The Crime of the Century
Richard Speck and the Murders That Shocked a Nation
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4.6 • 36 Ratings
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
The story behind the attack that shocked a nation and opened a new chapter in the history of American crime.
On July 14th, 1966, Richard Franklin Speck swept through several student nurses’ townhouse like a summer tornado and changed the landscape of American crime. He broke in as his helpless victims slept, bound them one by one, and then stabbed, assaulted, and strangled all eight in a sadistic sexual frenzy. By morning, only one young nurse had miraculously survived. The killer was captured in seventy-two hours; he was successfully prosecuted in an error-free trial that stood up to appellate scrutiny; and the jury needed only forty-nine minutes to return a death verdict.
Here is the story of Richard Speck by the prosecutor who put him in prison for life with a brand new introduction by Bill Kunkle, the prosecutor of the infamous John Wayne Gacy Jr. In The Crime of the Century, William J. Martin has teamed up with Dennis L. Breo to re-create the blood-soaked night that made American criminal history, offering fascinating behind-the-scenes descriptions of Speck, his innocent victims, the desperate manhunt and massive investigation, and the trial that led to Speck’s successful conviction.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Former prosecutor Martin and Chicago journalist Breo present a fast-paced, solid reconstruction of Martin's biggest case: the fatal stabbing, strangling and sexual assault of eight young nurses by drifter Richard Speck in Chicago in 1966. Drawing on a wealth of research (including interviews with surviving nurse Corazon Amurao), the authors cannot resist certain cliches but eschew reconstructed quotes and excessive melodrama. They amply detail Speck's ``bragging, drinking and lying'' before his violent sexual rampage in the nurses' townhouse. Their account of the search for Speck ranges through Chicago; after police missed opportunities to capture him, a doctor identified the injured suspect, who had slashed himself in a suicide attempt. The authors render Martin's investigation in the third person; most important was his effort to keep Amurao in a safe place. Inquiring into Speck's background, Martin discovered an abusive stepfather and a history of violence but not of mental illness; Speck was found competent to stand trial. The jury took 49 minutes to decide his guilt. Though jurors called for the death penalty, Speck's execution was halted by the U.S. Supreme Court, and Speck, who never confessed his crimes, died in prison of a heart attack in 1991.
Customer Reviews
I lived through this
I was 13 when this horrible man did the unspeakable to these lovely young ladies. I remember the newspapers using the words “mass murderer” and “serial killer”. My little uncomprehending brain didn’t really understand but I knew it was a bad thing.
The book is excellent,the timeline of those days,from the murders to Speck’s capture,helps the reader to actually be there.
I’m a born and raised lifetime Chicagoan and I’m ashamed and saddened that this evil being committed these crimes in our great city.
Crime of the Century
Excellent read!!
excellent
The writing is excellent- I felt like I was right there throughout the whole process -I grew up in Chicago and even though I was very young I remember it. This book is well written and fascinating. It just shows how courageous Corazon truly was..and how purely evil Speck was, and unfortunately he didn’t suffer enough for the horrible thing he did.