The back blurb:
"In the town of Ada, Oklahoma, Ron Williamson was going to be the next Mickey Mantle. But on his way to the Big Leagues, Ron stumbled, his dreams broken by drinking, drugs, and women. Then, on a winter night in 1982, not far from Ron´s home, a young cocktail waitress named Debra Sue Carter was savagely murdered. The investigation led nowhere. Until, on the flimsiest evidence, it led to Ron Williamson. The washed-up small-town hero was charged, tried, and sentenced to death - in a trial littered with lying witnesses and tainted evidence that would shatter a man´s already broken life... and let a true killer go free."

→ Impeccably researched, grippingly told, filled with eleventh-hour drama, John Grisham´s first work of nonfiction reads like a page-turning legal thriller. It is a book that will terrify anyone who believes in the presumption of innocence - a book no American can afford to miss.

Amazon Editorial Review:

John Grisham’s first work of nonfiction, an exploration of small town justice gone terribly awry, is his most extraordinary legal thriller yet.

In the major league draft of 1971, the first player chosen from the State of Oklahoma was Ron Williamson. When he signed with the Oakland A’s, he said goodbye to his hometown of Ada and left to pursue his dreams of big league glory.

Six years later he was back, his dreams broken by a bad arm and bad habits—drinking, drugs, and women. He began to show signs of mental illness. Unable to keep a job, he moved in with his mother and slept twenty hours a day on her sofa.

In 1982, a 21-year-old cocktail waitress in Ada named Debra Sue Carter was raped and murdered, and for five years the police could not solve the crime. For reasons that were never clear, they suspected Ron Williamson and his friend Dennis Fritz. The two were finally arrested in 1987 and charged with capital murder.

With no physical evidence, the prosecution’s case was built on junk science and the testimony of jailhouse snitches and convicts. Dennis Fritz was found guilty and given a life sentence. Ron Williamson was sent to death row.

If you believe that in America you are innocent until proven guilty, this book will shock you. If you believe in the death penalty, this book will disturb you. If you believe the criminal justice system is fair, this book will infuriate you.

10/06/2009: A really gripping read - simply unbelievable that things like this happen, especially when it is so obvious that the persons judged about is innocent... I really want to recommend this book to everyone! Will offer it as an (international) ring and hope that it will find its way to many more BookCrossers!

This book will become an international BookRing!

I already received the address of earthcaroleanne, so the first journey of this book will be from Germany to the UK. However, before actually shipping, I will wait a bit longer - hoping for some more participants!

Who is participating?

• earthcaroleanne (Falkirk/United Kingdom - no shipping preferences)
  
• VariC (Helsinki/Finland - no shipping preferences)
  
• Rrrcaron (Lancaster/United States of America - New Hampshire - US shipping if possible)
  
• miashall (Kuala Lumpur/Malaysia) ← Ron is resting here at the moment
  
• you?
  
• Qantaqa (Plannegg/Germany - asked to be the last participant)
  

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

This book will start its journey today... The first flight will take it to the United Kingdom. I hope everyone participating will enjoy this book as much as I have!

I received this book today. Unfortunately I won't be able to get straight into it because I'm moving house on Friday but as I commute 3 hours a day, 6 days a week, it won't take me long to catch up.

This story is truly shocking, it is hard to believe his mental state was ignored by everyone - even the victims family could see he was ill!

This book is ready to forward as soon as I get the next address.

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

Book on it's way to the next person in the bookray.

The book is here. Thanks, UbSiA and earthcaroleanne!

A very good read. Even though it's pretty long, Grisham can write so that there's no feeling of slogging through, so it looks like non-fiction suits him too (I haven't read any of Grisham's fiction but I'd presume he's not bad at that either). On occasion some events get a bit hard to believe, but I guess that's why they say that the difference between fiction and reality is that fiction has to make sense.

It's kind of unbelievable that such a thing could happen. Seems like the goal of the prosecutor was just to get someone convicted, no matter who and how, and somehow Ron ended up as a target (the problem is that naturally we don't find out why Ron was picked). But it doesn't stop at conviction; Ron gets mistreated practically throughout his ordeal.

It's hard to say how this book is intended to be seen. Is it an indictment of the whole justice system, pointing out what kinds of egregious errors it makes constantly, or is it a demonstration of how the system eventually works, since after all, the truth came out? Grisham focuses on the particulars of this one case and doesn't speculate much in wider context, so determining this is left up to the reader.

One thing to note is the amount of work that was eventually put together to get Ron freed. Is it credible that there could be that much available for everyone wrongfully convicted? I would think that unlikely, and with this case being as clear-cut as it seems, what are the chances of others in similar situations?

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

Sent to Rrrcaron.

I received this book in the mail today. Will get to it soon!
Ruth

What a sad, cruel story. It really makes you wonder about our justice system. It's damn scary. Grisham did a great job on his first work of non fiction. Thanks for sharing this read. Moving it on....

That last journal by an anonymous was me- for got to log on,lol. sending on!

the book had arrived 2 week before and i didnt post here to informed its arrival..im so sorry for that..since im still new in this bookray thingy...but..now, ive finished reading the book..although i have to say, john grisham's book is never my first choice as reading materials...but, his story, is shockingly very detailed and captivating..the innocent man..there is nothing more true than the title itself..being faced with deathrow, none of us can imagine how it was like or goin 2 be..but, he,the writer, able to capture that and includes it in his book..it is true that 3/4 of the prisoner in the prison worldwide, is an innocent man/women..they are just unfortunate to be there at the wrong time for the wrong purposes..may justice prevail

i would like to know, who is the next person on the line for me to post the book to? kindly email me ur address..
thank you...
miashall