Leslie Budewitz - Books, Crooks and Counselors: How to Write Accurately About Criminal Law and Courtroom Procedure

Advance praise for Books, Crooks and Counselors

A mystery writers bible. Clear, concise and infinitely useful a smart, easy-to-understand legal guide for mystery writers that will keep your mystery accurate and your story moving. The ultimate mystery writers handbook!

Laura Childs, New York Times bestselling author of Fiber & Brimstone, Scones & Bones, and The Teaberry Strangler

Need to know what laws your antagonist is trampling? Need a handle on how the legal system responds to his criminal activities? Need to grasp the rhythm of the courtroom? In Books, Crooks and Counselors, Leslie Budewitz takes you into the legal world with the sure hand and knowledge of an insider. If you write crime fiction, you need this book.

D. P. Lyle, MD, Edgar-nominated and Macavity-winning author of Forensics for Dummies, Murder and Mayhem, and Forensics and Fiction

Books, Crooks and Counselors is terrific. It answers all kinds of questions that I had, and, more important, all kinds of questions that I didnt even know I had. Its one of those books that is going to make me look smarter. Id want it even if it werent well-written, which it is. Ive had the same fourteen reference books that stay right on my desk all the time, regardless of what particular book Im working on. From now on there will be fifteen.

Aaron Elkins, Edgar-winning and Agatha-nominated creator of forensic anthropologist Gideon Oliver, the Skeleton Detective, and other mysteries and thrillers

Concise, user-friendly, and geared toward writers, Books, Crooks and Counselors puts everything the crime writer needs to know about using the law in fiction right at handno more hours wasted tracking down experts or sifting through research material. If you write fiction, keep this book close by.

Leann Sweeney, author of the Yellow Rose Mysteries and the Cats in Trouble series

Books, Crooks and Counselors is a must-have resource for writers of any genre that relies on a clear understanding of the judicial system. From common terms and phrases to legal issues in criminal investigations and punishment, its all there in a clear and concise format and easily accessible language. This book sits right next to the dictionary on my bookshelves.

Brenda Novak, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of White Heat, Body Heat, and Killer Heat

Imagine having a private lawyer available 24/7 to answer your every question without hourly fees. Imagine you can slip that lawyer in your pocket to access at your convenience. In Books, Crooks and Counselors, Leslie Budewitz has created a comprehensive, clear resource thats destined to be an essential part of every writers library. With succinct information delivered in a warm, clear manner, Budewitz unravels our legal system and many of its complexities. Books, Crooks and Counselors is a must-have reference for every fiction writer.

Pari Noskin Taichert, two-time Agatha Award nominee and author of the Sasha Solomon mystery series

Leslie Budewitzs new book Books, Crooks and Counselors is destined to become the Bible of legal research for writers. A copy of it on your desk would be like having your very own legal Dream Team at your beck and call.

Lee Lofland, The Graveyard Shift blog, founder of The Writers Police Academy, and author of Police Procedure and Investigation

A lawyer who can explain our confusing legal system so even another lawyer can understand it? And who knows what writers need to know before they even ask? Priceless. I have a law degree and 25 years experience teaching law, and Im in awe of Leslies ability to explain the law without losing the reader in the tangled morass. This book gives plenty of information but not too much. Youll want this close at hand as you write.

Cathy Pickens, President, Sisters in Crime, and author of the Southern Fried Mysteries series

Leslie Budewitzs meticulous research and plain-English explanations of legal and procedural matters make this a welcome reference for any fiction author whose stories involve the law. Mystery writers will find it indispensable, not only as a source of accurate information but also as inspiration for new and different plot developments.

Sandra Parshall, award-winning author of the Rachel Goddard mysteries

Attorney and author Leslie Budewitz has compiled the perfect deskside reference for all genre writers who want to get the details just right. Books, Crooks and Counselors is a guide to the legal world that defines terms, explains procedures and gets into the specifics of culprits, crime and courtrooms. From A to Zarrest through the appeal process with zealous advocacy in betweenthis thorough, yet engagingly written legal manual for writers is an excellent addition to a reference shelf. Topnotch tips for the criminally creative.

Nancy Martin, author of the Blackbird Sisters and Roxy Abruzo mysteries

The perfect resource for any writers desk! Leslie Budewitz has a keen sense of just what a writer needs to know about all things legal. Books, Crooks and Counselors is superb!

Carla Neggers, New York Times bestselling romantic suspense author

If youre not a lawyer and youre writing crime fiction, you need Leslie Budewitzs Books, Crooks and Counselors. Its got everything a writer needs to write about the lawand do it accurately. Ill be consulting it with every new book I write.

Lorna Barrett, New York Times bestselling author of Sentenced to Death and the rest of the Booktown Mysteries

What Leslie Budewitz has created in Books, Crooks and Counselors is an essential tool box for the crime and mystery writer, a veritable hand book of legal procedure, precedent and resource from an insiders perspective within the criminal justice system. Simply put, no serious crime or mystery writer should be without it.

Jeff Boxer, forensic specialist and expert witness

Books, Crooks and Counselors
Copyright 2011 by Leslie Ann Budewitz. All rights reserved.

Published by Quill Driver Books
an imprint of Linden Publishing
2006 South Mary, Fresno, California 93721
559-233-6633 / 800-345-4447
QuillDriverBooks.com

Quill Driver Books and Colophon are trademarks of Linden Publishing, Inc.

ISBN 978-1-610350-19-8
135798642

Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper.

The information in this book is presented for educational purposes only, and is not intended as legal advice.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Budewitz, Leslie.

Budewitz, Leslie.

Books, crooks and counselors : how to write accurately about criminal law and courtroom procedure / Leslie Budewitz.

p. cm.

Summary: Addressing the misunderstood and misrepresented aspects of the law in todays writing, this reliable guidebook demonstrates how to use legal concepts, terminology, and procedure to create fiction that is true to life and crackling with real-world tension. Examples from actual cases are provided along with excerpts of authentic courtroom dialogue. Topics covered include criminal and civil law; differences between federal, state, and Native American jurisdiction; police and private investigation; wills and inheritances; and the written and unwritten codes that govern the public and private conduct of lawyers and judges. Providing a quick and simple legal reference, this handbook is the key to creating innovative plots, strong conflicts, authentic characters, and gritty realism Provided by publisher.