Professional Practice
Philip Becnel, Scott J. Krischke, and Alexandra K. Becnel, Authors (Charles C. Thomas Publisher Ltd.)
Meticulous documentation of a criminal investigation is essential to successful prosecutions. This professional practice guide provides the best practices of documentation of investigations in existence. Noted importantly is the declaration that one could be a fine investigator, with abilities necessary to interrogate, elicit information, and locate necessary pieces of physical evidence, but without skills or motivation to document adequately, one’s investigative talents become futile in the courtroom and the investigator becomes an unreliable witness. Worse so, it could negatively impact an investigation, prosecution, and the integrity of a conviction. This guide is organized into several sections: Part one reviews longstanding principles of documentation, with updated guidance that addresses evolving social justice topics, phrases, and terms in written reports, mostly regarding race and gender. The second part examines legal issues pertaining to the law of evidence, highlighted with examples from several legal cases. Part three discusses the practical application of documenting, which is a fantastic “how-to” guide on documenting various forms of reports and other evidence. Finally, an exhaustive set of appendices is provided for easy reference to examples. Co-authored by two investigators and a criminal attorney, this book is essential for any investigator or attorney, criminal or private, who takes part in the investigation of criminal behavior.
True Crime
Gregg Olsen, Author (St. Martin’s Griffin)
This is the captivating and horrifying true story of one family’s immeasurable tragedy and the ultimate revelation of a mother’s deadly secrets. Author Gregg Olsen uses his talents in researching, journalism, and storytelling to provide the most detailed account of the investigation and trial of Tanya Thaxton Reid as she was brought to justice. Reid was a young mother and nurse in Texas at the time of her baby daughter’s death, which left the medical community perplexed, and the family utterly devastated. The only conclusion to be drawn at that time was sudden infant death syndrome. However, once Tanya’s other child began experiencing bizarre medical symptoms, the battle to determine the cause of the children’s illnesses began: Was it an unusually rare genetic disorder or something far more sinister? Munchausen syndrome by proxy is a mental health condition resulting in child abuse, where a caretaker (most often the mother) fabricates symptoms or causes actual symptoms to occur to make the child appear ill. The occurrence(s) of this behavior can be incredibly difficult for medical professionals and law enforcement officials to identify in parents. This fascinating and thorough account of the decades-old Reid case provides an excellent education into this bizarre intersection of medicine and law, which remains relevant today, as there continue to be cases where parents are being investigated and convicted for crimes stemming from the mystifying Munchausen syndrome by proxy.
Memoir/Nonfiction
Michelle Horton, Author (Hatchett Book Group, Inc.)
Imagine the shock, confusion, and ultimate devastation to learn that your sibling, who has no criminal record or violent history, has just killed his or her spouse. That is exactly what occurred in this remarkable memoir written by Michelle Horton, who received notification from police in 2017 that her sister, Nikki Addimando, had just shot and killed her domestic partner. In the immediate aftermath, while stepping in to raise her sister’s young children, Michelle learned about the years of abuse her sister suffered at the hands of her partner. While that provided the explanation for the killing, it also furthered the shock, as Nikki went to great lengths to hide the abuse from her family and friends. Michelle was stunned to be made aware of the abuse her sister endured. Nikki was arrested, prosecuted, and convicted of second-degree murder in New York State, despite her attorney presenting evidence at her trial of recurrent sexual, physical, and psychological abuse. Nikki was ultimately sentenced to 19 years of incarceration. In this deeply intimate and moving story of familial turmoil, despair, resilience, and survival, Michelle writes about the family’s plight to persevere and the fight to obtain freedom for Nikki and to shed light on the terrifyingly dark area of intimate partner abuse. In 2019, New York passed a law called Domestic Violence Survivor’s Justice Act, which has been instrumental in the finality of Nikki’s case.
Fiction
Adam Rapp, Author (Little, Brown and Company)
The sweeping, multigenerational saga about the fictional Larkin family, a traditionally Catholic family from an upstate New York town that harbors a dark secret: One of their own is a serial killer. The novel opens in the early 1950s as the six Larkin siblings are just children, with two of them seemingly sneaking out of their home separately in the middle of the night at the sound of sirens blaring nearby. As brother and sister make eye contact with one another, three covered bodies are removed on stretchers from a neighboring home, the victims of a grisly triple homicide. This moment sets the tone and background in which the rest of their lives unfold. As adults, each family member has his or her unique complexities, with their own children, employment, social class, and mental health issues, all while striving for their own version of the American Dream. But when the family begins to receive cryptic notes, they all must face what they have possibly known all along. Have they raised, cared for, and loved a boy-turned-serial-killer? Could they or should they have done more in response to his isolation, anguish, and violent behavior? In this magnificently written tale of family, Pulitzer Prize finalist Adam Rapp begs the question: Does evil really lurk in the shadows, or is it lingering ever presently as a Wolf at the Table?
