A True Story of a Wrongful Conviction and its Astonishing Aftermath

Bought this at my local book store several ago, and found it to be one of the best true crime stories I've ever read. It's so well written; it just pulled me along from chapter to chapter. There is no question that Avery was wrongly convicted of a rape he did not commit and Michael Griesbach tells the story of what it took to free him in a clear, concise, and fascinating manner. A civics lesson well told.

Griesbach’s direct involvement in exonerating Steven Avery for sexual assault makes him an authority on this twisted and compelling scenario. Though I was not, many will be familiar with the case from the documentary Making a Murderer. Since this was new to me, I was riveted from page one. Avery’s wrongful conviction for attempted rape and murder that kept him locked up for 18 years was overturned when DNA analysis became accessible. But just 4 years after his release, with a pending multi-million dollar lawsuit on the horizon, he was accused of murder when a missing woman’s remains are found on his property.

There are so many issues addressed here in relation to miscarriages of justice. Because the actual perpetrator of the assault Avery was convicted of was not apprehended, another woman was raped. Because Avery was not on parole when he was released from prison, he did not receive the guidance and counseling parolees receive. If he had, would his murder victim still be alive? Because of his violent history and the police investigation’s unwavering determination to prosecute him, they influenced his victim to identify him as the perpetrator. When he was vindicated of this crime, she had to live with unfathomable guilt.

Another reason this book was so captivating was that Griesbach makes complex legal issues accessible to layman readers like me. The narrative, which involves so much legal jargon, was approachable. Besides the overall particularities of the case, it is Griesbach’s personal experiences and perspective that makes this such an intriguing book.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy for review.

This is a hard book to rate because it's made up of two parts, each completely different from the other.

For the first part of the book, which makes up approximately three quarters of the content, it is a well thought out and detailed account of the events, people, and actions surrounding the incarceration of Steven Avery for the rape and attempted murder of Penny Beerntsen.

The second part of the book is a once-over-lightly rehash of some portions of the investigation and trial of Steven Avery for the murder of Teresa Halbech.

If the book had dealt solely with the rape case and it's aftermath up to and including the exoneration it would have been a successful book. As the ADA for Manitowoc County at the time the case evidence for exoneration came through, the author has a unique insight into the case. Although he inserts himself into the text far more than I'd like for a non-fiction true crime account, he provides details and insights that lead to a deeper understanding of the actions, if not the reasons, of the players involved. If it ended at Chapter 25 the rating would be an easy 4 stars.

It appears, and it may indeed be the case, that this book was intended to begin and end with this case, and the latter part of the book was a hasty add-on. It's a pity, because it cheapens the effort of the earlier portion and makes the book uneven in an irritating fashion.

I presume this title has been released again due to the success of Making a Murderer. As such, this book is an interesting counterpoint to the series with the same weighting given to the rape trial as the television series gave to the murder trial.

However, those same viewers will probably be annoyed at the glossing over of the murder trial and the slant it's presented with.

Although the ending dragged the rating for this review down, I did find this book interesting and informative for the most part. It also offers a glimpse of parts of the Avery case that are missing from other accounts, including some of the troubles he was having after his exoneration when he was released after eighteen years with no support services whatsoever.

If you're looking for an accurate and informative account of the Steven Avery and Brendan Dassey murder trials you'll be sorely disappointed, but if you want a thorough and in-depth account of the previous rape trial, this book is a treasure.

This was an okay book. The author is honest, and upfront about potential wrongdoings in reference to Avery's arrest and exoneration for a sexual assault. However, it glosses over this despicable man's acts in his youth, towards so many other victims, animals, his family (and their craziness), and ultimately his brutal, sadistic murder of a beautiful young girl. The author repeatedly mentions Avery as "gentle", or soft spoken.

Ted Bundy was a charmer, but he still was an animal, right?

And the investigation of Halbach was conducted with the utmost attention to the law. Avery has exhausted all motions to prove wrongdoings on law enforcement officials that meticulously investigated this murder. To subtly suggest that he might have killed Halbach because he was angry about the 12 years he spent in jail for rape (six of his 18 years were for ANOTHER assault) is ridiculous.

The former head of the Innocence Project gets in the last word, and blasts his own Project unwittingly by claiming wrongfully convicted persons don't get rehabilitation when let out. If you think about it, why should they need to be counseled to learn new behaviors if they didn't do anything wrong in the first place?

Yes, Avery might have been sent to prison for TWELVE (not 18), for something he didn't do. But in my mind, that is fortunate years that probably spared many other women the same fate.

