The Abuse of Innocence: The McMartin Preschool Trial - Hardcover

Eberle, Paul; Eberle, Shirley

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0879758090 ISBN 13: 9780879758097

Publisher: Prometheus Books, 1993

Synopsis

Two investigative journalists uncover the facts behind the costliest child abuse case in history, including the mass hysteria, the lack of evidence, and more. By the authors of The Politics of Child Abuse. 30,000 first printing. $30,000 ad/promo.

About this title

From Kirkus Reviews:

A zealous denunciation of a bizarre child-abuse ``witch hunt'' that's undermined by the authors' determination to spin some equally strange conspiracy theories of their own. The McMartin Preschool, for 18 years a popular fixture in the affluent L.A. suburb of Manhattan Beach, rocketed to notoriety following a complaint lodged by an arguably unstable parent whose charges, in addition to sexual abuse, included the beheading of infants and the drinking of their blood. An inflammatory letter sent to parents by local police; interviews with hundreds of children by unlicensed therapists using unproven, possibly manipulative, methods; strategic leaks to the press--all created a frenzy leading to seven years of litigation in which none of the original seven defendants--who lost their assets, reputations, and livelihoods--were found guilty of anything. Trying to pin down what went wrong, the Eberles (Pity the Little Children, 1986--not reviewed) prove to be convincing, if one-sided, defenders of the accused--at least when they stick to court transcripts. But their analysis--ranging from petty cracks about the hairstyles of lawyers to ominous hints of government plots (``an agenda to compel mindless conformity and blind obedience'')--repeatedly tips from outrageous and undocumented to what some might consider, at best, transparently alarmist. Important themes--such as the dangers arising from the use of jailhouse informants and from the political considerations of elected law-enforcement officials--are lost in a scattershot barrage of unexplored red herrings (e.g., three sightings of a mysterious ``fat man with a moustache'') and dark musings (``persons at the highest levels of power'' must have guided CBS-TV's decision to show two films on child abuse prior to jury deliberations). The McMartin defendants, evidently treated unfairly by their accusers, have been ill-served once again. (First printing of 30,000) -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

From Library Journal:

In August 1983, the owners and teachers of the McMartin PreSchool in California were accused of sexually abusing one of their students. The accusations quickly mushroomed, until almost all of the children who attended were suspected of having been molested. A six-year trial and re-trial followed, with the McMartins eventually found not guilty. An interesting book, worth reading, could doutbless be written about the McMartin trial. This is not it. The Eberles provide an almost word-for-word transcript of the trial. Although the material is explosive, the authors indicate that the jury was often bored by the repetitive, nonresponsive testimony. Unfortunately, so is the reader. In addition, the Eberles are totally one-sided. They believe that the charges were completely trumped up and that the McMartins are "innocent victims." On the other hand, they argue that the prosecution was incompetent. Yet they provide no real documentation to back up their "facts." Somewhere in this horrible story there lies a kernel of truth. Were children molested? Were the McMartins subjected to a modern-day witch hunt? Does the truth lie somewhere in the middle? To answer these questions, the material in this book would have to be reduced and summarized and cogent analysis applied. Not recommended.
- Sandra K. Lindheimer, Middlesex Law Lib., Cambridge, Mass.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Prometheus Books
• Publication date: 1993
• ISBN 10: 0879758090
• ISBN 13: 9780879758097
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 416