Manifest Injustice: The True Story of a Convicted Murderer and the Lawyers Who Fought for His Freedom - Hardcover

Fascinating. . . Siegel [is] a talented author. --Minneapolis Star Tribune. Mr. Siegel brilliantly creates for the reader the essence of a jury trial: two sides, two narratives, two bodies of evidence and two theories of interpretation. Manifest Injustice stays with the reader long after the last page for it is not just a story of one man, but a fascinating indictment of our judicial system as a whole. --New York Journal of Books. For fans of John Grisham, Harlan Coben and Michael Connelly and for true crime fans. Bill Macumber was imprisoned for nearly 40 years for a crime he denied committing. In a fast-paced, suspenseful style which enhances the intriguing facts of this true story, journalist Barry Siegel recounts Macumber's long and twisted road to justice. --The Sun Star Courier. Manifest Injustice is a piece of masterful storytelling. Readers won't soon forget this harrowing tale of crime and punishment in America today, or the man imprisoned for 38 years for a crime he vehemently denies committing. --Gay Talese. Reminiscent of Errol Morris's compelling investigation into the dubious proceedings of the Jeffrey MacDonald case in A Wilderness of Error, Siegel's detailed rendering of the decades of efforts on Macumber's behalf makes the horror of his situation resonate. --Publishers Weekly (starred review)Siegel creates a gripping narrative nonfiction treatment of what led to Macumber, a man with no connection to the murders, being convicted a decade after the killings, long after a confession by a repeat offender . . . On November 7, 2012, Macumber, now 77, was suddenly released from prison, which adds to the force of Siegel's arguments and the outrage his advocacy journalism inspires about wrongful convictions and the fissures in the justice system.--Booklist (starred review).A fascinating, convoluted murder mystery demonstrating that the law should never be confused with common sense. --Kirkus Reviews

Barry Siegel is a Pulitzer Prize winning former national correspondent for the Los Angeles Times and he directs the literary journalism program at UC Irvine where he is a professor of English. He is the author of six books, including Shades of Gray and Claim of Privilege. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and daughter.