Here is the recap of #cclivechat from September 21, 2012. This #cclivechat was not planned since I expected to be tied up until later in the afternoon. I was pleasantly surprised to be dismissed early so I told you about some favourite true crime books.
Books are an important part of my life. They have shaped some of my thoughts, they question my beliefs, they relax and agitate me.
The books I mentioned were in order of appearance:
“All the Commissioner’s Men” by Chris Birt
Jeanette & Harvey Crewe were murdered in 1970, New Zealand. They had one child, Rochelle. While her parents were murdered, Rochelle was taken care off by someone or, some people. In 2010, these murders were reviewed. However, fingerprint records from the home of the murder victims have gone missing. Arthur Allen Thomas was convicted for this double homicide but was also pardoned, and a commission of inquiry found that police planted crucial evidence to get his conviction. Despite substantial media attention and a review, the case remains unsolved. The Review Report about the Crewe Murders was published in 2014.
“Execution Eve” by William J. Buchanan
Golf champion Marion Miley (27) and her mother Elsie Miley were killed during a robbery at the Lexington Country Club (Kentucky) on Sunday, September 28, 1941. Three men were arrested, charged, and two years later they all died in the electric chair for these murders. Some believe that one of these three men, Bob Anderson, was wrongfully executed. However Tom Penney, the gun man, gave the evidence needed to prove Anderson’s guilt.
“A promise of Justice” by David Protess & Rob Warden
A Promise of Justice tells the story of the Ford Heights Four, the worst miscarriage of justice since the Scottsboro trials in Alabama in the 1930s. Four innocent black men spent 64 years in Illinois prisons and two of them on death row. All for a crime they did not commit.
“The wrong man” by James Neff
Samuel Holmes “Sam” Sheppard was an American neurosurgeon initially convicted for the 1954 murder of his wife, Marilyn Reese Sheppard. The case was controversial from the beginning, with extensive and prolonged nationwide media coverage.
If you read the verbatim thread below you can see why these books made an impression on me. If you have read any of them, let me know your thoughts!
Cheers!
Vidocq_CC | It is noon on the East Coast and against all odds I made it back without getting a speeding ticket! #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:03:11 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | Since I did not schedule a case/topic/guest for today, this one is a spontaneous one supported by @barnesy_ #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:03:48 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | I will introduce you to some of my all time favourite true crime books. Feel free to jump in and tell me about yours. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:04:22 +0000 |
eileenclayton1 | #CClivechat evening | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:05:11 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | Let's start with the ones I am currently reading. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:05:39 +0000 |
Barnesy_ | RT @Vidocq_CC: Since I did not schedule a case/topic/guest for today, this one is a spontaneous one supported by @barnesy_ #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:06:06 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | @eileenclayton1 Hello there, we are yapping about favourite true crime books! #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:06:11 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | "All the commissioner's men" by Chris Birt on the Crewe Murders, New Zealand, that case is also on my blog. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:06:57 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | All my posts about the Crewe Murders are here http://t.co/zR4bnwmg #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:07:38 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | Birt does an excellent job introducing you to documents the public was never privy to ... for about 32 years. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:08:15 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | Most of the police attempts to try Thomas for a third time were never made public. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:09:00 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | The hearings of the Royal Commission were alas behind closed doors. News did leak but not in detail. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:09:37 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | If reading about attempts to cover-up a crime interest you and, to see what pressure police put on civilians, this is for you. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:10:29 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | Now I am not done reading this book yet and when I do I will post a review. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:10:53 +0000 |
Barnesy_ | @Vidocq_CC so this book sought to shed light on the attempted cover up and what the civilians went through? #cclivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:11:51 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | Chris' book can be found here http://t.co/0x4fMQiV #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:12:24 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | @Barnesy_ Yes, pressure to place Thomas near the Crewe farm, pressure to alter eye-witnesses' statements and even visits 1/2 #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:12:58 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | @Barnesy_ to jails where Arthur Allen Thomas was jailed to get snitches to testify on the stand 2/2 #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:13:23 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | @Barnesy_ It will also show you withheld evidence, planted evidence and the inter-police connections that the Royal 1/2 #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:15:12 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | @Barnesy_ Commission was not aware off when they held their sessions 2/2 #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:15:29 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | Now an old one, not mentioned on my blog. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:16:21 +0000 |
eileenclayton1 | #CClivechat evening, I can identify with this totally | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:17:00 +0000 |
Barnesy_ | @Vidocq_CC okay it sounds like a fascinating read, I may have to have a go at reading this #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:17:14 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | In 1941, golf star Marion Miley and mother Elsie were murdered, Lexington, Kentucky. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:17:29 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | In "Execution Eve" William J. Buchanan writes what his father went through. His dad was the warden of KY state penitentiary #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:18:43 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | Before Marion & Elsie's murders, warden Buchanan supported the death penalty. The Miley case changed that. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:19:36 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | An ex-convict confessed and named two accomplices: a junkie and a nightclub owner. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:20:46 +0000 |
