False Convictions [Hardcover]

Tim Green (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 10, 2010

In bestselling author Tim Green's latest thriller, Casey Jordan returns-seeking justice in a small town riddled with . . .

FALSE CONVICTIONS

Casey is counting on an open-and-shut case, a sure success for her first effort with the Freedom Project, the renowned charity group dedicated to helping exonerate wrongfully convicted prisoners. Not only is the Freedom Project giving Casey the chance to help innocent people, but its founder, Robert Graham, is offering Casey a one-million-dollar annual pledge to her legal clinic for taking on just two jobs a year.



Her first assignment is to revive the case of Dwayne Hubbard, an indigent black man serving a life sentence for the rape and murder of a college student seventeen years ago. Using DNA evidence, Casey expects to easily prove Hubbard's innocence. Yet when she arrives in rural Auburn, New York, she meets immediate and aggressive resistance.


Tormented by death threats and assassination attempts, Casey investigates a prosecution apparently rife with lies. From the judge, the lawyers, the jury, to the police, she traces a web of corruption surrounding the destruction of one young man. But in all the chaos, Casey's hardest challenge may be just staying alive.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A brisk plot with plenty of surprises more than makes up for stock characters in bestseller Green's entertaining third novel featuring Dallas attorney Casey Jordan (after Above the Law). Casey is committed to working with the Freedom Project, a nonprofit group dedicated to exonerating the wrongly convicted. The group's founder, billionaire Robert Graham, offers Casey's legal clinic an annual pledge of $1 million to take on a couple of high-profile cases a year. Using DNA analysis, Casey proves the innocence of Dwayne Hubbard, a black man who may have been framed by the police, judge, jury, and lawyers for a female college student's murder 20 years earlier. Meanwhile, TV news journalist Jake Carlson believes that Graham isn't the altruistic, humble philanthropist he claims to be. Jake and Casey begin an uneasy alliance to scrutinize Graham's business dealings. Green credibly explores Casey's enthusiasm for the law and helping the poor. (Feb.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Casey Jordan operates a Dallas law clinic that provides legal assistance to those who are unable to afford competent representation. She’s also a legal superstar; her most high-profile case was the basis for an acclaimed made-for-television movie, and she’s in demand as a commentator on the cable networks. Billionaire industrialist Robert Graham’s favorite philanthropic effort is the Freedom Project, an organization that works for the exoneration of individuals who may have been falsely convicted. Graham offers Jordan a million-dollar donation to her clinic if she’ll take on Dwayne Hubbard’s 20-year-old murder conviction in upstate New York. Casey reluctantly agrees and quickly finds herself immersed in the case and an ongoing cover-up involving the local legal, medical, and law-enforcement organizations. Green, a former NFL player, lawyer, and author of 13 mysteries, offers a generally believable plot, solid dialogue, a little romance, and a few choice dollops of humor as Jordan works her way through layers of obfuscation and self-serving small-town motives. Toss in a wild twist for another entertaining effort from a dependable veteran. --Wes Lukowsky

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Grand Central Publishing; 1 edition (February 10, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446401528
• ISBN-13: 978-0446401524
• Product Dimensions: 6.2 x 1 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #996,705 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Tim is the NY TIMES BESTSELLING author of fourteen highly successful suspense novels, including soon-to-be-released FALSE CONVICTIONS and national bestseller ABOVE THE LAW, as well the non-fiction New York Times Bestseller, THE DARK SIDE OF THE GAME which was featured on CBS's 60 Minutes. His last five novels have all been national bestsellers hitting the charts between #22 and #30 on the NY Times Bestseller list. While his first five novels used professional football as their backdrop, his most recent works have drawn more on his experiences as a lawyer exploring the themes of ambition and revenge.

