses to being attracted to a powerful man, and explores the pain of child molestation, spousal abuse, life-threatening bouts with mental illness, and strained relationships with her children. The Mafia is not about ideals of honor and loyalty. Gambino and Gotti were not romantic. Mafia is about money, betrayal -- and watching your back. Lynda divulges the blind eye she turned to Louie's criminal enterprises and the blood on his hands.After 22 years of marriage and his death, Lynda illuminates the horror her family went through. Lynda and Louie Milito have a son, Louis, and a daughter, Deena.

The French Quarter: An Informal History of the New Orleans Underworld by Herbert Asbury -- Home to the notorious "Blue Book," which listed the names and addresses of every prostitute living in New Orleans's infamous red-light district, one of the most raucous in the world. New Orleans underworld consisted of much more than the local bordellos, it was well known as the early gambling capital of the US, with one of the most violent records of street crime in the country. From the exploits of Mary Jane "Bricktop" Jackson and Bridget Fury, two prostitutes who became famous after murdering their associates, to the "filibusters" backed by hundreds of thousands of dollars of public Support without official governmental approval for military missions to take over bordering Spanish regions in Texas. Asbury takes the reader on an intriguing, photograph-filled journey through a unique version of the American underworld.

Gangs and Society -- by Louis Kontos (Editor), David Brotherton (Editor), Luis Barrios (Editor), David C. Brotherton
Gangs mirror their communities--but is the community a concrete space, for instance a neighborhood, or is it a collective identity? This volume addresses these questions from an eclectic range of positions. The product of a landmark conference on gangs, the book brings together the work of academics, activists, and community leaders to examines gang organizations. Analyzing the spread of gangs from New York to Texas to the West Coast, the book covers such topics as the spirituality of gangs, women in gangs, the relationship between gangs and education and gangs and federally funded programs for at-risk youth. Included is a photographic essay by Donna DeCesare, an award-winning journalist.

Born to Steal: When the Mafia Hit Wall Street Gary Weiss
Staten Island badboy Louis Pasciuto's rise to the top of Wall Street's chop houses. Hood brokers. Monthly million dollar paychecks. 36 hour cocaine binges. Run-ins with Mafia thugs toting Mac 10 machine pistols. This was the life of Louis Pasciuto, from the age of 19 to 25, moved stocks for 17 different brokerage houses. This inside account of the Mafia's infiltration of Wall Street details Louis' career as the consummate liar, selling phantom stocks and a lifestyle worthy of Caligula. To avoid a long prison sentence, Pasciuto turned state's witness.

Punishment

Go Directly to Jail: the Criminalization of Almost Everything
The American criminal justice system is becoming ever more centralized and punitive, owing to rampant federalization and mandatory minimum sentencing guidelines. Go Directly to Jail emxmines these alarming trends and proposes reforms that could rein in a criminal justice apparatus at war with fairness and common sense. a labyrinthine criminal code Cato Institute

The Death Penalty on Trial: Crisis in American Justice -- Bill Kurtis, anchor of the wildly popular true-crime TV series Cold Case Files and American Justice, used to support the death penalty. But after observing the machinations of the justice system for X years, he came to a stunning realization that changed his life: Capital punishment is wrong.

Life on the Outside: The Prison Odyssey of Elaine Bartlett Jennifer Gonnerman -- Elaine spent 16 years in Bedford Hills prison for selling cocaine-a first offense under New York's harsh Rockefeller drug laws. The morning of January 26, 2000, she is set free, having received clemency from the governor. At 42, Elaine has nothing: no money, no job, no home. She does have a large, troubled family, including four children in a decrepit Lower East Side housing project. Elaine clashes with her daughters, hunts for a job, visits her son and her husband in prison, negotiates parole, searches for her own home-and campaigns for the repeal of the sentencing guidelines. The US imprisons more than 2 million people yet making few preparations for their release. Now prisoners are coming home in record numbers unprepared for "life on the outside." Gonnerman calls attention to this national crisis with an intimate family portrait-a story of struggle and survival, guilt and forgiveness, loneliness and love.

Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach -- A forensic exploration of postmortem bodies.For 2000 years, cadavers have been involved in science. They've tested France's first guillotines, ridden the NASA Space Shuttle, been crucified in a Parisian laboratory to test the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin, and helped solve the mystery of TWA Flight 800. For every surgical procedure, from heart transplants to gender reassignment surgery, cadavers have been there. Roach visits cadavers from the anatomy labs and pharmacies of medieval and 19th-century Europe to a human decay research facility in Tennessee, to a plastic surgery practice lab, to a Scandinavian funeral directors' conference on human composting. There are chapters on cannibalism, dumplings filled with human remains from a Chinese crematorium, 13 b/w illustrations.

Prohibition & Drug Wars

Reefer Madness: Sex, Drugs, and Cheap Labor in the American Black Market by Eric Schlosser -- America's black market and its influence on society. The underground economy comprises perhaps 10% or more of America's overall economy, and it's on the rise. Schlosser charts this growth, and finds its roots in the ingenuity, greed, idealism, and hypocrisy that is American culture. He reveals the shadow economy by focusing on marijuana, one of the nation's largest cash crops; pornography, whose greatest beneficiaries include Fortune 100 companies; and illegal migrant workers, whose lot resembles that of medieval serfs. All 3 industries show how the black market has burgeoned over the past 3 decades. Schlosser traces parallels between underground and overground: how tycoons and gangsters rise and fall, how new technology shapes a market, how government intervention can reinvigorate black markets and mainstream ones, how big business profits from the underground. Schlosser illuminates the shadow economy and the culture that casts that shadow.

Killing Pablo: The Hunt for the World's Greatest Outlaw by Mark Bowden -- The rise and fall of Pablo Escobar, a notorious Colombian drug lord who became one of the narcotic trade's first billionaires. Pablo started out as a petty thief but wound up running a massive smuggling empire. In the 1980s, he owned fleets of boats and planes, plus 19 separate residences in Medellin, each with its own helipad. He wasn't an entrepreneur, and he wasn't an especially talented businessman. He was just ruthless. He bought off police, politicians, and judges and killed those who wouldn't cooperate. The Colombian government tried to capture him, but he evaded them time after time. In 1988 when a 1000 national police raided his mansions, Pablo fled in his underwear. Pablo's men murdered a popular politician and, three months later, planted a bomb on a plane, killing 110 people, including 2 Americans.

Shooting the Moon: The True Story of an American Manhunt Unlike Any Other, Ever by David Harris
1985 General Manuel Antonio Noriega was dentified by the Drug Enforcement Administration's forces. Harris shows the manhunt, and drug bust.

The Politics of Heroin: CIA Complicity in the Global Drug Trade by Alfred W. McCoy
The first book to prove CIA and US government complicity in global drug trafficking, ncludes documentation of dishonesty and dirty dealings at the highest levels from the Cold War until today. Maintaining a global perspective, this groundbreaking study details the mechanics of drug trafficking in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and South and Central America. New chapters detail US involvement in the narcotics trade in Afghanistan and Pakistan before and after the fall of the Taliban, and how U.S. drug policy in Central America and Colombia has increased the global supply of illicit drugs.

Without a Badge: Undercover in the World's Deadliest Criminal Organization by Jerry Speziale with Mark Seal. Speziale, DEA narcotics task force, undercover in Colombia's drug cartels.

Con Artists

Con Men: Fascinating Profiles of Swindlers and Rogues from the Files of the Most Successful Broadcast in Television History by 60 Minutes -- 60 Minutes exposes a group of swindlers and rogues: extraordinary characters of ABSCAM, pyramid-scheme millionaires and stock-market crooks, snake-oil salesmen and art forgers. Many of them are diabolical -- all of them are intriguing. Kirby Hensley, the illiterate purveyor of church ministries to millions via mail-order; Clifford Irving, who fabricated Howard Hughes's "autobiography" for hundreds of thousands of dollars; the Reverend R. J. Rudd, promised a cure for cancer; Sante and Kenneth Kimes, the notorious mother and son grifters convicted of murdering wealthy Manhattanite Irene Silverman; and John Ackah Blay-Miezah, who claimed to hold the key to a fortune convinced others to put up millions. These and other stories brought to life by the bite and humor of 60 Minutes. Featuring an introduction by Mike Wallace, with insights into the coverage of cons, and intriguing updates on the outcome of each of the stories.

