Deliberate Intent: A Lawyer Tells the True Story of Murder By the Book

A Good Read ships from Toronto and Niagara Falls, NY - customers outside of North America please allow two to three weeks for delivery. Slant to spine. ; Chip missing on upper edge of back d/j. Rubbing to d/j. ; 8vo - over 7?" - 9?" TallDeliberate Intent is the riveting account of the landmark Hit Man case, by noted First Amendment attorney Rod Smolla, who risked reputation and career when he took on a cause that seemed to oppose his strongest beliefs. Early in 1992, Lawrence Horn hired a contract killer to execute his ex-wife and his severely brain-damaged son. On March 3, 1992, the man he hired, James Perry, traveled to Silver Spring, Maryland, and murdered Horn's ex-wife and child and the boy's nurse. Perry used a book called Hit Man as an instruction manual for the murders. The subsequent criminal trial became known as the Hit Man case, and after Horn and Perry were convicted of murder, the victims' families surprised the nation by filing an unprecedented wrongful death suit against Paladin Press, publisher of Hit Man. In a controversial turn of events, Paladin was being blamed for the murders. Distinguished attorney Rod Smolla, First Amendment expert and vigorous advocate of free speech, was approached to represent the victims' families in the civil suit against Paladin. Smolla initially declined, but after reading Hit Man and likening it to "a loaded pistol or a vial of poison," he decided to take on the case, even though it seemed to go against his abiding belief in the First Amendment. Smolla argued that if Paladin Press knew and intended that its murder manual Hit Man would be used in the actual planning and execution of contract killings, Paladin was not entitled to immunity under the First Amendment. In an appeal that stunned the legal world, Smolla's argument prevailed and was affirmed by the Supreme Court. Deliberate Intent is the dramatic story of the events behind this landmark case--astory that includes murder, trials, and appeals and, most important, raises fascinating and difficult questions about our most cherished freedom. Title: Deliberate Intent: A Lawyer Tells the True Story of Murder By the Book Author Name: Smolla, Rod Edition: First Edition ISBN Number: 0609604139 ISBN-13: 9780609604137 Location Published: New York, Crown: 1999 Binding: Hardcover Book Condition: Near Fine in Very Good dust jacket Categories: Legal History Seller ID: 14626