Trials Books

Ably and engagingly written lawyer and Shakespeare scholar Craig Bernthal, The Trial Of Man: Christianity And Judgment In The World Of Shakespeare is a close and innovative study of how the classic playwright used trials or scenes in which a character is thrust under the harsh light of judgment to form a pivotal dramatic focus. Examining trial and judgment scenes in The Merchant of Venice, Hamlet, Measure for Measure, The Tempest, Henry VIII and others, The Trial Of Man provides a welcome, original, and in depth view of a multifaceted aspect of the great bard's work. The Trial Of Man is a welcome and much appreciated contribution to the growing library of Shakespearean Studies.

For a short book (177 pages) it sure contains a lot of action. So many unexpected events that I never even dreamed would happen.
This book made me really think about my children and what is really going on around the local schools. I now look around when I drive by a school or Recreational center and parks, just wondering if any of the people hanging around could be a drug dealer. I am also wondering if my child or my friends children know these kinds of people. I pray they don't!
I also understand there is a music CD that goes with this book, if anyone knows how to get this I would love to find out.
I am also happy to see Mr Wolford dedicated this book to the actor Carroll O'Connor, who tried to fight the drug problem.

This book is very informative and well-written. it tells all the main points of the life of the famous Greek philosopher, but concentrates on his trial, where he was accused of corrupting the morals of the young people. This is great material for student report writing.

I used this book in a unit teaching on fractured fairy tales. I had my students follow the story of the Big Bad Wolf and the Three Little Pigs. They loved the trial as depicted in this story. It certainly helped free up their minds to write their own alternative ending to the trial. I highly recommend this book for any teacher trying to teach a creative writing lesson

We hear this year of war all but forgotten the death of those martyrs of forty years ago, all slain violently, all who spoke strongly for peace and against our imperialist warfaring: King, Kennedy, Merton and the rest.

In May of 1968, after King and Bobby were killed with clear government complicity for opposing the war and proposing peace and justice and equality, some courageous Catholic priests arose to live our faith no matter what the consequences, to speak out for morality in the face of brutal inhumane total war which as we always do left little children burning in their beds, and starving in their streets, as we directly and diametrically opposed the direct instructions of our Christian Faith.

Here in this sacred text published by Beacon in 1970 we have a reading from the courtroom transcripts of their trial. This is also available a VHS tape at Trial of Catonsville Nine but no DVD, unfortunately.

We may distract ourselves noting how very poorly they were represented in court, particularly in the defense attorney's closing statement. We may in fact notice how the prosecution's closing was more eloquent in their defense, calling their actions reasonable and just. But mainly let us learn the theology of these actions and these true witnesses for our Faith, who upon the last day will be called forth with the words: Well Done, Good and Faithful Servant!

The prosecution concludes: "The government quite candidly admits that the position these defendants took is reasonable - as to the fact that the war is illegal, that it is immoral, that it is against religious principles (p. 100)."

Not all those who cry Lord, Lord will enter the Reign of God, but those who have kept the Word alive, to Love, not to burn babies in their beds.

In fact Father Daniel Berrigan, SJ, makes this specific point concerning our Living Faith in God's Love and Peace: "I believe that no tradition can remain a mere dead inheritance. It is a living inheritance which we must consider to offer to the living (p. 115)."

Upon that page we find the judge's own words which alone must move us to act now today: "If the President has not obeyed the law, there is very little that can be done."

This presently appointed president has consistently disobeyed the law, from before his disputed elections through his entire eight year regime, and alters the law to submit us to his will, defying international treaties, covenants and conventions, including the Geneva and the International Court of Justice, and Kyoto, and he signs bills into law with accompanying statements saying he will not obey them. There is much we must now do, for peace, for justice, for morality, for decency, for our Faith.

Very hard it is to share with you here from this deep and sweet well of Catholic prophetic witness the living water which strengthens and calls us to Catholic action, especially now in this darkened day of illegal and endless and profitable war. Read this book, entirely, repeatedly.

Read as well the inexorable development of the thought and prayer of the blessed Roman Catholic Priest, the Reverend Father Andrew Greeley in A Stupid, Unjust, and Criminal War: Iraq, 2001-2007.

