CLEWS Your Home for Historic True Crime

On the senator who stood up to the Purple Gang - and lost

The gangland slaying of Michigan Senator Warren G. Hooper was such shocking news in 1945 that it swept war headlines from the front pages of newspapers across the Midwest. Decades later, his brutal death is still something of a mystery.

Senator Hooper, elected from Albion, had made the courageous decision to testify in a probe of rampant government corruption, a legacy of Prohibition. His was to be the critical evidence in the investigation. He was slain before he got the chance.

Warren Hooper was ambushed on his way home from the capitol in Lansing to his home near Albion. That a public servant could be taken out so brutally and blatantly by a gang of thugs seemed like something born of the nineteenth century west and was a tremendous shock at the time. The image above is from www.newspaperarchive.com and typifies the banner headlines the murder generated. (The top-of-page-one, very graphic photograph of the senator's body in situ was also typical of the time.)

A new book about this old puzzle will come out in November. It fictionalizes the case. It is To Account for Murder by William Whitbeck (New York: Permanent Press), who so happens to be Chief Judge of the Michigan Court of Appeals.  Thus the author is continuing a Michigan tradition; Michigan Supreme Court Justice John Voelker (better known as Robert Traver) was the author of Anatomy of a Murder, another thinly fictionalized account of a true murder case and one of the most phenomenally successful titles of its type and time.

For more about Judge Whitbeck's book, which is already commanding attention in Michigan, see the publisher's site.

New books

New Mexico Mystery A new book by author Corey Recko has gotten much buzz.

Murder on the White Sands: The Disappearance of Albert and Henry Fountain [Amazon; B&N] (University of North Texas Press) has been hailed as an award-winning, impeccably researched look at an unsolved double homicide from New Mexico Territory.

The victims were a man who crusaded against cattle rustlers and his eight-year-old son. The disappearance of Albert Jennings Fountain and Henry Fountain has haunted the state and has been called its greatest murder mystery.

This title, it is said, replaces more than a century of rumor and supposing with as many facts as can be gleaned, and the author's nicely done website promises that the book reveals at least some partial truths about the mystery.

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San Francisco's Colorful Crime History is presented in photos and text in Historic Photos of San Francisco Crime [Amazon; B&N; Turner Publishing] celebrates the storied city's most infamous characters and places.

Included in the collection are photographs of some of the most infamous prisons in the world, Alcatraz and San Quentin. The cases highlighted include the notorious murder defendant Fatty Arbuckle.

Historian Hannah Clayborn culled nearly two hundred images from libraries and museums, including the Library of Congress, for a narrated visual tour of the criminal history of the city by the bay.

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Other new books getting good press are The Best American Crime Reporting 2009, edited by Jeffrey Toobin (which got a thumbs-up in a thoughtful review by the Minneapolis Star Tribune) and another that made it onto my To Get list (even though it's set in New York) with a terrific Publishers Weekly review.

The Poisoner's Handbook: Murder and the Birth of Forensic Medicine in Jazz Age New York by Pulitzer-winning science writer Deborah Blum was hailed as "enthralling" -- a word this genre doesn't see every day. The book follows the careers of two forensic pioneers in the Big Apple. The author "cleverly divides her narrative by poison," per the gushing reviewer in PW, which to me sounds like an interesting if unorthodox way to tell a story.

The cream of the crop

So I received a gigantic pile of brand-new true crime paperbacks for my birthday and cheerily dug in to what I thought would be weeks of good reading. Unfortunately, I got through all of them in less than a week. Almost every book was poorly done. And even that's being generous.

When I read a true crime book, I want to know three things: why, why, and why. Why did the victim make the choices s/he did? Why did the killer do what s/he did? Why did this person end up dead? Some details cast light on these questions. Alas, some authors can compose 300-page books packed with details that don't even come close to answering the fundamental query.

Most writers in the pile bored me to skimming with the wrong details. Who cares to know which brand of camera was used to take the autopsy photos? Apparently some authors think this is such an important point that they dwell on it.

Why is it necessary to write two hundred pages about the trial? That's not the story. Who cares where the judge went to law school? What time the trial began? The occupations of each juror? I really don't think any true crime fans want a long, drawn-out account of a trial. (And this is coming from a trial lawyer!)

