 Back to search results | ||
 | ||
The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town by John Grisham (2006, Hardcover)
| ||
Product description:Full product description
In John Grisham's first nonfiction book, he disinters the appalling details of a miscarriage of justice in Oklahoma. After a short disappointing career as a major league baseb...Read more
Most relevant review:
See all reviews
See all reviews
The Innocent man- an important read
I'd seen this book advertised on various websites. So when someone lent it to me I was interested to see what it was like. The author's previous output have been fiction, whic...Read more
Innocent Man by John Grisham
This may be John Grisham's best writing to date, and it is his first non-fiction book. It is a gripping story of several men, one in particular, who were wrongly accused, pro...Read more
The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town by John Grisham (2006, Hardcover)
Author: John GrishamPublisher: DoubledayLanguage: English
Only 3 Left!
- Best deal from a top-rated seller This item appears here because it is the lowest priced, Buy It Now item from a highly rated seller.Start of LayerEnd of Layer
Condition:Brand New
) Location:USA
Returns:Accepted
| AuctionTime: ending soonest | Buy it NowPrice + Shipping: lowest first |
There are no "Brand New: Auction" listings for this product at this time. | |
| See all "Brand New: Buy it Now" |
Product description
Synopsis
In John Grisham's first nonfiction book, he disinters the appalling details of a miscarriage of justice in Oklahoma. After a short disappointing career as a major league baseball player, Ron Williamson returned to his hometown of Ada, moved in with his mother, and began to lose his mind. When a young cocktail waitress was raped and murdered, the local police decided to target the mentally unstable Williamson. Using coercive methods and the flimsiest of evidence the District Attorney railroaded Williamson, took advantage of his paranoia and his blind public defender, and eventually sent him to Death Row. With his typically gripping prose and his extensive knowledge of the legal system, Grisham exposes a particularly awful instance of corruption in the legal system.
Publisher's Note
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.
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 twenty-one-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.
Presents the real-life case of Ron Williamson, a mentally ill former baseball player who was wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death for the 1982 murder of a 21-year-old woman in his Oklahoma hometown.
The best-selling author ofThe Last Juror, The Runaway Jury, A Time to Kill, and other tales of legal suspense presents his first work of nonfiction, in a compelling legal thriller. 1,500,000 first printing.
In John Grisham's first nonfiction book, he disinters the appalling details of a miscarriage of justice in Oklahoma. After a short disappointing career as a major league baseball player, Ron Williamson returned to his hometown of Ada, moved in with his mother, and began to lose his mind. When a young cocktail waitress was raped and murdered, the local police decided to target the mentally unstable Williamson. Using coercive methods and the flimsiest of evidence the District Attorney railroaded Williamson, took advantage of his paranoia and his blind public defender, and eventually sent him to Death Row. With his typically gripping prose and his extensive knowledge of the legal system, Grisham exposes a particularly awful instance of corruption in the legal system.
| Key Details | |
| Author: | John Grisham |
| Language: | English |
| Publisher: | Doubleday |
| Format: | Hardcover |
| ISBN-10: | 0385517238 |
| ISBN-13: | 9780385517232 |
| Size | |
| Length: | 360 pages |
| Thickness: | 1.2 in |
| Weight: | 23.2 oz |
Publisher's Note
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.
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 twenty-one-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.
Presents the real-life case of Ron Williamson, a mentally ill former baseball player who was wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death for the 1982 murder of a 21-year-old woman in his Oklahoma hometown.
The best-selling author of
eBay Product ID: EPID53846408
Portions of this page Copyright 1995 - 2012 Muze Inc. 
All rights reserved.
All rights reserved.Best selling Nonfiction
+BPgYtzh,j!~~_6.JPG "Fifty Shades of Grey by James and E. L. James (2012, Paperback, Trade )")
OM3Q~~_6.JPG "Wreck This Journal: To Create is to Destroy by Keri Smith (Paperback, 2010)")
The Innocent man- an important read
Created: 07/11/06
) I'd seen this book advertised on various websites. So when someone lent it to me I was interested to see what it was like. The author's previous output have been fiction, which is very popular and successful, even being adapted into screenplays. This is his first non-fiction book about two individuals who were very poorly served by the criminal justice system.
