National Network for Equitable Library Service

When the Harris family was found brutally murdered three days before Christmas, it plunged the sleepy upstate New York community of Ithaca into shock. The town clamored for justice and breathed a collective sigh of relief when the police, led by rising-star investigator David Harding, who found the murderer's fingerprints, solved the case in just six weeks. The prime suspect was fatally shot when police tried to apprehend him, but his middle-aged mother went to prison as an accomplice. Senior investigator David McElligott was skeptical of the easy outcome of the investigation, particularly Harding's part in it, but his concerns went unheeded. Harding was hailed as a hero. However, two years after the sensational crime and trial, the town experienced further trauma. Federal authorities discovered that McElligott's suspicions had been justified. Harding had falsified evidence and perjured himself to bring about a conviction. Further inquiry showed it was not the first time the fast-track cop had tampered with fingerprints in order to sew up otherwise flimsy prosecutions. This false testimony sent defendants to jail and death. Rebecca Cofer Dartt, as friend of the Harris family, has written an electrifying account of corruption, evil, and specious justice.