But there was one book that did not disappoint. Suspenseful, insightful, considered, and aimed at answering the great why, the best book of the bunch, by far, was Deadly Secrets by M. William Phelps. I would call it a fatal love triangle, except I don't think that there was any love involved. The story of a manipulative psychopath, Fred Andros, and the women he destroyed is also a good cure for gullibility (not to mention the seven-year itch).

The next time my DH wants to surprise me with my favorite reading material, I think I'll nudge him with a list of authors - with this one at the top.  

True crime title cracks Amazon's Top 100 for 2009

In the Top 100 Amazon's best books of 2009 doesn't even include a true crime category. Not that Amazon's opinion on anything is worth consideration. I hate that company. Anyway, there was one true crime book published this year that managed to crack the list (at 97) of Top 100 Amazon Sellers in 2009. The book was Columbine by Dave Cullen.

Named as Notable True crime author Mardi Link's second book, Isadore's Secret, was named a Michigan Notable Book, which is a pretty big deal around here. Details!

Controversy continues The most controversial true crime book of 2009 was hands-down In the Middle of the Night by Brian McDonald, and the dust-up isn't over.

Celebrating 900,000 hits CLEWS rolled the odometer again on Christmas Day. Hm. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch would wag a finger at us all for indulging our true crime habit on that day. Commenting on MSNBC's Christmas Day true crime marathon, a columnist said "That's just wrong." What condescension! Is Bad Santa really better than Dateline? Bah, humbug! No Christmas is complete for this true crime fan without homage to John Waters.

 

More good books

(Disclosure: I receive books free from publishers and authors. I only mention the ones worth reading.)

The Bike Path Killer

The Bike Path Killer [Amazon; B&N] by Maki Becker and Michael Beebe is one of the best "police procedurals" I've read in quite a while.

With care and skill, the authors, both professional journalists, distilled the long story of the capture of a serial rapist and killer. Altemio Sanchez committed his crimes for decades in and around  Buffalo, New York. Police stumbles and tragic misjudgments are followed by heroic efforts to nail the true killer.

The authors are also to be commended. They out-Ruled Ann Rule in the depth of their reporting on an extremely complicated case, which turns out to be yet another terrible lesson in the fallibility of eyewitnesses and the jurors who rely on them. In the end, though, it's a triumph for law enforcement.

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Fear Came to Town

Fear Came to Town: The Santa Claus, Georgia, Murders (Berkley True Crime) [Amazon; B&N] by Doug Crandell is instructive and nicely written, though the subject matter is tough. In 1997 , a foster family in Santa Claus, Georgia was cruelly slaughtered just before Christmas in a truly motiveless, senseless manner by someone they'd tried to befriend.

The author does a nice job of explaining this case and of evoking the place, though the motive for the crime ultimately proves elusive.

The confessed murderer, Jerry Scott Heidler, was obviously severely mentally ill. Tragically, he also had a mother who was downright hateful to him, and she probably had her own full-blown case of Oppositional Defiant Disorder to boot. Best to file this one under Some People Are Beyond Help.

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Let us know if you've read something worth recommending. All the more so if it's old.

New books

Unsolved Mystery

Two young women vanished from a downtown hangout in their northern Texas town of Carrollton in 1988. Though the case was never solved and decades have now passed, the missing women are remembered in a new self-published book.

The title is This Night Wounds Time: The Mysterious Disappearances of Stacie Madison and Susan Smalley, available on Lulu.

The author, Shawn Sutherland, has more details on his website.

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Did Jeffrey Dahmer kill Adam Walsh?

Arthur Jay Harris's theory that Jeffrey Dahmer may have killed Adam Walsh has been very controversial, not supported by the police or Adam's family.

But in a new book, Harris, a true crime author from Florida, delineates the evidence he found. Though I don't know the case as others do, the author has done much research, and the theory seems plausible, or at least worth hearing out.

The book is Jeffrey Dahmer's Dirty Secret: The Unsolved Murder of Adam Walsh [Amazon; not on B&N].

Details are on the author's website.

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The Last Lawyer

It takes a certain strength of character to represent the condemned, because it takes a special crusader to fight to the last ditch.

A new book by John Temple, associate dean of the journalism school at West Virginia University, takes a look at an unusual case.