Tim is also the author of a memoir entitled A MAN AND HIS MOTHER: AN ADOPTED SON'S SEARCH which was featured in PEOPLE magazine, Entertainment Tonight, and ABC's Prime Time.
His writing career began at Syracuse University where he was a Rossman Scholar for Humanities, a Syracuse Scholar, an NCAA Top Six Scholar, Phi Beta Kappa, and co-valedictorian of his class. While studying English Literature, Tim became acquainted with the renowned minimalist Raymond Carver, and had the opportunity to study under the award-winning writer and professor Tobias Wolff.

During his studies, Tim also played football for the Syracuse Orangemen with a career that included a consensus All-American honors as well as his recent induction into the College Football Hall of Fame. In 1986, he was selected in the first round of the NFL draft by the Atlanta Falcons where he was a star defensive end for eight years. During his NFL career, Green began his thirteen year career as a commentator for National Public Radio, wrote columns for USA Today, and received his law degree with honors at Syracuse University. Because of his accomplishments both Sports Illustrated and the Los Angeles Times have called Tim Green the "Renaissance Man" of sports. After his playing career, Tim spent eleven years as an NFL analyst for FOX Sports and recently hosted FOX's nationally syndicated news magazine, A Current Affair. His other broadcast experiences have included ABC Good Morning America's legal commentator, Court TV's Pros and Cons, host of FOX Sports Net's Emmy nominated show NFL TOTAL ACCESS, and Comedy Central's Battlebots. Recently, Tim hosted the ABC Prime Time reality show, FIND MY FAMILY.
In 2007, Tim wrote FOOTBALL GENIUS, his first novel for young readers, and an instant NY Times Bestseller. The success and enjoyment of working with his own kids on the project resulted in FOOTBALL HERO, which was released in 2008. In both novels, Tim models the main characters after his own children, submerging them into a suspenseful world that blends adolescent life and sports with the visceral realm of the NFL. FOOTBALL HERO was selected as a Junior Library Guild choice and a GMA summer page turner for young adults. Most recently he released BASEBALL GREAT, another NY Times Bestseller, as well as FOOTBALL CHAMP. Tim's newest young reader novel, RIVALS, will be released in stores in March 2010.
Tim lives with his wife, Illyssa, and their five children in upstate New York. More information about Tim can be found at his Web site www.timgreenbooks.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars enjoyable thriller, February 1, 2010

By 

Alla S. - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: False Convictions (Hardcover)

In "False Convictions," Tim Green starts the action in autumn of 1989, when Dwayne Hubbard, a black man carrying a knife whose DNA matches the blood type of the victim, is beat up by thugs and then detained by police for the brutal murder of Cassandra Thornton, a popular blonde bombshell who went to the same school as him. Fast forward twenty years later, and gorgeous attorney Casey Jordan, who runs a legal clinic for underprivileged women, is contacted by billionaire Robert Graham to participate in his charity program aimed at freeing wrongfully convicted people, called Project Freedom, in exchange for annually donating one million dollars for her clinic.

The first case Robert wants Casey to look into is that of Dwayne Hubbard, suspicious of the circumstances surrounding his case. At the time of Hubbard's conviction, the son of D.A. Rivers, Nelson Rivers, was Cassandra's boyfriend. After further research into the matter, Casey begins to suspect that Rivers put Hubbard in jail to cover up the crime of her son. Graham partners Casey with Marty Barrone, a lawyer engaged to the judge's daughter, and introduces her to Jake Carlson, a prominent TV reporter.

Casey visits Dwayne in jail, who affirms his innocence. Casey soon realizes that the DNA on Dwayne's knife, aside the fact that it happened to match the victim's blood type, was never fully tested against the DNA of the victim. Casey travels to the warehouse where evidence is kept, but officers tell her they got rid of the knife due to age of the case. Casey's suspicion is aroused when she notices that the boxes of evidence from older cases are still present.

Determined to do the DNA test, Casey learns that right before the murder, Cassandra was raped and swabs were taken from her to be stored at the hospital. There, Cassandra encounters another obstacle as the hospital's lawyer tells her an authorization from the judge is needed, before she can see the swabs. Soon, Casey's main quest becomes not only convincing the judge to re-open the case, but getting Nelson River's DNA sample to compare against the victim's.