eileenclayton1 | #CClivechat I am sorry didn't see you were talking about crime books. I am in Liverpool and the Hillsborough panel give their side things | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:20:59 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | The junkie confessed as well but the nightclub owner denied any involvement. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:21:13 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | All three were tried, convicted and sentenced to death. At that time, Kentucky still had the electric chair. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:21:50 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | Warden Buchanan interacted with his prisoners and got to know the three men. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:22:24 +0000 |
RealRosieLarson | @Vidocq_CC #cclivechat The Executioner's Song about Gary Gilmore by Norman Mailer. #handsdown | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:22:53 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | The ex-con started to trust the warden who would execute him in the name of the state of Kentucky. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:23:33 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | @RealRosieLarson Excellent choice, on my book shelves as well! #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:23:52 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | The ex-con confessed to the warden that he lied when he pointed to two accomplices. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:24:16 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | I will not tell you the rest of the story but is has a twist that truck me when I read it the first time. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:24:41 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | The events turned Warden Buchanan away from the death penalty and he became a strong opponent. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:25:39 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | "Execution Eve" is very well written and can be found here http://t.co/RHYeqJf2 #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:26:27 +0000 |
Barnesy_ | @Vidocq_CC there was me wanting to know that little bit more I like the sound of this one as I'm interested in cap punishment #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:26:32 +0000 |
Barnesy_ | @Vidocq_CC #CClivechat and also here for those in the UK http://t.co/Qu5Okomq | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:28:01 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | @Barnesy_ There are many good books involving capital punishment but this one stands out. Not well-known though. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:28:17 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | @Barnesy_ Excellent, thank you for the UK link. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:28:38 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | Now if investigative journalism and capital punishment interest you, then the next one is one to explore. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:29:07 +0000 |
Barnesy_ | @Vidocq_CC definitely it is something that I should look into reading about rather than just fiction #CClivechat. | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:29:57 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | It took 2 journalists 18 years to save four men from death row. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:31:11 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | The four men were accused of interracial kidnapping, rape and double murder. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:31:41 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | The Ford Heights Four are the modern Scottsboros. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:32:38 +0000 |
Barnesy_ | RT @Vidocq_CC: It took 2 journalists 18 years to save four men from death row. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:32:43 +0000 |
Barnesy_ | @Vidocq_CC significant amount of time and some serious accusations #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:33:13 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | David protess and Rob Warden became interested in the men and their case. And they did what nobody wanted to do: listen to them. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:33:19 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | An eyewitness described two of the suspects running from the townhouse where the murders took place. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:34:42 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | Another witness claimed that he had heard the men brag about their crimes. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:35:05 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | It seemed clear cut: interracial, eyewitnesses and four men without a dream team to defend them. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:36:32 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | And then DNA made its dramatic entrance. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:36:47 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | I think that you can guess the results but you need to read how they got the results. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:37:30 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | The book exposes more than a cover-up and a jumping to conclusions. It is a step-by-step analysis who they freed the four men. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:38:09 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | "A promise of Justice" by Warden & Protess can be found here http://t.co/daEdigJ5 #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:38:54 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | The next one is for you if you like to study blood spatter, patterns and human behaviour. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:40:55 +0000 |
Barnesy_ | RT @Vidocq_CC: "A promise of Justice" by Warden & Protess can be found here http://t.co/daEdigJ5 #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:41:19 +0000 |
