Deadlocked
Joel Goldman
Pinnacle Books
$6.99 soft cover 407 pages; ISBN 0-7860-1608-6 (2005).
I don’t know how I missed this wonderful author and his thrilling novels about a small-time criminal attorney in Kansas City. The author, Joel Goldman, is a lawyer who knows how to write. This is one of the finest legal thrillers I’ve read in years. Deadlocked is on a par with anything written by John Grisham or Scott Turow; its attention to characters, smooth dialog, well-crafted plot and superb pacing make me want to read each of Goldman’s previous three novels.
The novel begins with death-row inmate Ryan Kowalczyk getting a lethal injection and confirming his innocence with his last dying gasp. Lou Mason witnesses the prisoner’s death and is soon asked by Kowalczyk’s mother to represent her in trying to prove her son was innocent of the crime he was just put to death for. She asks Mason to get a pardon for her son.
For fifteen years Kowalczyk claimed he was innocent of having slaughtered a young couple in their car as their infant slept in the back seat. The trial featured two defendants, but when his friend Whitney King turned against him, Kowalczyk was the only one found guilty.
In addition to Kowalczyk’s mother, the victims’ now-teenage son, Nick Byrnes, also wants to hire Mason – not to prove that that Kowalczyk was innocent – but instead to sue King whom he believes was unjustly found innocent. Nick explains his case to Mason.
"I want you to sue Whitney King for the wrongful death of my parents," he began, holding up his hand before Mason could answer. "I was a minor when they were killed. That means the statute of limitations didn’t start to run until I turned eighteen. I have a year after that to sue him. My time runs out two weeks from today. I’ve been all over town looking for lawyers to take my case, but everyone turned me down. They all say that I don’t have a case since King was acquitted. I ask them about O.J. Simpson. He was acquitted too and the families nailed his ass for big bucks on a wrongful death deal. They don’t care. They’re only interested in the sure thing. You’re my last chance."
An orphan himself, Mason is sympathetic to Nick’s situation. He agrees to help Nick and begins investigating this cold case that is fifteen years old. Mason discovers that four of the jurors on the original case have died violently and the rest have disappeared. Then, one night, a shooter fires a bullet through the first floor window of Mason’s home. Things heat up from there.
King hires Sandra Connelly as his attorney. She and Mason were former partners in a law firm until they were both fired – Mason went to a solo practice and Sandra opted for work at the city’s biggest law firm. Sandra visits Mason at his office before the lawsuit is filed. She mentions that Nick is sending threatening emails to her client and tries to convince Mason that he doesn’t have a case.
"Are you telling me you are actually going to sue Whitney?"
"Nick’s statute of limitations runs in two weeks. If Whitney wants to make a deal no3, maybe we can work something out without a lot of noise." Mason said.
"Right. Why don’t I just cut of my arm and beat myself senseless with it instead. Save my client the trouble. You don’t have a case, Lou. Your client is a screwed-up kid. A whack job. File that lawsuit against Whitney and you’ll draw a counterclaim for harassment and those emails are exhibit A."
"Your client is a murderer. I’d watch your back. Cutting off your arm may just be the beginning." Mason said.
Sandra shook her head, back to the doorway. "You haven’t changed a bit," she said. "Into the breach."
"Beats the hell out of crushing widows and orphans."
Sandra drew her lips back. "You don’t want to take me on, Lou. I’ll carve you up."
"Funny," Mason said, "I thought your client was the killer. Not you."
Mason digs deeper into this case and the violence escalates. Whitney King shoots Nick and someone close to Mason is murdered. As Mason searches for answers, he quickly understands that the killer will do whatever it takes to stop him. The hunter has become the hunted.
This book is thoroughly enjoyable – don’t miss it.