Meditate for a moment now this eloquently prophetic Catholic testimony by the courageous Father Daniel Berrigan, typical of the many strong words written in this sacred text, nourishment now for our lectio divina, including the testimony of his great and strong brother Phillip; hear these few words and see what they tell you as a practicing Catholic to do this day, today, and always:

"The time is past when good men may be silent, when obedience can segregate men from public risk, when the poor can die without defense. How many indeed must die before our voices are heard; how many must be tortured dislocated starved maddened? How long must the world's resources be raped in the service of legalized murder? When at what point will you say no to this war? We have chosen to say with the gift of liberty if necessary our lives: the violence stops here; the death stops here; the suppression of the truth stops here; the war stops here. Redeem the times! The times are inexpressibly evil. Christians pay conscious indeed religious tribute to Caesar and Mars by the approval of overkill tactics, by brinkmanship, by nuclear liturgies, by racism, by support of genocide. They embrace their society with all their hearts and abandon the Cross. They pay lip service to Christ and military service to the powers of death. ( . . .) In a time of death some men, the resisters, those who work hardily for social change, those who preach and embrace the truth, such men overcome death. Their lives are bathed in the light of the Resurrection. The Truth has set them free. In the jaws of death they proclaim their love of the brethren. We think of such men in the world, in our nation, in the churches, and the stone in our breast is dissolved. We take heart once more (pp. 94 - 95)."

Dare take heart once more. Read in prayer this good and holy book. Work for the reign of God and His just peace. Read also the stirring exegetical writings by Father Berrigan, in particular his Job: And Death No Dominion, Jeremiah: The World, the Wound of God, Isaiah: Spirit of Courage, Gift of Tears, Ezekiel: Vision in the Dust and the rest, including Night Flight to Hanoi: Daniel Berrigan's War Diary with 11 poems and The Dark Night of Resistance (Daniel Berrigan Reprint).

Read his brother Jesuit priest, the Reverend Father John Dear, in particular taking courageously and faithfully his Disarming the Heart: Toward a Vow of Nonviolence. We Catholics are a pacifist people, like Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Fear no more but work for peace, now. His Holiness Pope Paul VI altered for us Catholics the ancient warrior and Imperial statement when he declared: If you want peace, work for justice.

"Defense: Was your action at Catonsville a way of carrying out your religious beliefs?
Daniel Berrigan: Of course it was (p. 83)."

May 17 of this year marks the fortieth anniversary of this religious action. Time to act once more for peace, in peace, with Love. Pax vobiscum.

It is 36 years, 11 months, and 1 day since the end of the 1960s. But look out mama, this little book is starting to have the look of a classic.

The act-up Berrigans, Fr. Dan and Fr. Phil, were irritating as hell, really. The eventually p.o'd about everybody, especially their own radical allies. A sometimes interesting poet, Dan was the aesthete and the brooder, Phil the charismatic doer, pushing the edge. Dan's many books almost always lie in the DMZ between propaganda and art, as does this short play for performance. Such DMZs were trademark of the era: non-fiction "novels", street theatre, etc. Most long gone with the wind -- justifiably. Including likely 90% of the Berrigans' antics, ludicrous politics and bogus theology by the dumpster full.

But guess what? Take a look. Dan ran the race, so to speak. His life ethic was consistent -- denouncing abortion, ministering to dying AIDs patients, giving Israel no comfort for its war machine, either. Indeed of left wing Catholic activists and troublemakers, he is about alone in this consistency as to the so-called "seamless garment" theology. So what, then, about certain perishable opinions relating mostly to the secular sphere, personality issues, and the aesthetics of the Berrigans' essential message about man's new monstrous potential for worldwide destruction. Does God have good taste, like Charley Tuna? Or does He even taste good? John of the Apocalypse didn't find Him so . . . something about bitter in the belly, if you may recall. And they didn't like Jonas either.

This document, taken from the trial transcripts about why 9 Catholic anti-Vietnam war activists burned draft documents and went to jail, is as close to art as Dan ever got. It will do. The 9 speak for themselves, like them or not. It retains freshness, with all odds heavily stacked against it.

It doesn't take much to last, John Berryman observed 50 years after Stephen Crane's death. The Red Badge was enough. So I suspect is this.

Finally, an unbiased look at the Trial of the Century. The authors managed to keep from using the race card, innuendos, and Hollywood hype to tell just the facts. This book gives the reader a honest look into that fateful night.

Without a doubt, Schmalleger's "Trial of the Century: People of the State of California vs. Orenthal James Simpson" is the best book ever written about this trial. Two essential points must be made.