Barnesy_ | RT @Vidocq_CC: The next one is for you if you like to study blood spatter, patterns and human behaviour. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:41:34 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | We all know that in general blood only flies up if a weapon makes an upward motion releasing some drops due to speed. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:41:38 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | And from serial killer books & movies we all know that multiple stabbings reflect a personalised crime. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:42:14 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | So why is it that after all these years, we do not dare to say that maybe the husband was not guilty after all? #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:43:14 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | Wherever his son goes, he proclaims his father's innocence and tries to raise awareness for his mother's slaying. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:44:07 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | People usually state that his dad was guilty anyway or, that the window washer was the culprit. But there a man we overlooked. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:44:43 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | That was a man the father trusted and whom the mother would have opened the door to. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:45:11 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | I do not believe that Sam Sheppard killed his wife Marilyn. I think that police conveniently overlooked the neighbours. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:47:01 +0000 |
Barnesy_ | RT @Vidocq_CC: That was a man the father trusted and whom the mother would have opened the door to. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:47:28 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | In "The wrong man" James Neff details why he believes Sam Sheppard was not guilty. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:47:51 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | That book can be found here http://t.co/515OC4Bz #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:47:59 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | Neff explains the crime, the investigation and why everyone thought that Sheppard killed his wife. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:48:21 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | But there is something he did not explore at length and maybe I am wrong. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:48:41 +0000 |
Barnesy_ | RT @Vidocq_CC: In "The wrong man" James Neff details why he believes Sam Sheppard was not guilty. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:49:46 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | However, affairs can be dangerous and the political climate may have played a role. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:49:52 +0000 |
Barnesy_ | #CClivechat uk version here for 'The Wrong Man' http://t.co/CBPU2tza | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:50:35 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | The suspicion is that Sheppard did kill his wife because when he found her he did not call police first. He called the neighbour #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:51:04 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | The neighbour, Spencer Houk, spent time at the crime scene before police arrived. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:51:32 +0000 |
Barnesy_ | @Vidocq_CC but was that because he believed they were the killers? #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:52:38 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | And the neighbour, was married. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:53:08 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | @Barnesy_ No, he needed Houk's cloud/influence to delay the arrival of the cops. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:54:02 +0000 |
Barnesy_ | @Vidocq_CC okay, this sounds like an interesting one, I'm buying it now #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:54:43 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | My suspicion is that too little weigh was given to the rumour that the Houks and Sheppards were having affairs. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:54:56 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | And now the forensics thanks to DNA! #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:57:08 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | Blood found on the stairs was not Marilyn's. That meant it hadn't dripped from the murder weapon as police believed. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:57:43 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | But maybe that blood was from her killer. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:57:54 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | The blood was not from Sam Sheppard either although some are quick to point to contamination. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:58:31 +0000 |
Barnesy_ | RT @Vidocq_CC: My suspicion is that too little weigh was given to the rumour that the Houks and Sheppards were having affairs. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:58:33 +0000 |
Barnesy_ | RT @Vidocq_CC: The blood was not from Sam Sheppard either although some are quick to point to contamination. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:59:20 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | There will be some now jumping in and saying that the window washer's DNA was found inside Marilyn. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 17:00:02 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | The problem is, the window washer confessed in jail that he raped Marilyn but not that he killed her. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 17:02:22 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | If a man had wanted to kill Marilyn he could have done so without the display of force and repeated stabbing. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 17:03:03 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | Marilyn's murder seems more sadistic than sexual and more revenge than silencing the witness. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 17:03:55 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | So someone was overlooked in the investigation. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 17:04:07 +0000 |
Barnesy_ | RT @Vidocq_CC: Marilyn's murder seems more sadistic than sexual and more revenge than silencing the witness. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 17:04:28 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | After examination of Marilyn's wounds, experts stated the killer was left-handed. The window washer was right handed. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 17:06:03 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | A tooth clipping found in the Sheppard's bedroom did not belong to Marilyn but neither to husband Sam. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 17:07:56 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | Read the book, research the case online and then whisper to me who you think killed Marilyn. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 17:10:08 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | Sam Sheppard must have known who did this or else, he would have called the cops first. He covered for someone. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 17:10:40 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | Sheppard protected someone and that person's family sacrificing his own. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 17:11:09 +0000 |
Vidocq_CC | And that, folks, are some of my favourite true crime books. #CClivechat | Fri, 21 Sep 2012 17:11:33 +0000 |