Murder most malign, this is a description that Mat Murphy, former homicide prosecutor of the Orange County District Attorney’s Office, would say about the cases he dealt with. The book takes the reader thought the stories of death and the hurdles that the prosecutor and his office undergo in pursuing punishment for the criminals. Unfortunately there is little to say about love, except for the attorney’s juvenile occasional disappointments.
Much more detail is devoted to the despicable deeds done by the unconscionable criminals. The gruesome specifics of the bloody murders are repeatedly retold in every case described whether the crime was for avarice, domestic violence, sexual predation, or any other form of homicide. Repeatedly emphasized are the problems the district attorney must surmount in order to prosecute a case which may take years. He laments the distress that these delays cause the victim’s families and loved ones.
For those who enjoy reading sadistic criminal stories, these crime narratives will appeal to them. There is much hackneyed text in the story describing all the good guys the author works with and repetition of much that has already been said.
