Expert Testimony [Mass Market Paperback]

Grif Stockley (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 23, 1992

"Stockley has produced a delightful and intriguing human story. It is to be hoped he will use his newly found talent to dig into his past experiences as background for more such captivating tales."
ASSOCIATED PRESS
A prominent Arkansas politico and state senator is murdered, and the babbling, incoherent man accused of the crime has insanity plea written all over him. Everyone, including Gideon Page, the public defender, thinks this case is nailed shut. But Gideon is curious about a few things, and what he discovers is that even the innocent need an airtight alibi, when a simple case of puppy love turns into a fatal affair to remember.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In Stockley's courtroom drama, events--both legal and emotional--are handled with intelligence, maturity and balance. Powerful Arkansas state senator Hart Anderson has been gunned down by Perry Sarver, a patient of Anderson's psychiatrist wife, Carolyn. Sarver's defense has been assigned to public defender Gideon Page who, representing a surly client accused of murdering the state's most popular politician, finds himself in a classic no-win situation. As Page uncovers various motives, the question of Sarver's mental capacity becomes an issue. Through the lawyer's interviews with doctors and lay witnesses, the reader is treated to a clear, comprehensible education regarding the insanity plea and its utilization. Meanwhile, Page, a widower, struggles to give focus and structure to his personal life, including the upbringing of his daughter. The strengths of this uncontrived first novel lie in Stockley's thorough legal knowledge and a fluent writing style marked by humor and insight.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Inside Flap

"Stockley has produced a delightful and intriguing human story. It is to be hoped he will use his newly found talent to dig into his past experiences as background for more such captivating tales."
ASSOCIATED PRESS
A prominent Arkansas politico and state senator is murdered, and the babbling, incoherent man accused of the crime has insanity plea written all over him. Everyone, including Gideon Page, the public defender, thinks this case is nailed shut. But Gideon is curious about a few things, and what he discovers is that even the innocent need an airtight alibi, when a simple case of puppy love turns into a fatal affair to remember.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback
• Publisher: Fawcett (September 23, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0804110948
• ISBN-13: 978-0804110945
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,625,638 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars nicely done first book, January 3, 2005

By 

J. Drook "public defender" (Indiana) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Expert Testimony (Mass Market Paperback)

this was Stockley's first published work and is very good, especially from a legal perspective. He is a public defender, as am I, and I felt throughout the book he was true in his dealing with that profession and its problems and good sides.

thought the ending was a little underwhelming, but really enjoyed reading the book and look forward to picking up the other in the Gideon Page series.

4.0 out of 5 stars Expert Testimony: A victim's unusual weapon of revenge., November 3, 2008

By 

Morgan Cahall "so many books so little time" (Delaware, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Expert Testimony (Mass Market Paperback)

Gideon page is the new guy in the public defender's office (he just happens to be the oldest one there) in black well county, Arkansas. He is just trying to get along the best he can after the death of his wife a few years earlier from cancer and the P.D. job pays the bills. At home he has a 17 year old daughter (going on 21) that thinks the little brother of one of Gideon's more annoying co workers wants to go out with her and she isn't shy about telling her father that he really needs to stop bringing home women who's bra size matches their I.Q. Into all this comes what appears to be a slam dunk case of the insanity plea when a mental patient kills the husband of a psychologist who he believed was in love with him and wanted to marry him. The only problem was that the husband was a popular judge that was up for election and his colleagues want blood. Sensing that the P.D assigned to the task is not going to give it his all, Gideon volunteers to take on the case and make sure that the man gets a fair chance at trial. Soon Gideon finds that the judge was not the man every one thought he was and that he had a few skeletons in his closet that were starting to come out when he was killed. Throw in a pit bull of a criminal defense lawyer, one psychologist who will give whatever diagnosis is needed for the right price, one psychologist who doesn't believe in what he practices, a very tangled love triangle and Mr. Page is going to have to step very carefully unless he wants to join the judge in early retirement.
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While the above description may sound a bit generic, in this case it's the writing that makes this book worth reading. It's hard to summarize the story without giving away the surprises that made me keep reading. The book is not very long but it does pack quite a bit in and the ending while it may seem a bit generic it does tie everything up. I would recommend this to anyone who likes lite mysteries with characters that don't quite fit the mold. M.a.c