One of them was an aspiring baseball player, the other a young bussiness man. The aspiring baseball player developed personal
problems, which were worsend with alchohol and mental illness.
He also had some brushes with the law. The other man had a fairly
normal life. Both were roped into murder investigations in their little
town, and wrongly convicted on rape and murder charges. One received
life in prison, the other went to death row. Both had to make severe adjustments to survive in the brutal prison system. Reading about this
can be very depressing, especially when you see how cruel, greedy and incompetant the prison staff and officials are. Also the prosecutor comes
off as being a usless, arrogant buffoon, more interested in furthering his career than correcting an injustice.
Through very hard work, and the love and support of the family and friends
these two men were eventually freed. The first one was so damaged by his abuse and non-treatment of his physical and mental ailments, that he
had prematurely aged, and died not long afterwards. The other man moved out of state, lest the police arrest him again for an imagined crime.
The state and prosecutors were sued, and settled, but piously admitted no wrong doing.
I think as myself as a conservative, but this book will make you think seriously about the criminal justice and prison systems in this country.
It details the laziness and stupity of local law enforcement, who'd rather
alter evidence and use a supsect confession, than do actual hard work
to arrive at a conviction. Or a corrupt and brutal prison were most of the staff differ from in inmates only in they go home at night. The description of that prison was so harrowing as to make Dachau seem like Club Med!
While it is REALLY depressing, it is an essential read, in that it shows that
criminals are not the only ones that are a danger to society.
One of them was an aspiring baseball player, the other a young bussiness man. The aspiring baseball player developed personal
problems, which were worsend with alchohol and mental illness.
He also had some brushes with the law. The other man had a fairly
normal life. Both were roped into murder investigations in their little
town, and wrongly convicted on rape and murder charges. One received
life in prison, the other went to death row. Both had to make severe adjustments to survive in the brutal prison system. Reading about this
can be very depressing, especially when you see how cruel, greedy and incompetant the prison staff and officials are. Also the prosecutor comes
off as being a usless, arrogant buffoon, more interested in furthering his career than correcting an injustice.
Through very hard work, and the love and support of the family and friends
these two men were eventually freed. The first one was so damaged by his abuse and non-treatment of his physical and mental ailments, that he
had prematurely aged, and died not long afterwards. The other man moved out of state, lest the police arrest him again for an imagined crime.
The state and prosecutors were sued, and settled, but piously admitted no wrong doing.
I think as myself as a conservative, but this book will make you think seriously about the criminal justice and prison systems in this country.
It details the laziness and stupity of local law enforcement, who'd rather
alter evidence and use a supsect confession, than do actual hard work
to arrive at a conviction. Or a corrupt and brutal prison were most of the staff differ from in inmates only in they go home at night. The description of that prison was so harrowing as to make Dachau seem like Club Med!
While it is REALLY depressing, it is an essential read, in that it shows that
criminals are not the only ones that are a danger to society.
55 of 61 people found this review helpful.
Thank you for voting. If your vote meets our Innocent Man by John Grisham
Created: 09/12/06
This may be John Grisham's best writing to date, and it is his first non-fiction book. It is a gripping story of several men, one in particular, who were wrongly accused, prosecuted and convicted and placed on death row for a crime they did not commit.
Writing with the excellence for which he is known, Grisham, does not sugar-coat the truth, but reveals the character flaws in accurate detail along with fascinating insights into the inner workings of a small central eastern Oklahoma town, for which it has been my pleasure for dozens of times and dozens of days to spend there over the years. Many of the past leaders of Ada, Oklahoma should hang their heads in shame for their mis-prosecution of these men.