Catch Me If You Can: The True Story of a Real Fake by Stan Redding, Frank W. Abagnale -- In 5 years, Frank Abagnale passed $2.5 million in fraudulent checks in every state and 26 foreign countries by pioneering implausible and brazen scams, such as impersonating a Pan Am pilot. He played the role of a pediatrician and resident supervisor at a hospital. He conned his way into a position in a state attorney general's office, and taught college-level sociology. He was actually a teenage high school dropout. Now an authority on counterfeiting and secure documents, Abagnale tells of his impersonations, swindles and felonies with humor. He did it for his overactive libido--money and status to woo the girls. Abagnale was released from prison after 5 years to help the government write fraud-prevention programs.

Police Unbound: Corruption, Abuse, and Heroism by the Boys in Blue by Anthony V. Bouza -- Anthony V. Bouza is a retired Minneapolis police chief, former Bronx force commander, and author of The Police Mystique. Bouza an officer of 36 years reveals the secret world of law enforcement's unspoken codes. Bouza considers the problem in policing: the white, wealthy, educated, suburbanites voting that police keep the underprivileged "out of sight." Los Angeles, New York, and Minneapolis departments are analyzed.

International

Darkness at Dawn: The Rise of the Russian Criminal State -- A country desperately impoverished and controlled at every level by criminals. This tells the story of the 1990s reform period in Russia through the experiences of individual citizens. Through the stories of people at all levels of Russian society, Satter describes fraudulent investment schemes, massive corruption, and the intrusion of organized crime everywhere. Analysis of how Russia's post-Soviet fate was decided when a new morality failed to fill the vacuum that communism left.

Race Against Evil: The Secret Missions of the Interpol Agent Who Tracked the World's Most Sinister Criminals
by David Race Bannon -- A firsthand account of heinous criminals and stern justice from the insider's view of David Race Bannon. At 18, the American youth is recruited by Interpol after he is caught in a deadly riot in South Korea. Over the next 15 years, he is trained to work in the darkest regions of humanity and embrace the agency's role as deliverer of grim justice beyond the reach of the law. His missions take him from investigating the bombing of KAL 858 and infiltrating prisons in Korea to the disappearance of London's most notorious child pornographer and searching out terrorists and criminals in the US. Disclosing the tactics, teamwork, weapons and combat techniques, he shares the joys and pains of victims and officers; the thrill ends when his fiancee, a French DST agent, dies in his arms during a confrontation with terrorist cells; and Interpol's role in capturing and punishing kidnappers and enslavers who traffic in humans. The true story of a man on the front lines of international justice who struggles to reconcile his search for inner peace with the violence required to protect innocents.

The Trial of the Police Officers in the Shooting Death of Amadou Diallo: A Headline Court Case -- by Bryna J. Fireside, Amadou Diallo September 1, 2004

Should Juveniles Be Tried As Adults (At Issue Series) by Judy Layzell September 1, 2004

Guns & Violence (Current Controversies) Laura K. Egendorf September 1, 2004

Corruption And Market In Contemporary China by Yan Sun September 30, 2004

Essentials of Forensic Psychological Assessment
by Marc J. Ackerman
Quickly acquire the knowledge and skills you need to administer, score, and interpret key assessment instruments used by forensic psychologists. An authoritative source of advice and guidance on how to administer, score, and interpret tests.

Why Crime? An Integrated Systems Theory of Antisocial Behavior
by Matthew B. Robinson -- Explains why some people are more prone to antisocial behavior than others. Risk factors that increase the probability of antisocial behavior are identified, and an understanding of what produces criminality, delinquency, and deviance. Organized around an integrated systems perspective, the book examines six levels of analysis, from cell to society. Relationships between factors at each of these levels of analysis and antisocial behavior are stated; and a new theory of antisocial behavior and criminality is presented that combines biological, sociological, psychological, anthropological, and economic factors. This book presents more than 1,000 references, making it an excellent source of information for criminologists and law enforcement professionals.

The Official Forensic Files Casebook: Volume 2, Behind the Crimes Paul Dowling September 1, 2004

Greed Rage & Love Gone Wrong: Murder in Minnesota BRUCE RUBENSTEIN September 28, 2004

Detective Tool Kit (Action Books) September 30, 2004

Return to the True Crime Website

This page may be reprinted and distrubed as long as the code, links, urls and/or text are not altered and the links remain intact. Check back we update almost daily, usually several times a day.