Unreasonable Doubt

"Part detective story, part social commentary, part intellectual autobiography, part philosophical analysis, this is a jury book unlike any other."—Anthony Kronman, Sterling Professor of Law and former Dean, Yale Law School "[Norma Thompson] teaches us, brilliantly and painlessly, why judging, as opposed to simply knowing, is an essential part of a responsible human existence, recounting the trials and crimes and moral dilemmas of antiquity and classical tradition in a stunningly original reading."—Abraham D. Sofaer, Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution, and former United States District Judge In 2001, Norma Thompson served on the jury in a murder trial in New Haven, Connecticut. In Unreasonable Doubt, Thompson dramatically depicts the jury's deliberations, which ended in a deadlock. As foreperson, she pondered the behavior of some of her fellow jurors that led to the trial's termination in a hung jury. Blending personal memoir, social analysis, and literary criticism, she addresses the evasion of judgment she witnessed during deliberations and relates that evasion to contemporary political, social, and legal affairs. She then assembles an imaginary jury of Tocqueville, Plato, and Jane Austen, among others, to show how the writings of these authors can help model responsible habits of deliberation.

What urged me to jot down what I had written in this little novel are the lessons that I have learned from the grand Lifes University. I had benefited from the experiences that I learned. Some specific points are clearly pointed and i am sure you would be able to grasp what is between the lines! Yes. I had learned, felt, seen and believed that the person who is conscious of Allah, the Almighty, He would make him a way out and provide him with means from sources he would think the least he would be able to get from. Allah, the Almighty granted me strength after weakness. He granted me security after being frightened. He granted me provisions after being poor. Allah, the Almighty employed for me those who knew me and those who dont know me!. I kept on calling and invoking upon the King of all kings; Lord. I raised my hand up to Him. He didnt return them empty out of His generosity and kindness . Some of the most beautiful moments are those which man spends with his own thoughts and memories that he lives second by second as he feels their sweetness, bitterness, hopes, pains, pleasures and sorrows, and all their details. As I jot down what I could of such moments and capture them [by words and phrases], I beg your pardon and ask your forgiveness. I don't mean to excite you and stir your emotions through a novelist writing, but rather, I would like to give an [honest] account of my own story that carries my own emotions and feelings. I seek your permission to sail with me in order to narrate to you, and in order to see with your own eyes the events of two months of suffering and pains that I spent in the USA, in the state of Massachusetts, in the city of Boston.

Professor Alistair Dirke thought himself a reasonable man - he could scarcely acknowledge the suspicion that was beginning to grow in his mind every time he saw his wife Rose with Paul Eckleston . . . Paul seemed to be there very often these days. Yet soon a more terrible suspicion was to grow and spread through the little community of Rollway, where the Dirkes had lived in peace with their neighbours. A valuable collection of coins goes missing and then a man is murdered.

On 17th June, 1970, in a small farming district, south of Auckland, New Zealand, Harvey and Jeanette Crewe were shot and killed in the lounge of their home. Five months later, a neighbour, Arthur Allan Thomas, was arrested, charged and found guilty of their murder. He was sentenced to life imprisonment. A retrial in 1972 ended with another guilty verdict. David Yallop, author of To Encourage the Others and The Day the Laughter Stopped, two already celebrated books which dealt with miscarriages of justice, spent over a year in New Zealand investigating the case and became convinced of Thomas' innocence. in an open letter to New Zealand's Prime Minister, he demanded Thomas' release on the grounds that he 'has not been found guilty beyond reasonable doubt. He has in fact been found innocent beyond reasonable doubt.' In 1978, as a direct result of Yallop's intercession and the publication of this book, Thomas was granted a royal pardon and, in 1980, awarded nearly 1 million dollars in compensation for the nine years he had served behind bards. Beyond Reasonable Doubt? is both a riveting work of high drama and a compelling insight into the machinery of criminal justice. A Number One bestseller in hgardcover and the subject of a widely-acclaimed film, it is a lasting testimony to David Yallop's reputation as the world's greatest investigative author.

What would it be like to return to your hometown after twenty-five years in prison for a crime you have maintained you did not commit? and, why would you return? The family of the murdered girl, Sophia D'Angelo, is bitterly determined to see Walt returned to prison or dead... So, case reopened.

Jaded New York City Public Defender Liana Cohen would give anything to have one client in whom she can believe. Dozens of hardened criminals and repeat offenders have chipped away at her faith in both herself and the system. Her boyfriend Jakob’s high-powered law firm colleagues see her do-gooder job as a joke, which only adds to the increasing strain in their relationship. Enter imprisoned felon Danny Shea, whose unforgivable crime would raise a moral conflict in an attorney at the height of her idealism—and that hasn't been Liana in quite a while. But Danny's astonishing blend of good looks, intelligence, and vulnerability intrigues Liana. Could he be the client she’s been longing for—the wrongly accused in need of a second chance? Is he innocent? As their attorney-client relationship transforms into something less than arm’s length, Liana is forced to confront fundamental questions of truth, faith, and love—and to decide who she wants to be.

Traditionally, obsessive-compulsive disorder has been classified as an anxiety disorder, but there is increasing evidence that it has schizotypal features ? in other words it is a belief disorder. This book describes the ways in which reasoning can be applied to OCD for effective treatment regimes. It moves comprehensively through theoretical, experimental, clinical and treatment aspects of reasoning research, and contains a detailed treatment manual of great value to practitioners, including assessment and treatment protocols and case studies

The first novel in a thrilling new legal series, perfect for fans of Steve Cavanagh, John Grisham and Robert Galbraith, written by an acclaimed QC. Elliot Rook QC is one of the greatest barristers of his generation. He is also a complete fraud. Elliot Rook is the epitome of a highly successful, old Etonian QC. Or so everyone believes. In fact, he is an ex-petty criminal with a past that he has spent decades keeping secret. Until now... An unidentified young woman of Middle Eastern origin has been found murdered on the outskirts of Rook's home town. Billy Barber – a violent football hooligan and white-supremacist – is accused of her murder. Barber insists that Rook must defend him. If Rook refuses, Barber will expose him, bringing crashing to the ground the life and career that Rook has spent his life building. The truth is there for the finding. But at what cost? POST MORTEM, the second novel in the series, is out now. Praise for the Elliot Rook QC series: '[A] thriller I found hard to put down' - Observer 'Slick and wonderfully paced, I was hooked from the opening pages. One of the best legal thrillers I have read recently, it reminded me of early Grisham' - AMW Books Blog 'A brilliant read' - A. N. Wilson, Tablet