John Ferak’s new book "FAILURE OF JUSTICE" about Beatrice, Nebraska brings to mind those strange days when we came face to face with the reality that five people had falsely confessed to participating in a murder. That case confirmed a belief that I have held throughout my career as a prosecutor and as defense counsel. Interrogation is not investigation. The successful solicitation of a confession is no substitute for thorough … [Read more...]
Investigator Tina Vath Unraveled Beatrice’s FAILURE OF JUSTICE Homicide Case
Nebraska Police Investigator Talks About Her Role In The Beatrice 6 Investigation In 2003, I became the Beatrice Police Department’s Criminal Investigator. At the time the department had only one investigator position. I knew the story of the Helen Wilson murder and subsequent investigation that led to the arrest and conviction of six people. I had not reviewed any of the case file and never questioned their guilt or innocence. I just believed … [Read more...]
Did A Psychic Help Solve The Helen Wilson Rape-Murder in Beatrice, Nebraska?
As of February 1988, the Helen Wilson murder investigation was in need of a fresh set of eyes - like a psychic, perhaps? By 1988, more than a hundred potential suspects had been interviewed, examined and excluded. Mostly these were southeastern Nebraska residents, but some were out of state serial rapists from the likes of Kansas and Colorado as well. It didn't matter. Wherever the Beatrice Police Department seemed to go looking, … [Read more...]
FAILURE OF JUSTICE: A Brutal Murder, An Obsessed Cop, Six Wrongful Convictions; A True Crime Thriller By John Ferak
'MAKING A MURDERER' TIMES SIX! If the dubious efforts of law enforcement that led to the case behind MAKING A MURDERER made you cringe, your skin will crawl at the injustice portrayed in FAILURE OF JUSTICE: A Brutal Murder, An Obsessed Cop, Six Wrongful Convictions. Award-winning journalist and bestselling author John Ferak pursued the story of the Beatrice 6 who were wrongfully accused of the brutal, ritualistic rape and murder of an elderly … [Read more...]
“Making A Murderer,” FAILURE OF JUSTICE Shine Light on Wrongful Convictions
Millions across the globe have watched 'Making a Murderer' on Netflix. It's the story of Wisconsin's Steven Avery. He goes to prison in the 1980s. He's a victim of a wrongful conviction for a brutal rape. Years later, he goes back to prison for murder and people are now debating whether he was victimized by a broken criminal justice in Wisconsin - again. My new book chronicles the terrible saga of Nebraska's Beatrice 6. FAILURE OF JUSTICE is … [Read more...]
Colorful Characters Brought To Life In Ferak’s True Crime Book On Beatrice 6 Case
Winters in Wisconsin can be downright frigid. Except for shoveling the snow off the driveway and the sidewalks, there isn't much motivation for going out. But back in January of 2014 I was looking forward to venturing outside for a change, even if it was for just a brief moment. It pertained to the infamous Beatrice 6 murder case. God bless the U.S. Post Office. The package arrived on time. Inside the small box was a small computer disk. … [Read more...]
Burl Barer’s MURDER IN THE FAMILY Cover Contest
Help Us Finalize A New Cover For Burl Barer's True Crime Book MURDER IN THE FAMILY Please vote on the cover for Edgar Award Winner Burl Barer's updated edition of his August 2000 New York Times bestselling true crime classic, MURDER IN THE FAMILY, that you think works best for the synopsis below. The synopsis: On March 15th, 1987 police in Anchorage, Alaska arrived at a horrific scene of carnage. In a modest downtown apartment, they … [Read more...]
John Ferak’s FAILURE OF JUSTICE Cover Contest
Help Us Finalize A Cover For John Ferak's New True Crime Book FAILURE OF JUSTICE Please vote on the cover for the John Ferak's true crime book, FAILURE OF JUSTICE: A Brutal Murder, An Obsessed Cop, Six Wrongful Convictions that you think works best for the synopsis below. The synopsis: Feb. 5, 1985 marked one of the coldest nights on record that winter in small-town rural Nebraska. That chilly evening, tenants in one downtown … [Read more...]
ICE AND BONE: Tracking An Alaskan Serial Killer by Award-Winning Journalist Monte Francis
A Killer Is Set Loose To Kill Again When The Prosecution Fails To Stop Him On a clear, brisk night in September of 2000, 33-year-old Della Brown was found sexually assaulted and beaten to death inside a filthy, abandoned shed in seedy part of Anchorage, Alaska. She was one of six women, mostly Native Alaskan, slain that year, stoking fears a serial killer was on the loose. A tanned and thuggish 20-year-old would eventually implicate himself … [Read more...]
Richard Godwin’s THE PURE AND THE HATED Explores Family Relationships and the Mind of a Dangerous Psychopath
A man takes a stranger into his house only to unleash a savage lesson from the past... Synopsis: A psychological crime novel about the past, the nature of justice, family secrets, the nature of forgiveness, revenge, identity, hunting and predation. Shepherd Butler, the protagonist and narrator of the novel, and his wife Mary are grieving the death of their son Felton to a hunting accident in Vermont, when Shepherd finds a stranger … [Read more...]