The story concerns a team of idealistic attorneys and investigators in North Carolina who took on such a challenge in the case of one Bo Jones. The book is The Last Lawyer: The Fight to Save Death Row Inmates [Amazon; B&N]. The book has earned a starred review in Publishers Weekly (which called it "disturbing") and has gotten quite a lot of attention elsewhere as well. It's billed as an indictment of the system. I'm glad to see it's a hardcover, because after it's read, the book might come in handy for propping up one's faith in American criminal justice.

A good encyclopedia

When true crime author Mel Ayton told me that he'd come across a true crime enclcyopedia that was thorough, accurate, and useful, I had to hear more. Unfortunately most encyclopedic approaches to our favorite genre are miserable, factually challenged failures. Mel agreed to tell us why he especially liked 501 Most Notorious Crimes by Paul Donnelley (Bounty Books, London, 2009; ) in this review.

By Mel Ayton

(Mel Ayton is the author of The Forgotten Terrorist – Sirhan Sirhan and the Assassination of Robert F. Kennedy. His book about racist killer Joseph Paul Franklin will be published by Potomac Books in the Spring of 2010. His book about the 1973 conspiracy to assassinate the Governor of Bermuda will be also be published next year by McFarland Books.)

 Paul Donnelley’s book, a compilation of true crime narratives, abbreviated accounts of famous cases, is a welcome addition to true crime literature. It details 501 of the most intriguing famous crimes of all time told in crisp and clear prose.

In fact, Donnelley’s book is not only well-written but also well-researched. The result is a fascinating read by an experienced journalist who knows the essence of a good story.

Crime has become a subject of perennial fascination in our culture, but we rarely have the opportunity to survey the facts, history, and aftermath of each reported crime without researching numerous accounts to learn the true facts.

501 Most Notorious Crimes, a book that is as compelling to read as it is useful as a reference guide, allows readers to survey the entire spectrum of the crimes that have fascinated us for years in one volume. It is divided into 10 chapters containing the stories of outlaws, gangsters, serial killers, kidnappers, robbers and unfortunate individuals who suffered miscarriages of justice.

Despite the brevity of each account the actual crimes and the entire criminal process is covered - from investigation and arrest to trial and verdict. The author’s method is clearly set out in an easy to follow structure of main headings which delineate the crime followed by the wheres, hows and, most importantly, the aftermaths of the crimes.

Donnelley has analyzing the tangle of motives behind murder and examined the astonishing variety of homicidal methods and ingenious ways of separating individuals from their wealth over the past two or three centuries. He has not only profiled infamous historical figures like Blackbeard, Captain Kidd, Jesse James and Billy The Kid but also studied particular categories of homicide and such phenomena as the US Mafia killings of the 20th century. Donnelley's chronicle includes, too, the serial killings, random shooting sprees, and cult murders that have troubled more recent times.

Some of the more interesting chapters focus on mass murder and kidnappings as well as those with a major social impact like the political assassinations of the 1960s.

What may come as a relief to those who are tired of writers who speculate about these murders without providing hard evidence to support their theses, Donnelley remains true to the established facts. However, he does not shirk from presenting true crime controversies and includes chapters on major cases such as Jimmy Hoffa, O.J. Simpson, Tupac Shakur, Sam Sheppard, Jack the Ripper, Patricia Hearst and the Boston Strangler together with penetrating studies of monstrous killers including Bundy, Dahmer, and Berkowitz.

Despite a wealth of books on the market Donnelley has managed to produce a mammoth true crime book that exceeds anything previously written in quality of writing and depth of research. The comprehensive history and illuminating analysis of how humans kill, and why, make his book one that no true-crime fan or student of criminology will want to miss.

More good books

The Wineville Murders

The Road out of Hell has received so many wonderful reviews that I'm merely a voice in the chorus. But I'll add that the book by Anthony Flacco lived up to the hype.

It's a very nicely written story about a boy who overcome unimaginable abuse. The largely forgotten serial killer described here was recently resurrected from obscurity by the Angelina Jolie movie The Changeling.

This story examines the same case from the perspective of one of the victims - the only one of nearly two dozen to come out of the literal hellhole alive.

At times tough to stomach, especially for the mother of young boys, the book is the riveting account of Sanford Clark, the lone survivor of a California murder farm. The book was so well done it was almost too nicely written. The author might have taken a bit of fictional liberty with dialogue. But I am much fussier than most about that and still had no trouble enjoying the book.