First, the intended audience of this monograph is criminal justice students. Schmalleger thought that students could learn court and legal concepts by employing the Simpson trial. This is a brilliant strategy. For example, students will learn and will not forget concepts such as "evidence," "direct evidence" and "circumstantial evidence."

Second, when one is finished reading this book, one will understand why OJ was found not guilty. The reason is simple, but not obvious. Much of the book includes court transcripts. We actually read the exact words of the lawyers and the judge. This is the real eye-opener. OJ did NOT win because of the "race card." He won because his lawyers (F. Lee Bailey, Johnnie Cochran, Robert Shapiro, Alan Derchowitz, Carl Douglas, Peter Neufeld, Barry Scheck, and Gerald Uelmen) were much more competent than the prosecutors (Gill Garcetti, Marcia Clark, Christopher Darden, and Hank Goldberg).

Reading the transcript is much better than hearing the words. With the written word, the reader has an opportunity to analyze the sentence structure and understand the power of the words being used. Simply stated the defense were better orators than the prosecutors. The defense had command of the English language and the prosecutors did not.

My conclusion from reading this book: If OJ had an all white OBJECTIVE jury, he would have been acquitted. It was not the evidence; it was the manner in which the evidence was presented. Evidence was presented within the context of the spoken word and the prosecutors -- particularly Christopher Darden and Marcia Clark -- were seriously lacking.

There are many other books written about the OJ Trial. These include "Without a Doubt" by Marcia Clark and "In Contempt" by Christopher Darden. The central theme of these publications is "blaming." Neither Clark nor Darden would take responsibility for their incompetence as prosecutors.

Another book by Vincent Bugliosi is entitled "Outrage: The Five Reasons Why O.J. Simpson Got Away With Murder." Bugliosi also includes transcript pieces, but interjects his opinion. Schmalleger has an opinion but does NOT share it with the reader. He forces the reader to come to his or her own conclusion: OJ didn't win, Clark and Darden lost.

This volume includes some choice statements made by Hans Frank, who was the Butcher of Poland, responsible for the deaths of millions of Jews and Poles. By way of description, "In 1939, he [Frank] was the man who for a long time past had been corrupting the German legal concept, to whom Hitler personally entrusted the fate of subjugated Poland. Frank arrived in Poland to realize practically his entire program for the enslavement and extermination of the people on the territory of a country with an age-old history and with its own culture of high standing." (p. 605).

The following aptly summarizes the nearly six-year German occupation of Poland: "The extent of the slaughter in Poland alone was indicated by Frank, who reported, and I quote: 'If I wanted to have a poster put up for every seven Poles who were shot, the forests of Poland would not sufffice for producing the paper for such posters.'(2032-PS)' (p. 404).

The extermination of the Jews is widely known. But extermination was also planned against the Poles, albeit as a long-term project that was to be mostly deferred until after the war: "In 1944, at the meeting of the agricultural leaders at Zakopane, Frank said, 'If we win the war, then, as far as I care, we could make mincemeat of the Poles and Ukrainians and of all those who are idling around...then come what may." (p. 607).

In the end, Frank does exhibit what appears to be some degree of contrition for his crimes: "From your records it is clear that the concentration camps were the first and worst weapon of Nazi oppression used by the National Socialist State, and that they were the primary means utilized for the persecution of the Christian Church and the extermination of the Jewish race. This has been admitted to you by some of the defendants from the witness stand. In the words of Defendant Frank: 'A thousand years will pass and the guilt of Germany will still not be erased.'" (p. 406).

In this volume, the Soviets are quoted as trying to affix the blame for the Katyn massacre unto the Germans (p. 606).

Between 1728 and 1729, the Cambridge Deist, Thomas Woolston (1670-1733) published six discourses on the miracles of Jesus Christ, in which he attempted to show that Jesus' miracles could not have possibly happened. In 1729, Anglican Bishop Thomas Sherlock (1678-1761) set out to answer Woolston's arguments. Having been master of the Inner Temple, Sherlock was familiar with the legal profession, so he literarily placed the Apostles on trial for faking the Resurrection.

In this trial, the barrister representing Woolston uses Woolston's own arguments, while Bishop Sherlock provides the arguments for the Apostles' barrister. In this work, Sherlock did an excellent job of using the opposition's arguments skillfully, and not merely caricaturing them. The dialogue is exciting, and the arguments are quite thought provoking.

Though this book is largely forgotten now, it should rightly be considered a classic of Christian literature. I highly enjoyed reading it, and highly recommend it to everyone. This is an excellent book.