Publication Date: April 6, 2004 | Series: St. Martin's True Crime Library
Clara and David Harris were married on Valentine's Day. Young and in love, they developed a thriving dental business, built a half-million-dollar mansion, and raised the perfect family. Then whispers of an affair between David and his beautiful secretary drifted through their exclusive Houston social circle. A private detective confirmed the rumors. When Clara saw her husband with his mistress, she climbed behind the wheel of her luxurious car and put an end to their charmed life together-by crushing her husband to death underneath the wheels of her silver Mercedes-Benz.
What the headline-making trial ultimately revealed was: a high-profile marriage running on empty, marital infidelity, a woman's deadly passion, and the private hell behind a public life of the rich and privileged.
A Moment Of Madness? Or A Calculated Crime Of Passion? Clara and David Harris were married on Valentine's Day. Young and in love, they developed a thriving dental business, built a half-million-dollar mansion, and raised the perfect family. Then whispers of an affair between David and his beautiful secretary drifted through their exclusive Houston social circle. A private detective confirmed the rumors. When Clara saw her husband with his mistress, she climbed behind the wheel of her luxurious car and put an end to their charmed life together-by crushing her husband to death underneath the wheels of her silver Mercedes-Benz.
Clara Harris Had The Perfect Explanation For Police: "It Was An Accident." What the headline-making trial ultimately revealed was: a high-profile marriage running on empty, marital infidelity, a woman's deadly passion, and the private hell behind a public life of the rich and privileged.
About the Author
Steven Long literally wrote the book on catastrophic failure in a nursing home. His award winning non-fiction work Death Without Dignity, Texas Monthly Press, 1987, prompted the Austin American-Statesman to call the book the "literary equivalent of the movie Platoon. Frances Humphreys, the national director of the Gray Panthers wrote, "Steven Long presents a horrifying account of conditions that can exist when the profit motive takes precedence over healing and compassionate care." The book won the State Bar of Texas Gavel Award for distinguished journalism. The work is found in the libraries of most medical and nursing schools. However, it is not a dry factual tome. Instead it is true crime writing at its best, reminiscent of the style of the late Tommy Thompson.
For 11 years, he served as editor and publisher of Galveston's In Between Magazine, an award-winning alternative weekly. After closing the publication, he carved out a significant career as a feature writer with the Houston Chronicle producing more than 700 stories in six years. One highlight was his investigative work, which resulted in the indictment, conviction and disbarment of the late Houston adoption lawyer Leslie Thacker for buying and selling crack babies in the Harris County Jail. Another series of investigative stories ultimately resulted in the indictment and conviction of the head librarian of the oldest medical school west of the Mississippi for stealing rare and historic medical texts, some dating to the sixteenth century.
Steven Long covered the Andrea Yates murder case for the New York Post from the scene to conviction. He is covering the ongoing Enron scandal, as well as the Robert Durst murder case. Now under contract with St. Martin's Press, Steve's book on the Clara Harris case will be released in March 2004. He has recently appeared on Inside Edition, the CBS Early Show and Catherine Crier Live on Court TV.
An avid horseman, he is a regular contributor to Western Horseman magazine. Long also serves as editor of Texas Horse Talk. His work has appeared frequently in the Houston Press. Another freelance client is Agence France Presse. He covered the criminal trial of Arthur Andersen LLP from charge to conviction for the French news agency.
Besides his writing career, Steven Long holds a certification in corporate community relations from the Center for Corporate Responsibility at Boston College.
He is a co-founder of the National Alliance of Urban Literacy Coalitions, and recently completed three terms on the national board of CASA, the Court Appointed Special Advocates Association, based in Seattle, WA.
Steven Long lives in Houston, Texas, with his wife Vicki.
For more information, check out: www.stevenlongwriter.com
Lifelong journalist and author Steven Long brings a national reputation and talent for making special things happen to his current venture, Horseback Magazine, as the publication's creative force making it one of the nation's most respected regional publications targeting the recreational horseman. The magazine is distributed in Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Louisiana.
Horseback Online, www.horsebackmagazine.com, is visited daily in all 50 states and between 35 and 55 foreign countries.
