Book: John Wayne Gacy: Defending a Monster
Author: Sam Amirante and Danny Broderick
Grade: C+
Recommended To: Lawyers, People who are full of themselves.
I'm an attorney, so I occasionally (and I do mean very occasionally) like to read books about other lawyers and the work that they do. So, I picked up this book at the library. Free.
The book was average. I expected the book to be more about John Wayne Gacy than about the attorney, but I suppose I should have read the title more clearly because it says : The true story of the lawyer who defended one of the most evil serial killers in history. Okay, obviously I was just distracted by the huge print and I should have known that this wasn't going to be about Gacy's character. But, that's what I wanted, so this book got a C+. (I told you, its subjective...)
Also, this attorney is super full of himself. Evidently he went on to become a judge in Cook County, which is pretty admirable. But did he have to reprint his entire 10 hour closing argument in the book? It's not like this is Barack Obama talking and the argument is quote worthy, it was just a very very long closing argument that I didn't want to read in full. Sam Amirante is admirable because he truly believes that every single person is entitled to a defense. I appreciate that and I appreciate that he was able to provide a defense even to this totally creepy, Chicago based killer.
I also liked that this book is based in Chicago. WGN, the best new station in the universe, had a story just a few years back about how the police were still searching for bodies under Gacy's house. That's crazy close to where I live (okay, not that close, but still crazy)! So, the fact that this still has repercussions today is amazing and interesting.
I recommend this book to my attorney friends and anyone with a fascination in serial killers.
Happy Reading!
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