The Strange Death of Vincent Foster [Hardcover]

Christopher Ruddy (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1997

When Vincent W. Foster, White House deputy counsel and confidant of President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, was found dead in Fort Marcy Park in July 1993, the "official" explanation was suicide. Now journalist Christopher Ruddy reveals materials suggesting a flawed FBI investigation and possible cover-up -- implying a very different end for Foster.

Backing up his claims with extensive first-person research, Ruddy chronicles the FBI's bungled investigation of the death -- from failure to use standard procedures, to misplaced and incompetently handled evidence -- and he reports on the frenzied activity in the White House only hours after Foster's death, indicating that President Clinton's staff knew about the situation earlier than previously claimed. In daring to ask the right questions and to find the answers in this deeply disturbing case, Ruddy demands that Vince Foster's "suicide" be reexamined by criminal investigators.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Ever since the night that deputy White House counselor Vincent Foster was found dead in a Washington, D.C., park, conspiracy theories about his death have abounded. Everyone from evangelist Jerry Falwell to talk-show host Rush Limbaugh has weighed in with his or her own version of events: Foster was murdered; his body was moved; the investigation into his death became a giant cover-up. Christopher Ruddy, a reporter for the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, a paper owned by conservative Richard Scaife, has entered the fray with The Strange Death of Vincent Foster.

As Ruddy goes over the evidence, it becomes increasingly clear that the initial investigative work by the park police and the FBI was mishandled--evidence was poorly collected and documented, the autopsy was hardly comprehensive, and eyewitness accounts differed drastically. In addition, the role of White House counsel Bernard Nussbaum in obstructing the police search of Foster's office and belongings was undoubtedly out of line. Do shoddy police work and overzealous political posturing add up to a vast governmental conspiracy? Ruddy suggests they do; readers of The Strange Death of Vincent Foster may or may not reach the same conclusion.

Review

Ruddy argues that his doubts do not require him to posit some vast conspiracy of silence.... At the same time Ruddy clearly believes that something dastardly happened, and he cannot stop dark hints from leaking out. "If," he writes on page 1, Vince Foster "had been killed ... " If Ruddy didn't want to make such an Oliver Stone argument, even hypothetically, he should have left his rhetorical teasers on the cutting-room floor. -- The New York Times Book Review, Richard Brookhiser

William Sessions Former director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Christopher Ruddy has detailed a significant array of fact and issues involving the death of Mr. Foster. His work is serious and compelling. While enduring great criticism, he has tenaciously argued a persuasive case that the American public has not been told the complete facts of this case.
Mr. Ruddy has carefully avoided drawing undue inferences about the death. His reporting raises serious concerns about the handling of the Foster case. It is legitimate to question the process employed by authorities to make their conclusions. -- Review

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Free Press; Spine Lean edition (October 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684838370
• ISBN-13: 978-0684838373
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #448,807 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 43 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ruddy's book brings out the facts, November 30, 1997

By 

Guy DuBlanc (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Strange Death of Vincent Foster (Hardcover)

Christopher Ruddy has written a well-documented account of a very disturbing incident. You will no doubt be amazed at some of the facts that he mentions.

For instance, Foster's eyeglasses were found about 20 feet from his body. Sounds logical: he must have thrown them before the suicide. But actually, the glasses had gunpowder residue on them.

It was also claimed that Foster walked through Fort Marcy Park, which consists of a dirt path. Of course, no dirt or grass stains were found on Foster's shoes.

The Park Police searched Foster at the scene and found no keys on him. But his 1989 Honda was parked there. Later, at the morgue, not one but TWO sets of keys were found on Foster. A nurse there said that Messrs. Livingstone and Kennedy arrived before the Police to identify the body.

Or the gun. When Foster's wife was shown the gun, she said she didn't recognize it.

I could go on and on. Read this book and find out the truth. It's an excellent piece of work.

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Disgusted, May 10, 2001

By 

G. Crenshaw (IA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Strange Death of Vincent Foster (Hardcover)

There is a reason why this book is so hard to find...there are people who dont want this information out there. I was glued to this book until I was finished. I always felt as if the story that the news media and the government gave us was acceptable until I read this book!

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I not a Republican, but I still believe Ruddy, September 2, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Strange Death of Vincent Foster (Hardcover)

Yes, it is true, Ruddy is "associated" with Right Wing "elements," and this has brought on the ire of The Democratic Party, and especially that funny-talkin' bald headed guy from Louisiana. But even if only 10% of the dozens of discrepencies detailed by Ruddy are true, the American public should clamor for a full-scale investigation. Like the "Zodiac" killings in California, there are too many things that 'just don't add up.'