A Simple Act of Murder: November 22, 1963 [Hardcover]

Mark Fuhrman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 2, 2006

This title talks about the true crime, and is written by America' most famous homicide detective. Fascinated in who killed JFK, it contains chilling re-enactment. It has received reviews in men's magazines, reviews in true crime magazines, and possibly serialisation in national tabloid newspaper. Mark Fuhrman, America' most famous detective, turns his sights on the biggest crime of the twentieth century. "A Simple Act of Murder" is the first major book on the JFK Assassination written by an experienced homicide detective. There is no speculation or rumor, no twisting the truth to support a predetermined conclusion. Fuhrman is neither a defender of the official story, nor a conspiracy theorist. He just wants to uncover the truth, which is still possible, despite the vast and often conflicting public record, as well as all the controversy, misinformation and mythology surrounding the highest profile murder case in history. Focusing his renowned detective skills exclusively on the evidence, and treating the JFK assassination as if it were a simple act of murder, as he does any other case, whether headline making or not, Fuhrman sieves through the evidence. This book will be a must read, not only for Fuhrman's true crime readership, but also for the insatiable assassination audience, which has consumed no less than 100 books in the last forty years, so will JFK admirers who want to know the truth about how the dearly beloved President was killed.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Neither Warren Commission supporters nor conspiracy theorists are likely to be satisfied by this latest true crime effort by notorious ex-LAPD detective Fuhrman, who joins a long list of authors attempting to settle the controversies surrounding the assassination of President Kennedy once and for all. Despite Furhman's long-held belief that the president was the victim of a plot, his examination of the forensic evidence—the recovered bullet fragments, the autopsy reports and the legendary Zapruder film—leads him to adopt the lone gunman theory (although he thinks that previous proponents of that position erred in believing one of Lee Harvey Oswald's shots missed its mark). This clunky, lightweight effort is unlikely to change many minds and does not begin to approach the careful, reasoned analysis of Gerald Posner's Case Closed, which also defended the first official inquiry's lone gunman theory of the murder. Nor does Fuhrman fully address the many questions raised by serious conspiracy scholars such as Anthony Summers or Robert Blakey; for example, he completely ignores arguments that Jack Ruby's connections with organized crime bear further study. Whatever the truth of the matter, readers will not be convinced by his case for the thesis that this was a "simple murder." Photos and illus. (Apr.)
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Review

“[W]ell worth reading for its clarity and single-mindedness ...a brisk read for armchair investigators.” (Philadelphia Inquirer )

“[A] fresh take...on the JFK assasination.” (Kirkus Reviews )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow; 1 edition (May 2, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060721545
• ISBN-13: 978-0060721541
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (59 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,241,004 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Mark Fuhrman is a crime expert for FOX News and a New York Times bestselling author. Before FOX, Fuhrman was an on-air consultant for ABC, CBS, and Court TV.

Fuhrman served as a Los Angeles Police Department detective for 20 years, rising to fame as a key investigator and witness in the notorious O.J. Simpson murder trial. He lives in Idaho.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Grossly Incomplete, November 21, 2006

By 

Christopher F. Kiger (Baltimore, MD) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Simple Act of Murder: November 22, 1963 (Hardcover)

Unlike Furman's other books, well-researched and written by a man who obviously knows how to investigate, this one was a disappointment. Furman totally ignored the Dallas doctors' observations of JFK's skull and the damage done to it. Taking only the autopsy material, and discounting the eyewitness reports from Dealy Plaza, as well as the reports from other than physician staff at Bethesda Naval, his conclusions are invalid.
If I didn't know any better, I would say that Mark Furman was merely fulfilling a contract with his publisher for another book that was due. Despite his self-proclaimed interest in the murder of JFK both from the personal and professional standpoint, Furman seemed in writing this book to not be interested in truth-finding. Afterall, it is the murkiness of the investigation, autopsy and conflicting medical examinations, to say nothing of the possible government coverup of the matter that have fueled the controversy for all these years. This book is overly simplistic, and I say that not as a "conspiracy buff" but as one who is interested in all viewpoints of the assassination, as long as they are thoughtfully conceived. Furman's is not.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very detailed, December 5, 2008

By 

David Emerling (Memphis, TN) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Simple Act of Murder: November 22, 1963 (Paperback)

It is refreshing to read a book on the Kennedy assassination by a REAL crime investigator. Fuhrman, like any professional investigator, does not make wild assumptions and allows the evidence to lead him where common sense dictates. He does an excellent job of summarizing the assassination and then, in an orderly fashion, breaking down the evidence and assessing its value. As the title suggests, his ultimate conclusion is that Lee Harvey Oswald was solely responsible for the murder, yet, he adds a different twist to the sequence of the shots - dramatically different than the Warren Commission's conclusion. Fuhrman does not think that the Single Bullet Theory works from a geometrical and anatomical point-of-view. Be prepared for detailed analysis in this area. Fuhrman thinks that all three shots fired by Oswald hit an occupant of the limousine and that there was no "missed shot." Fuhrman believes that Kennedy's neck wound occurred at Z-187. Personally, the problem I have with that is that Kennedy shows no signs of distress and actually continues waving at the crowd. Kennedy shows no signs of being injured until he emerges from behind the Stemmons Freeway sign at Z-224. A 2-second delay for a bullet passing through the neck seems a bit extreme, in my opinion. This book would most be appreciated by real students of the assassination because of its technical and detailed analysis. Conspiracy theorists will naturally be disappointed unless they want to gather some good information to refute the Single Bullet Theory. This is more of a forensic crime book than a history book. It is also a very quick read.

25 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Good Read!, May 7, 2006

By 

Tom (Missouri) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Simple Act of Murder: November 22, 1963 (Hardcover)

Got a good laugh from all the negative "I think the hobos on the Grassy Knoll did it" reviewers. I've studied all the evidence for many years and appreciated Fuhrman's clear-eyed look at all the evidence. Modern computer recreations all support the lone gunman theory. I agree that Posner's "Case Closed" was better, but this is worth reading, as well. Sorry, Mulder!!!