BLOODSWORTH The True Story of the First Death Row Inmate Exonerated by DNA

Junkin (Tim)

ISBN 10: 1565124197 / ISBN 13: 9781565124196

Published by Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill, 2004

About this Item

Hardback. The story of unsurpassed courage and character, of relentless struggle, of abiding hope, and of a modern-day miracle. Charged in 1984 with the rape and murder of a 9yr old girl, Kirk Bloodsworth was tried, convicted and sentenced to die in Maryland's gas chamber. From the beginning, he proclaimed his innocence, but when he was granted a new trial because his prosecutors had improperly withheld evidence, the second trial also resulted in conviction. Bloodsworth did not give up. He wrote hundreds of letters from prison. He read everything he could find in the prison library about murder investigations. In 'The Blooding' by Joseph Wambaugh, he found what he needed to save himself - an account of the new DNA "fingerprinting" used to solve a case in England. Then he found a lawyer willing to fight for the innovative testing. After 9yrs in one of the harshest prisons in America, Kirk Bloodsworth was vindicated by DNA evidence. He was pardoned by the governor of Maryland and has gone on to become a tireless spokesman for criminal justice reform. The book exposes details of inevitable human error in a capital murder case and in a legal system gone awry. It tells how one man, through dogged tenacity, saved his own life and the lives of many others on death row. With 1 Illus., Author's Note + Bibliog. 294pp. 8vo. h/back. From the library of true crime writer, Wilfred Gregg, with his personal b/plate. F. in F. dw.

Seller Inventory # 17150

Bibliographic Details

• Title: BLOODSWORTH The True Story of the First Death Row Inmate Exonerated by DNA
• Publisher: Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
• Publication Date: 2004
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1565124197
• ISBN 13: 9781565124196
• Binding: Hardcover / Hardback
• Edition: First edition.
• Condition: Fine
• Dust Jacket Condition: Fine
• Seller catalogs:
  • Capital Punishment/Penology

About this title

Synopsis

Charged with the rape and murder of a nine-year-old girl in 1984, Kirk Bloodsworth was tried, convicted, and sentenced to die in Maryland’s gas chamber. From the beginning, he proclaimed his innocence, but when he was granted a new trial because his prosecutors improperly withheld evidence, the second trial also resulted in conviction. Bloodsworth read every book on criminal law in the prison library and persuaded a new lawyer to petition for the then-innovative DNA testing.

After nine years in one of the harshest prisons in America, Kirk Bloodsworth was vindicated by DNA evidence. He was pardoned by the governor of Maryland and has gone on to become a tireless spokesman against capital punishment.

About the Author

Tim Junkin is a lawyer and an award-winning novelist who lives in Maryland.