Guilty of many things, but not guilty of the murder for they were accused, these men suffered greatly at the hands of the system in place at that time. Though I am in favor of the death penalty for those who have comitted prescribed agregious crimes, it certainly brings a solemnity to any deliberations on the topic that such penalties should not be enforced before extraordinary review and in light of DNA evidence which is now available.
Grisham presents the inner-workings of the politics of this small town at the time in the related context of the prosecution and conviction of these falsely-accused men. For possible prosecutoral misconduct as well as other aspects of this case which were mishandled by the investigators, the judge, and the prosecutor (D.A.) many should answer. Grisham writes his best work.
Writing with the excellence for which he is known, Grisham, does not sugar-coat the truth, but reveals the character flaws in accurate detail along with fascinating insights into the inner workings of a small central eastern Oklahoma town, for which it has been my pleasure for dozens of times and dozens of days to spend there over the years. Many of the past leaders of Ada, Oklahoma should hang their heads in shame for their mis-prosecution of these men.
Guilty of many things, but not guilty of the murder for they were accused, these men suffered greatly at the hands of the system in place at that time. Though I am in favor of the death penalty for those who have comitted prescribed agregious crimes, it certainly brings a solemnity to any deliberations on the topic that such penalties should not be enforced before extraordinary review and in light of DNA evidence which is now available.
Grisham presents the inner-workings of the politics of this small town at the time in the related context of the prosecution and conviction of these falsely-accused men. For possible prosecutoral misconduct as well as other aspects of this case which were mishandled by the investigators, the judge, and the prosecutor (D.A.) many should answer. Grisham writes his best work.
Great Book. Recommend A+
Created: 04/12/06
) 
Ambivalence really sums up my feelings toward Mr. Grisham's latest book. Depressing is another. I applaud Mr. Grisham in his attempt to analyze the hows and whys of just what happened to Ron Williamson during his hectic, confusing, and sometimes just unlucky life. From outstanding major league baseball prospect, to drug and alcohol abuser, to mentally unstable convict, to exonerated felon, Ron Williamson never really knew any peace off the baseball diamond. His dream of a major league career shattered he simply withdrew into his own private hell of dope, booze, loose women, honky tonks, and insanity.
Sometimes a difficult book to follow, the darkness that Mr. Grisham maintains throughout the book is at times oppressive. How many times must Ron Williamson have to exhibit mental instability before someone, anyone, gets him real help and not just temporary "band-aid" his CHRONIC mental problems. It is a wonder that he didn't harm someone during his drunken, drug induced haze. Finally convicted of a murder he never committed, the complex judicial process to free him was very well told by Mr. Grisham. Ron's years spent on "death row" were both illuminating, sad, and frightening all at the same time. His eventual release and exoneration was the ONLY happy point in an otherwise sad biography of a profoundly unhappy life.
Again, I was ambivalent about this book. I can not say I enjoyed it but I did learn from it. This is not your typical light Grisham reading so be very careful. Be ready for a heavy, dark, oppressive book that while educating about the legal system, at the same time leaves one empty about the sad state of this nation's mental health programs. This up close and personal view of America's seamy underbelly will stay with you for quite awhile.
Sometimes a difficult book to follow, the darkness that Mr. Grisham maintains throughout the book is at times oppressive. How many times must Ron Williamson have to exhibit mental instability before someone, anyone, gets him real help and not just temporary "band-aid" his CHRONIC mental problems. It is a wonder that he didn't harm someone during his drunken, drug induced haze. Finally convicted of a murder he never committed, the complex judicial process to free him was very well told by Mr. Grisham. Ron's years spent on "death row" were both illuminating, sad, and frightening all at the same time. His eventual release and exoneration was the ONLY happy point in an otherwise sad biography of a profoundly unhappy life.
