Wednesday, August 6, 2014

Book Review "Whitey on Trial"

“Whitey on Trial” by Margaret McLean and Jon Leiberman

Corrupt men and crooked law enforcement battle in the courtroom. It is fact that James Bulger (Whitey) is a violent, power-hungry, cold and calculated man. And unfortunately, it is fact that representatives of our government aided this man and many other gangsters to get what they wanted. Forget that innocent people were killed in the crossfire, these gangsters and law enforcement personnel—such as John Connolly, FBI agent, who now sits in federal prison, John Morris, FBI agent, and many others—looked out for themselves. Their personal agenda meant more to them than human beings.
And it wasn’t just murder—as if that wasn’t bad enough—it was also bribery, blackmail, and a multitude of other crimes that some of us cannot even imagine, that spurred these despicable people to continue on a path of others’ destruction. Anything to gain wealth and power for themselves.
“Whitey on Trial” is a non-fiction accounting of what went on at Whitey’s trial. But it also examines our own government’s actions as well. Some say the representatives of our government were just as evil as Whitey’s reign of terror. Witness after witness and bereaving family members, one after the other, spoke of the brutal conduct of Whitey, Stephen Flemmi, and the Winter Hill gang’s accomplices.
Judge Casper said during Whitey’s sentencing, “…I wished that we were watching a movie, that what we were hearing was not real…,” but unfortunately, “…we were hearing about the real inhumane things that human beings did to other human beings, seemingly without remorse and without regret.” Yes, it’s sad that what went on was not that of fiction, but real life horror. It turned my stomach to see the abuse of power and the corruption that can occur to those who swore to protect citizens.
I commend authors McLean and Leiberman for an unbiased accounting and one that is well-written.

Reviewed by Starr Gardinier Reina, author of “The Other Side: Melinda’s Story” 

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