The horrific story comes to an oddly satisfying and uplifting end as Clark rises above his rearing. As a morality tale, the life he led after his rescue is the ultimate rebuttal to the despicable acts of his family.

Another Extraordinary Case

The newest book by true crime author Mardi Link is Isadore's Secret: Sin, Murder, and Confession in a Northern Michigan Town [Amazon; B&N]. The book is a factual account of what was thought of for years as the bizarre disappearance of a nun. Her bones were later found beneath the church, but the truth could not be buried. 

Mardi does a superb job of drawing readers into the story by staying strongly in the point of view of those closest to this stunning murder and telling the story in succinct, intelligent prose.

Real depth of research is required to pull off this level of reporting and real talent makes those details matter and keeps the pages turning to the end.

The author has again written the definitive book about a Michigan mystery that long laid neglected.

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'In Her Prime'

Another well-written recent book concerns the spousal murder by poison of Mrs. Kathy Augustine Higgs by her husband Chaz Higgs.

Suffice it to say the outcome of the case was well supported by the evidence, and Mr. Higgs isn't a "ladies' man" any longer.

The book by the prolific Glenn Puit has great emotional depth; the victim's family spoke openly about her life and death. 

Kathy Augustine was a woman who reminded me of Sarah Palin - she was a tough, conservative, very successful, put-together, controversial, and ethically challenged female politician. At one point she was one of the fastest rising female political stars in the State of Nevada.

The incongruity is that Kathy also had devastatingly bad judgment in men. The only mystery left to ponder in an otherwise straightforward case of uxorcide is what she saw in this man.

Because of the way the tale unfolds, the reader sees the train wreck coming for miles. Genre readers will recognize the familiar tell-tale signs of consciousness of guilt and will appreciate the author's sensitive reporting.

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Have you read a true crime book worth recommending? Drop me a line or leave a comment - we're always on the lookout for great books.

Genre News

Ann Rule's Taking Notes in the trial taking place in a Washington courtroom now. The local press says her book on the case comes out next May. And more: Renowned Crime Author Follows Case

Patricia Vann Radcliffe Taylor Allinson In the meantime, a female psychopath that was the subject of one of Ann Rule's better books is coming to the small screen. For more: Gina Gershon Leads Cast of 'Ann Rule's Everything She Ever Wanted'

Drawing the Line? Attorney and book reviewer Norm Pattis recently sized up a new true crime book and has a lot of pointed questions. Check out his thought-provoking review in the Connecticut Law Tribune. Besides being a "colossal waste of time," he asks, "Whose interests are being served by publication of this work?" Having read the book, I found myself reluctantly agreeing with many of his points.

New Regional Books

Short story collections in the historical true crime theme are some of my favorites. Several authors I know have produced new titles of late, and here is just a sampling of recent titles from the top shelf.

Strange Tales

Crime connoisseur Keven McQueen strayed out of Kentucky and ventured into Indiana for his latest collection. 

Strange Tales of Crime and Murder in Southern Indiana [Amazon; not on B&N] is a true crime book from the History Press that chronicles several stories of mayhem and murder that took place in the state between 1880 and 1912. As the book description warns readers, "Prepare to take a tour of some dark, strange moments..."

The author is simultaneously releasing Forgotten Tales of Indiana, a true story collection with a more supernatural flavor, to cement the warm regards of Hoosier state residents.

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Gangsters of Miami

The newly published Gangsters of Miami: True Tales of Mobsters, Gamblers, Hit Men, Con Men and Gang Bangers from the Magic City [Amazon; B&N] is the first comprehensive look at that city’s colorful criminal history. The book includes tales of Al Capone and the Russian Mafia.

The author, Ron Chepesiuk, has penned a number of well-received books in the theme in the past several years, incuding titles on the gangsters of Harlem and many others. His essays also appear on the Crime Magazine website and he is a consultant for the Gangland show on the History Channel.

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Queen City Gothic

Queen City Gothic: Cincinnati's Most Infamous Murder Mysteries [Amazon; B&N] focuses on the worst unsolved cases in the city's history.

The book is author J.T. Townsend's first book.  I'm familiar with his writing fro m various message boards and short pieces he has written here and elsewhere, so I know it will be a nicely written book. It includes present-day photos of some of the locales where these events took place.

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Watch this space for more free books! I'm putting together more contests and giveaways in November.

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