Again, I was ambivalent about this book. I can not say I enjoyed it but I did learn from it. This is not your typical light Grisham reading so be very careful. Be ready for a heavy, dark, oppressive book that while educating about the legal system, at the same time leaves one empty about the sad state of this nation's mental health programs. This up close and personal view of America's seamy underbelly will stay with you for quite awhile.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.
Double Take...
Created: 06/01/07
) I'm a mother of two under two and full time career woman who was once an avid reader. I actually made a life out of dissecting important works of literature! I professed to love James Joyce, Shakespeare, Lord Byron, but I read Grisham, Kellerman, and Patterson in the closet so that my friends and colleagues would never see what I was REALLY reading. But as I said...I am now a mother of two under two...and Dr. Suess and Baby Einstein have become my important works of literature, and I am lucky to go to the bathroom alone, let alone read in the closet any longer. All of that said, I delved into the new Grisham hardback simply assuming it was a luscious, self-indulgent novel that I so deserved in the moments between changing diapers, playing with dinosaurs, singing Itsy Bitsy Spider, and wondering how I got peanut butter in my hair...again.
I was wrong...about the novel, the self-indulgence, and the moments.
I was riveted from the first page and at once sickened and hopeful throughout the read. Grisham moves effortlessly from story teller to truth seeker. Good writing elicits thought...Great writing demands examination of thought. This book has caused me to re-examine questions that I thought long-since answered in my own mind. Grisham does this without suggestion or moral indignation. This is a book that must be read.
But...do not read it if:
*you are looking for a mindless story
*you are not willing to forsake sleep, food, and the morning paper just to get through this book
*you are not prepared to examine your own beliefs and ideas regarding the dealth penalty (I was not...)
*you want to keep your image of John Grisham as the author who creates characters simply perfect for Tom Cruise, Denzel Washington, and John Cusak
I truly cannot tell you if it is Grisham's writing or the life of this true account itself that kept The Innocent Man my constant companion for 48 hours. But I do know this, I would be compelled to loan you my copy if it weren't for the jelly stains, the green crayon scribbles on pages 78-121, the unmentionable "goop" found just under the back cover, and the tear-stained last page.
I was wrong...about the novel, the self-indulgence, and the moments.
I was riveted from the first page and at once sickened and hopeful throughout the read. Grisham moves effortlessly from story teller to truth seeker. Good writing elicits thought...Great writing demands examination of thought. This book has caused me to re-examine questions that I thought long-since answered in my own mind. Grisham does this without suggestion or moral indignation. This is a book that must be read.
But...do not read it if:
*you are looking for a mindless story
*you are not willing to forsake sleep, food, and the morning paper just to get through this book
*you are not prepared to examine your own beliefs and ideas regarding the dealth penalty (I was not...)
*you want to keep your image of John Grisham as the author who creates characters simply perfect for Tom Cruise, Denzel Washington, and John Cusak
I truly cannot tell you if it is Grisham's writing or the life of this true account itself that kept The Innocent Man my constant companion for 48 hours. But I do know this, I would be compelled to loan you my copy if it weren't for the jelly stains, the green crayon scribbles on pages 78-121, the unmentionable "goop" found just under the back cover, and the tear-stained last page.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.
The truth is a lot scarier than fiction!
Created: 14/08/07
) I've always liked Grisham--his books keep you on edge, but this true story is scarier than any fiction book he's written! It is an appalling account of a grave injustice that occurred in one small town when public pressure to "solve" a heinous crime, personal biases, and shoddy police work mounted against two men. The characters in this story were not presumed innocent until proven guilty. If you think our legal justice system is fair or objective, this book will be an eye-opener that will make you think twice about the virtues of capital punishment.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.
 About eBay | Announcements | Security Centre | Mobile | Buyer Tools | Policies | Stores | eBay Wish list | Site Map | Help | eBay official time | |
| Copyright © 1995-2012 eBay Inc. All Rights Reserved. Designated trademarks and brands are the property of their respective owners. Use of this Web site constitutes acceptance of the eBay User Agreement and Privacy Policy. | |