At first, Green's plot appears deceptively easy. However, the action gets increasingly more complicated as Casey realizes that her involvement in Dwayne's case is really a part of a bigger story and that some characters around her have ulterior motives. Overall, this was an entertaining mystery. The characters are well-developed, and Green frequently keeps you guessing as to where he's going with the story. The book itself is pretty short, so it was a quick read. Recommended for the mystery lovers out there.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars An enjoyable read..., March 23, 2011

By 

A. Nye "Al Nye The Lawyer Guy" (Portland, Maine USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: False Convictions (Hardcover)

The author of this book, Tim Green, is a practicing attorney and former NFL defensive end living in New York. That sounds like an interesting combination. Since he has also written more than a dozen novels, when I was offered the opportunity to review this book, I jumped at the chance.

The novel begins with a deceptively simple plot. Twenty years ago, a black man was convicted of murdering a pretty white college student and now a well-known attorney is attempting to prove him innocent. Casey Jordan is an ambitious lawyer who runs a legal clinic for underprivileged women. She is contacted by billionaire philanthropist Robert Graham to participate in his charity program that attempts to free wrongfully convicted people, called Project Freedom. In exchange for her help, Graham agrees to donate $1,000,000 to her clinic.

The case Graham wants Jordan to look into is that of Dwayne Hubbard who vehemently claims his innocence. In her interview with Hubbard, Hubbard describes the victim this way:

"The dead girl?" Hubbard asked, raising an eyebrow. "I knew who she was. Everyone did. The queen bee of the East Sider's. Country club kids. Not that her family belonged -- the dad flipped burgers at Mickey D's. You wanted to wipe that smile off her face and watch her freckles turned purple? All you had to do was sing the big Mac song: 'Two all beef patties special sauce lettuce cheese pickles onions on a sesame seed bun.' Rich boys didn't care about that, though. She was VIP. Tall and blonde and built for speed. Dude had to have a fat roll of cash and a sweet ride before he even thought about running with her."

Hubbard claims that in addition to him being innocent, he was also attacked by some white man during the time of the crime and stabbed one of them with a knife. Later analysis of the DNA on Hubbard's knife was found to match the victim's blood type. However, the blood was never fully tested against the DNA of the victim, and when Casey Jordan gets involved in the case and goes to the warehouse where evidence is kept, Hubbard's file is mysteriously missing.

Once Jordan is finally able to secure the evidence she needs, it appears that nearly everyone involved in this case has something to hide. The more that she investigates this case, the more cover ups Jordan encounters. She is soon teamed up with a TV news journalist, Jake Carlson, who wants to interview Robert Graham for an article about the Freedom Project. She also receives help from Marty Barrone, an inexperienced local lawyer who helps her with the local politics.

What I liked about this book was that there were plenty of plot twists. What started out as a straightforward attempt to free a wrongly convicted prisoner quickly turns into a labyrinth of lies and deceit. Although I never quite connected with the lead characters in the book, the plot surprises make this a quick and entertaining read.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not His Best, February 23, 2010

By 

Konrad Kern (OFallon, MO United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: False Convictions (Hardcover)

A charity organization known as the Freedom Project, which is dedicated to freeing wrongly convicted prisoners and is run by billionaire and philanthropist Robert Graham, hires defense attorney Casey Jordan to revive the case of Dwayne Hubbard. A black man convicted of brutally murdering and raping a college student 20 years ago. Casey believes this will be an open and shut case since she has DNA evidence that proves his innocence. Everything is not as it seems.
I always enjoy and get a lot of satisfaction from Tim Green's novels. Suffice it to say this one didn't hit the big mark for me. It was a good story overall and provided plenty of suspense and mystery but somehow the ending didn't sit right with me. I'm not going to spoil it but I think one of the villians deserved a harsher punishment than the other.