Long is a triple threat. He is an editor, journalist, and entrepreneur most famous for his books on some of the most sensational true crime events in the nation. He has spent more than 2,000 hours in the courtroom, more time than most practicing lawyers spend there in a lifetime. He has covered some of the most important cases of the last two decades. Few can capture the drama of lawyer vs. lawyer quite like him.
His most recent book, Every Woman's Nightmare (St. Martin's Press) tells the story of the fairytale marriage and cold blooded murder of Utah's Lori Hacking, whose body was left in a city dump to rot. She was killed in her sleep by her husband Mark after catching him in the lie that he was about to begin medical school. The book has sparked heated opposition from members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, the Mormons.
Steven's true crime tale, Out of Control, (St. Martin's Press), chronicled the strange murder of Dr. David Harris by his wife Clara. Long's story, set in a wealthy suburb of Houston, is not a typical grisly true crime paperback. He tells the tale of a woman who loved too much, so much that she was willing to kill to keep her man from his paramour.
In his first book, Death Without Dignity, (Texas Monthly Press, 1987) Steven Long wrote the sad story of catastrophic failure in a nursing home. The work prompted the Austin American-Statesman to call it the "literary equivalent of the movie Platoon." The book won a State Bar of Texas Gavel Award for distinguished journalism. Yet among the numerous awards he has received throughout his career, Steven Long is still most proud of the merit badge for journalism that he received as a Boy Scout when his first story was published in his hometown paper at age 11.
Long began his career in radio but quickly moved to print. For most of 11 years, he served as editor and publisher of Galveston's In Between Magazine, an award-winning alternative weekly famed for its gritty investigative work. His first freelance piece appeared in the respected Texas Observer.
In the 1982 Texas election for governor, Steven Long asked the incumbent, Bill Clements, a question that changed the state's history. "Would you appoint a consumer, for example, a housewife, to the Texas Public Utilities Commission?" The governor blundered and answered, "There isn't a housewife in Texas qualified to serve on the PUC." He lost the election.
After closing In Between, Steven Long carved out a career as a feature writer with the Houston Chronicle. One article resulted in the indictment, conviction and disbarment of the late Houston adoption lawyer Leslie Thacker for buying and selling crack babies in several Texas county jails. Another series of investigative stories ultimately resulted in the indictment and conviction of the head librarian of the oldest medical school west of the Mississippi for stealing rare and historic medical texts, some dating to the sixteenth century. He exposed the Texas prison system's wholesale practice of allowing the use of inmates as subjects for medical residents to hone their skills in cosmetic surgery at a state teaching hospital.
Steven Long covered the Andrea Yates murder case for the New York Post from the scene to conviction. For the same paper, he found rogue CEO Ken Lay who hid for ten days when the Enron scandal broke. He covered the lengthy and complex trial of the Arthur Andersen accounting firm for Agence France Presse, as well as Crain's Chicago Business. He has appeared on "Inside Edition," the "CBS Early Show" and "Catherine Crier Live", as well as "Mugshots" on Court TV. Steven worked as a consultant to "Dateline's" segment on the sensational Robert Durst Case. He has appeared on "Northwest Afternoon" on ABC/KOMO in Seattle. Steven appeared on the E Network's series, "Women Who Kill." Long served as courtroom analyst and special correspondent with CNBC for its gavel to gavel coverage of the Enron execs Ken Lay and Jeffrey Skilling. During the proceedings he frequently appeared on the popular business channel's "Squawk Box" and "Power Lunch" programs. Steven and his adopted horse Façade have appeared on Animal Planet's "Animal Cops Houston." Façade is an SPCA rescue animal. Steven and his wife Vicki recently adopted Flying Algonquin, a retired race horse saved from slaughter.
An avid horseman, he has been a contributor to Western Horseman magazine. His work has appeared frequently in the Houston Press. Steven Long is a regular contributor to the late and lamented true crime forum, In "Cold Blog," http://incoldblogger.blogspot.com. He secured one of the last, if not the final interview with the late actor Tony for Cowboys and Indians Magazine. Besides his writing career, Steven Long holds a certification in corporate community relations from the Center for Corporate Citizenship at Boston College.
