If you could sum up Failure of Justice in three words, what would they be?
Failure of Justice is, to this reader, as much of a true crime story, as it is a study of the inner-workings of police tactics and how they related to vulnerable subjects in the mid-eighties.
What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?
The most compelling aspect was how 5 innocent people were manipulated into taking plea deals for a crime they didn’t commit.
What does Kevin Pierce bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
Kevin Pierce narrates superbly, as he always does. His is an easy voice to listen to.
If you could give Failure of Justice a new subtitle, what would it be?
I’d have to have more time to get it to sound right, but it would be something concise about why we need protections for vulnerable suspects during police interrogations. (Like they have in the UK).

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Any additional comments?
Failure of Justice by John Ferak, is the story of the “Beatrice 6,” who were arrested and convicted of the brutal rape and murder of an elderly woman in Beatrice, NE in 1985. It’s the story of a police officer who cares more about making a name for himself and propelling his career forward than actually solving a crime; it’s the story of what can happen when police are allowed to use questionable interrogation tactics when dealing with vulnerable subjects and/or suspects; it’s the story of what happens when those in law enforcement who have suspicions that an injustice is being carried out, look the other way; and it’s a story of perseverance and the fight to finally right a wrong that had been perpetrated for over 20 years.
It’s a shocking story in that it is so difficult to believe that 5 separate people were able to be manipulated into taking plea deals for a crime that they didn’t commit. Only one of the “suspects” went to trial. One. Out of six. We would all like to think that we would never confess to a crime that we didn’t commit, but this story makes you wonder if you would be able to withstand the onslaught of such underhanded tactics. The details of the crime and the ensuing cases are indeed interesting, but there are also fascinating underlying psychological issues and questions that this reader found equally compelling, both for the people in the story, and for hypothetical considerations.
There was only one area, as far as the writing, that I could find to critique, and it was this: Ferak used an excess of sources that were paper-based, such as police and hospital reports, newspaper accounts, etc. The result is that it seemed that every other sentence ended with “according to reports,” or “based on reports,” or “stated in reports,” or something very similar. It got to the point where it was almost distracting for me, because I kinda wanted to start counting to see how many times he could refer back to to his sources within a certain time frame. At times I wondered if he interviewed anyone at all or if all of his sources were paper sources.
However, that’s the only critique I have for the whole book, and it may just be me being nit-picky.
Kevin Pierce does a fantastic job with the narration, as usual.
I would recommend this book to any lovers of true-crime, and especially anyone who likes the psychology of police/suspect interactions.
I received this book at no cost in exchange for a fair and honest review.