The Innocent Man
Murder and Injustice in a Small Town
by John Grisham
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Pub. Ed. $28.95
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The Innocent Man
John Grisham’s “sterling gift for storytelling” (Entertainment Weekly) is what makes this tale of murder and injustice as harrowing as his bestselling novels…and more chilling because it is true.
In 1971, Ron Williamson left Ada, Oklahoma, as a draft pick for a pro baseball team. It was a dream come true that shattered six years later, after his pursuit of drinking, drugs and women, compounded by a bad arm, landed him back home and going nowhere. It wasn’t hard for anyone who was looking to see that Williamson was in a bad way. But was he a killer?
When Debra Sue Carter was raped and murdered in 1982, the police were convinced Williamson and his friend Dennis Fritz were responsible, despite being told the 21-year-old cocktail waitress was last seen arguing with a male high school friend the night of the killing. Based on zero physical evidence and the word of disreputable snitches, the two were hounded for five years before being arrested and found guilty. But while Fritz was given a life sentence, Williamson was sent to Death Row, where he stayed for twelve long years…
As you would expect, John Grisham does a masterful job recreating the chain of events that led a troubled man down the path to destruction until just five days before his scheduled execution, when DNA evidence snatched him from the jaws of hell. If you believe that in America you are innocent until proven guilty, this book will surely open your eyes…. Explicit violence.
Hardcover: 320 pages
Publisher: Doubleday & Co. Inc./Div. Random House ( October 03, 2006 )
Item #: 67-1901
ISBN: 9780385517232
Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 8.25 x 0.8 inches
Product Weight: 12.0 ounces
Okay....kinda bored at the end ;-(
July 16, 2010
The actual story is an amazing injustice to one man's life however, the court proceedings etc later in the book got a bit boring and I stopped reading before the last page.
Reviewer: Mel
Highly recommended!
April 06, 2010
This book was an expertly written account of lives turned inside out by incompetency, stubborness and prejudice. Grisham does an excellent job of portraying the main characters without glossing over their very real faults. The book had me glued to my seat the whole way through, even as my heart ached. I saw my own mental illness reflected in Ron, yet was repelled by him, as his friends, caregivers and inmates were too. I felt the pain of the victims families and the frustration of an overwrought system. A thoroughly well-rounded account.
Reviewer: Amy C
Disappointed
October 03, 2009
I did not care for this book at all. It did not really tell the story so much as reflect a complete bias on Grisham's part. Reader was not allowed to make a decision on their own as to whether there was an injustice, the decision was already made by the author.
Reviewer: Katie
Awesome book
September 19, 2009
unbelievable how John can move from fiction to non-fiction so seamlessly.The true story will make any true american's heart hurt from the grievouse injustices.
Reviewer: Jarito
Best Yet
August 21, 2009
I am a true John Grisham fan and all of his work is wonderful, but this book was amazing! I found my self in tears over it, the true story of this poor man, I loved it it was unbelievable
Reviewer: April
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