Steven Long is a co-founder of the National Alliance of Urban Literacy Coalitions (Literacy USA), and completed three terms on the national board of CASA, the Court Appointed Special Advocates Association, based in Seattle. CASA volunteers throughout the nation help the courts place abused and neglected children in safe and permanent homes. He currently serves on the organization's prestigious Emeritus Advisory Board.
Steven Long is currently writing Ruby's Passing, a fiction book based on a 1955 triple murder in the small Texas town where he grew up. He also appears in the Katia Louise film, Saving America's Horses, A Nation Betrayed.
Steven and Vicki Long, a fiction writer, live in Houston, Texas. He serves as Vice President of The Greater Houston Horse Council.
This review is from: Out of Control (St. Martin's True Crime Library) (Mass Market Paperback)
Out of Control details the lengths some people will actually go to. I have always wondered why Clara Harris would do what she did; now I know. Read this book and you will see for yourself what lengths some people will resort to. This book felt like a great fiction read, because in this case truth was even stranger than fiction! If you like interesting, page turning reading, than this is the book for you. Reading it was an amazing experience. All too often, I actually felt like I was there - in the car, getting out of the car, actually seeing and hearing what it felt like to be there with Mr. Harris as he died. The trial coverage was incredible, I felt for all involved. This book made me thankful for the good life I have when I saw how some people live. Have at it and enjoy yourself!
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
This review is from: Out of Control (St. Martin's True Crime Library) (Mass Market Paperback)
I loved this book and read it in two days. Although it was clear Clara Harris killed her husband in cold blood, I still had a great deal of sympathy for her. I was positive her attorney would defend her as a temporary insanity case; however, he didn't and I'm not sure why. I can totally understand the rage she had after discovering his mistress; then after he promises to stop seeing his lover and try to make his marriage work, she finds out he was deceiving her once again. Clara Harris worked so hard all her life and it was obvious she was a caring mother and a devoted wife who loved her husband very much -- almost to obsessive levels. For her to do what she did, over and over -- run the car over him again and again, she HAD to have been in some kind of out of control mode and I think they should have taken that into consideration and cut her a break. The Judge was relentless, almost as though she had no sympathy for Clara Harris at all. I realize she is a murderess but I still felt bad for her. Her heart was broken and her jealousy toward her husband's other woman just set her off. I definitely would recommend this book and I promise you will not be bored.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
This review is from: Out of Control (St. Martin's True Crime Library) (Mass Market Paperback)
Though this story made headlines across the country, there was not enough tabloid ink to cover all the truly bizarre details of the case.
The author goes into excrutiating detail to illustrate the moral hypocrisy of the Harris's suburban Texas community. Its affluent deniszens flaunted adherence to the protestant work ethic by indulging in conspicuous consumption, and maintained god-fearing charades by attending frivolous church gatherings. New residents "denomination shopped" by the same critieria used in country club selection -- the choice of methodist vs. baptist was made according to convenience of church location and the social standing of its congregation. Most of the participants in this drama met in their church groups, and their intricate infidelities required a flow chart - in fact one was entered into evidence during the trial.
The author leads us through the horror of the incident itself, then traces back through the eight days prior to the vehicular assault. Empathy for the victim dwindles as he is portrayed as a self-indulgent man-child who humiliates his well-liked, hard-working immigrant wife by having an affair with a sexpot who works in their dental business. He even methodically details for his wife why he prefers his lover to her. Clara Harris thus descends into a desperate, jealous fury culminating in the vehicular assault.
Lest we think Clara Harris is an innocent victim of circumstance, her calculating side is revealed as she schemes to win her husband back, and inexcusably drags his daughter along with her. In turn, she hires an unsavory private detective firm who also have been hired by everyone else involved in the case. The second half of the book is spent detailing the trial. The author does a superb job of covering the highlights and illuminating the defense and prosecution strategies. Although he takes pains to provide balance as far as David vs. Clara, he humorlessly fails to hide his disdain for the trial judge, a Texas Republican with little regard for freedom of the press.
This is a fascinating page-turner, particularly for those who derive a sense of schaudenfreud from reading about wealthy people who have it all and lose it through bad behaviour.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
