Murder In A Vacant Lot

Crime-fiction librarian Ray Ambler gets more than he bargained for when he acquires the archives of a controversial hardboiled crime author in this contemporary twisty mystery set in New York City. Hardboiled crime writer Will Ford might be critically acclaimed, but he's every bit as drunken and disreputable as the ne'er-do-well private eye in his novels. So when Ford offers Raymond Ambler - crime-fiction curator at New York City's prestigious 42nd Street Library - a collection of his papers, Ambler wonders if the project will be more trouble than it's worth. Still, the disgraced author is an important talent, and Ambler's never been afraid of a fight. Ambler's ready for the controversy that greets news of the acquisition. He's not ready, however, for what he finds when he finally receives the papers: a gripping unpublished short story apparently based on a real case, with an explosive author's note. If it's true, there's been a shocking coverup at the heart of the NYPD - and a cop has got away with murder. If it's true. Ford's not talking, and Ambler's good friend Mike Cosgrave, a veteran NYPD homicide detective, is beyond skeptical. But as the pair investigate, they're drawn into the sordid underbelly of 1990s New York, packed with pimps, thugs and mobsters . . . and they'll be lucky to come back out alive. Gritty and fast-paced, this story of police corruption, murder and mayhem is a great choice for fans of traditional mysteries with complex plotting, atmospheric settings and red herrings a plenty!

Of all crimes, murder fascinates the public more than any other. While considered a detestable act, for which society reserves its severest punishments, homicide still captivates the American public. But the way homicide and its investigation are depicted in our media fail to capture just how murders get solved. Here, Snow takes us on a tour of murder, its investigation, and its prosecution from the perspective of a seasoned homicide detective. From the commission of the crime to the collection of evidence, examination of the crime scene, roundup of suspects, interrogation, and resolution, he leads readers from the scene to the courtroom, stopping along the way to consider all the elements that go into a murder investigation. He considers the culprits, the motives, the victims and their families, and offers readers a glimpse into the actual techniques and methods used to solve real crimes. This volume will fascinate and inform anyone interested in knowing the truth behind the scene of the crime of murder.

ABOUT THE BOOK On January 15, 1947, Betty Bersinger pushed her daughter in a stroller past a vacant lot in Los Angeles, California. She was on her way to pick up a pair of repaired shoes for her husband when she saw the body of Elizabeth “Betty” Short lying just off the sidewalk. Bersinger initially mistook the body for a mannequin, but upon closer inspection, realized it was the body of woman. She immediately contacted the police and touched off one of the most notorious unsolved cases in the history of the United States. Immediately the gruesomeness of the crime caused a sensation. Betty Short’s torso had been severed in two and there were slash marks from the corners of her mouth to each ear. She’d been drained of blood, cleaned and then posed with her arms bent at right angles. Her arms and legs showed signs of being tied up or hung upside down and she had injuries from blows to the head. The lack of blood led the police to determine she was killed elsewhere and dumped in the vacant lot. They also concluded that she’d been left sometime after 2:00 a.m. because there was no dew on her body. EXCERPT FROM THE BOOK The initial investigation was hindered by the fact that the media and gawkers were on the scene before police and damaged the crime scene. The police had difficult time piecing together the events from the time Short was last seen on January 9th at the Biltmore Hotel and when her body was found on January 15. However, a full-out effort was made to find the killer. The police canvassed the neighborhood, talked to the last person known to have seen Short, Robert Manley and interviewed all her old boyfriends. The clean cut of her wounds led the police to suspect the murderer was someone with surgical skill and went so far as to get a list of medical students from the nearby University of Southern California. As many as 50 people confessed to the crime and many more indicated they’d seen Short during the time she’d last been seen alive and found on January 15. However the confessions and sightings were dismissed. Several men were interrogated, but no arrest was made. Nine days after her body was discovered, the local newspaper, the Examiner received a call and documents in the mail presumably from the murderer. The package contained Short’s birth certificate, social security card, photographs, Major Matthew Gordon’s obituary and an address book with Mark Hanson’s name embossed on it with the names of several men listed in side. All the men were contacted and cleared. The men reported having met Short and bought her a drink or dinner, but lost contact with her when she let them know she wasn’t interested in a physical relationship. A day after the package with Short’s belongings arrived at the Examiner, her handbag and one of her shoes was found near a dumpster several miles from where her body was found. None of these items helped the police find her killer. Over the last sixty-five years, old suspects have been revisited and new suspects have been postulated, but the official status of the crime remains unsolved. Buy the book to continue reading!

Baseball was not a sport Detective Bass understood, nor was he familiar with the fine art of the fashion industry, but when a small-time hoodlum's body was pulled from a frozen river on a cold February morning, that he understood. In this unsettling case of a murdered informant, one murder led to another, and passions heightened as Detective Bass closed in on kidnappers, gamblers, and a love-struck baseball player.