Sue Russell

Den fängslande och sanna berättelsen om Aileen Wuornos, USA:s första kvinnliga seriemördare. Den 30 november 1989, på en enslig plats längs en motorväg i Florida skjuts den 51-årige Richard Mallory ihjäl av en naken, blond kvinna. Medan han lider en långsam och plågsam död tar kvinnan ifrån honom hans värdesaker och kör hans Cadillac tillbaka till motellet där hennes älskarinna väntar. Efter mordet på Richard Mallory återfinns tre mördade män på lika många veckor, en mordvåg som snart kommer att trappas upp. Under efterföljande år ger Aileen Wuornos sig ut på USA:s vägar, under täckmanteln som en prostituerad, med avsikt att döda. Wuornos gripande blir startskottet på en rättegång som kommer att skapa en världsomspännande mediefrossa. Vem var den våldsamma manshataren Aileen Wuornos egentligen? Det här är berättelsen om en mördare som förbryllade profileringsexperterna och för alltid förändrade deras uppfattning om de brott som en kvinna är kapabel till. Aileen Wuornos livsöde har skildrats i den Oscarsnominerade filmen Monster med Charlize Theron i huvudrollen.

This updated edition of The Illustrated Courtroom came to be because the world of court art has evolved so dramatically since our book's first edition. Trial art is now a fixture both in the 24/7 news cycle and in the fast-moving online world. And numerous epic news stories that broke in the past few years proved hard to ignore. We welcomed the opportunity to include some notable examples. The #MeToo social movement exploded internationally in 2017, signaling massive support for victims of sexual assault. Uber-powerful Hollywood movie producer Harvey Weinstein's precipitous fall was at its heart, following decades of rumors of his sexually predatory behavior. In February 2020, I drew Weinstein being found guilty of rape and criminal sexual acts then sentenced to 23 years in prison. Artist Aggie Kenny's work is also featured in this book. She and I covered multimillionaire financier Jeffrey Epstein's July 2019 arraignment on sex trafficking charges in New York. Epstein was first convicted as a sex offender back in 2008 but unlike in 2008, in 2019, he faced major prison time. However, on August 10, before he could stand trial, he was found dead in his cell. The story and theories on how Epstein died gripped the nation. We court artists have always needed nerves of steel plus an aptitude for speed and precision, but now, with the Internet's meme culture, our work is ever more closely scrutinized. Any perceived failure to produce a good likeness of a famous face triggers a flood of criticism. In 2015, an artist's rendition of New England Patriots' football star Tom Brady at the #Deflategate proceedings-which followed allegations that Brady's team had cheated by using under-inflated balls-was pilloried as unflattering and unrecognizable. The illustration swiftly went viral. Its artist was heavily criticized as parodies and memes erupted, ridiculing her artwork. The effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the courts has been significant. Courtroom artists faced a whole new challenge, people's faces behind masks, behind barriers or on video. Limited seating in courtrooms due to social distancing. At the Britney Spears conservatorship, hearing some lawyers made their arguments via video, while others were in court wearing masks. Artists drew the R. Kelly sex trafficking trial from a blurry video feed piped into an overflow courtroom. These episodes alone are proof positive that we courtroom artists now inhabit a whole new world

The Illustrated Courtroom: 50+ Years of Court Art is the second edition of 2014's acclaimed book, updated with even more headline-makers including: Harvey Weinstein, Jeffrey Epstein, R. Kelly, Bill Cosby, football icon Tom Brady, Donald Trump, drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, tattooed rapper, Tekashi 6ix9ine and more. Named a 2014 Times Literary Supplement "Book of the Year" and one of Kirkus Reviews' "Best Books of 2014," its past honors also include gold medals from the Global eBook Awards and the eLit awards. The Illustrated Courtroom showcases five award-winning artists' momentous works and compelling insider stories. Witnesses to history, they have captured some of the most consequential courtroom dramas of the last 50+ years. Legendary defendants include Charles Manson, the New York Black Panthers, Jack Ruby (who killed President John F. Kennedy's assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald), kidnapped heiress Patty Hearst, David "Son of Sam" Berkowitz, mob kingpin John Gotti, pop icon Michael Jackson, O. J. Simpson, Unabomber Ted Kaczynski and Martha Stewart. In this book, United States Supreme Court Justices share the pages with embezzlers like Bernard Madoff, terrorists and assassins, notably James Earl Ray (Martin Luther King, Jr.) and Mark David Chapman (John Lennon). Catnip for fans of true crime, art and law alike. 254 pages,150 illustrations.

'It was like the pictures I'd seen of the battlefields of the First World War. No life, no growth ... A vision of hell.' What can Abbie see that no one else can? Is the charming Will Chambers all he seems? And will anyone believe her? Half-English and half-Indian, 17-year-old Abbie Hasan has been troubled by disturbing visions since she was a child. Isolated by her 'gift' and unsure of its source, she is a diffident and uncertain young woman. But when her visions become reality, she is the only hope for uniting her family and redeeming a terrible betrayal. But will she find the courage to act in time? A powerful story of how love and forgiveness can overcome vengeance and fear.

Liksom filmen Monster med Charlize Theron i huvudrollen skildrar den här boken ett av de mest uppmärksammade kriminalfallen i USA under 1900-talet. I centrum står Aileen Wuornos, född 1956, avrättad 2002. Florida, november 1989. Vid en ensligt belägen parkeringsplats pumpar en naken prostituerad kvinna fyra gevärsskott i ryggen på en 51-årig butiksägare. Han är döende när hon länsar hans fickor och stjäl hans bil för att återvända till motellet där hennes lesbiska väninna väntar. Januari 1991. Aileen Wuornos häktas. Personundersökningen visar: Övergiven av sin mamma när hon var 2. Pappan svårt kriminellt belastad. Uppfostrad och ofta misshandlad av brutal morfar. Utsatt för sexuella övergrepp i unga år. Började sälja sin kropp när hon var 12. Inledde 1986 ett lesbiskt förhållande med en betydligt yngre kvinna. Aileen Wuornos dömdes till flerfaldigt dödsstraff efter att ha bundits vid sju mord begångna 1989-91. Offren var i samtliga fall medelålders män som köpt hennes sexuella tjänster. Boken Alias Monster belyser detaljerat ett kriminalfall som fått många att ställa frågan: Var Aileen egentligen ett offer som i desperation mördade för att hämnas det manssamhälle som förött hennes liv?