NOVELLA, set several years after PRESUMPTION OF INNOCENCE.A woman is brutally murdered, and it's district attorney Dave Brunelle's job to put the killer away. The defendant fled barefoot, abandoning her shoes in the pool of blood under the victim. It looks like an open-and-shut case, but Brunelle should know better. If he doesn't figure out the truth--and fast--it's his blood that might be spilled next.

THE PROBLEM WITH FIGHTING THE SYSTEM IS THAT THE SYSTEM FIGHTS BACKKarim Jackson, college student and social justice activist, joins a protest at a newly completed private jail in downtown Tacoma, Washington. When the director of the jail comes out to confront the protesters, a physical altercation ensues. The director ends up on the ground with a fatal headwound, and Karim ends up arrested for his murder.Talon Winter defends Karim against the murder charges, struggling to convince the prosecutor that Karim didn't actually cause the death and in any event was acting in self-defense. But the prosecutor isn't going to cut a deal for someone accused of killing one of their own. When Talon gets too close to the truth, a third lawyer jumps in-a partner from her old civil firm representing the private jail company.Talon battles both the power of the government and the corporate prison complex to save a man from losing his freedom for a crime he didn't commit.

Homicide prosecutor David Brunelle faces the most difficult case of his career. An innocent young girl is murdered in a heinous, unforgivable way. The only evidence against the killer is the full confession of his accomplice--another young girl he also victimized. But the accomplice is charged with the murder as well, which means she has the right to remain silent. And she's so scared of the killer, she refuses to take a deal to testify against him. Brunelle can't just let the murderer walk, but how can he get a conviction when he has no admissible evidence and the killer is protected by the PRESUMPTION OF INNOCENCE?ReviewPenner is at least on par with John Grisham regarding accuracy of the rules of evidence in a criminal trial and trial procedure. Penner comes out ahead, in my opinion, in that he doesn't misstate legal rules for dramatic effect the way Grisham sometimes does. -Amazon Reader ReviewI just finished The Brass Verdict by Michael Connelly and Connelly's courtroom scenes and legal procedure pale compared to Penner's book. Penner's writing is approaching the driving, got-to-keep-reading style of Connelly's. This is an excellent and fun book. -Amazon Reader ReviewI really enjoyed this novel. It has everything I look for in a legal thriller: a character I can cheer for, some humor, some suspense, court room surprises, legal strategies, cross examinations, and an unexpected witness. The character of David Brunelle is very well written. I loved it! -Amazon Reader Review