Reasonable Doubt: A Shocking Story of Lust and Murder in the American Heartland (1)

"A mother and her three young children are found hacked to death in their beds. The apparent weapons, an ax and butcher knife, are found nearby. A month later the husband and father, who was away on a business trip when the bodies were found, is accused of the killings. Police believe he methodically murdered his wife and children before he left. But why? A successful businessman and devoted member of a fundamentalist religious group, David Hendricks has the total support of his extended family. Police paint a darker picture, and prosecutors face the daunting task of convicting him on a case based on completely circumstantial evidence. A New York Times best-seller, this book has now been updated with additional content and photos. Readers often comment they must continually remind themselves that this story is real, that Reasonable Doubt is testament to the fact truth is stranger than fiction. The book has also been used in college-level criminal justice courses to explain and illustrate the legal concept of reasonable doubt"--Amazon.com. "Got a problem down here." Bloomington, Illinois, police officer Hibbens didn't sound like himself. His voice cracked. "There's something you ought to see." The scene awaiting the other policemen as they entered the charming suburban house at 313 Carl Drive was one they would never forget. Three children and their mother lay hacked to death in their beds, their sheets and walls soaked in blood. A butcher knife and an axe lay nearby. There appeared to be no physical evidence, and the detective at first suspected a bungled robbery. But as the police sifted clues and questioned friends an family members, an appalling possibility presented itself: Could David Hendricks, the grief-stricken father, away on a business trip, have methodically killed his wife and children before he left? And why would a successful businessman and devoted member of a fundamentalist religious group want his family eliminated? The prosecution painted a darker picture of David Hendricks... Convicted by his first jury, awarded a new trial, a second jury has now concluded that David Hendricks had not been proven guilty--beyond a reasonable doubt. A mother and her three young children are found murdered in their beds. The apparent weapons, an ax and butcher knife, lay nearby. A month later the husband and father, who was away on a business trip when the bodies were found, is accused of the killings and faces trial on a case based on completely circumstantial evidence. A New York Times best Susan Hendricks and her three children were found murdered in their Bloomington, Illinois, home on November 8, 1983. Over the following months, investigators built up a case against David Hendricks, Susan's husband, claiming he had a string of affairs and wanted to be free from the responsibility of his wife and children.