This book is a ripoff. It contains mostly a repeat of his first book. This man is capitalizing on tragedy along with the others involved in this second frameup of Steven Avery. Griesbach knows Avery did not kill that woman and I'm pretty sure he knows who did kill her, along with the rest of Manitowoc county sheriff's department. But, they wanted to blame the man who was suing them for $36 million and didn't care if they let the real killer go free. They also covered up evidence. They did the same thing to Avery that they did the first time.

I followed the Avery case after viewing"Making a Murderer". I believe this book takes a very balanced description of the events. I would have liked a more in-depth view of the 16year old nephew because it was critical in the outcome. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in our criminal justice system.

It's interesting that Mr. Griesbach's purpose in writing this book was to share some insight into what happened with the Steven Avery case, but then backtracks to not having any involvement in the investigation or prosecution when people pose questions about the inconsistencies in his book with the facts in the record. Either you have personal knowledge of all the facts, or you don't. Describing how eerie the salvage yard felt when he was there is evidence of just that, his feelings. I can appreciate his personal opinion on the case, but to present it as personal knowledge of the facts is irresponsible.

When he starts discussing the Halbach death this author claims that Steven Avery answers his door in a towel and that Teresa "didn't think much of it". Anybody listening should wonder how he knows this. Well, he doesn't. And that is how the rest of the book continues. A bunch of spewing of words with nothing to back it up. I really hoped there would be something presented that would give clout to the prosecution side, but that didn't happen. He really just repeated everything Ken Kratz claimed. He mentions a "horrific crime scene" but doesn't describe it. The rest of the book is like this, just making comments without supporting it. He basically states that it is impossible for law enforcement, or more specifically those involved in this case, to do anything wrong. But he sure does talk about the failures of the state in the first case. In the first case he goes on and on about the failures of the justice system, but then in the second case he implies that the justice system is not flawed. It's weird. I really wanted him to play devils advocate and show me how Steven Avery is guilty. He didn't do that. He really is just repeating what is on file with the state. No educated thoughts of his own, except that he believes everything that is on paper. When Steven is exonerated again, I can't wait to see how this guy writes that book.

So the Calumet and Manitowoc investigators searched Avery's garage multiple times and didn't find the bullet that allegedly killed Teresa Halbach.

Then a whole 4 MONTHS later investigators again searched the garage, (Amazingly with Manitowoc investigator James Lenk allowed inside the garage), and miraculously found this magic bullet. Mind you this bullet only had NON-BLOOD DNA of Teresa on it which could easily be planted by rubbing her toothbrush on the bullet.

On top of that .22 bullets don't exit when fired into a human skull. They rattle around inside the skull. So even if Teresa were killed in the garage the .22 bullet should have been INSIDE her skull. NOT on the garage floor. Clearly planted evidence along with the planted key and blood.

This book was quite fascinating from the perspective that it offered an inside look at the Avery case long before Netflix got hold of the story. For those that are giving it one star - they likely haven't even read it and are just basing their literary opinion on the video they watched. Ironically these are the same people that if Steven Avery was just a nobody out there who lit his cat on fire like he did, these people would have forced him into hiding and attacked every thing about him on social media. But because they watched a movie about the man they are now experts on his character and innocence. And I thought it was going to be hard to top the weirdness of the support Trump gets in the US.

In the beginning, it is relatively decent delve into the case, albeit with a culinary concentration that is rivaled only by Tsutomu Shimomura. Near the end, the author is reduced to quoting Internet comments, and critiquing these in a similarly internet-esque manner, as though that has any real relevance to the case at hand. In the end, the author seems to take whichever side he has assisted in accomplishing to be the correct outcome, and this is left as somewhat of a boast-piece. I imagine the book will sell well in the area in which it takes place, due to the geographical and culinary narratives alone, and I can only think that it must be in every local gift shop, to that end.

In closing, I wonder if corruption can only be seen from afar, at least further afield than it is explored here.

Don't waste your time...Even though the Netflix documentary can be construed as biased, you can't argue that the film makers had nothing to gain from portraying Avery and Dassey in a more innocent light. The issue with this book - apart from the awful prose - he is/was an Asst Prosecutor for Manitowoc County. What is, and always will be, the most important issue raised in this particular story, is the insanity that is the US justice system and its treatment of the 'underclass' as such. Their prejudice is pervasive, unrelenting, and heartbreaking...and don't ever forgot that this man is part of that system.

After watching MaM, I was excited to see this book, coming from someone on this inside. I was even more shocked to find that he was involved in determing innocence and uncovering corruption. Then, we get tonthe Halbach case. This was even more shocking. This part showed me that the original part, and crux of the book, the wrongful conviction, was total misdirection in order to show that no bias existed. Oh, there is bias. The forst part is so detaile, and the second is totally a glosses over event showing only "how could I have been a part of getting him free?" narrative. I'm glad I had a free subscription to audible to hear this calculated detail that does nothing more but prove that Avery and Dassey both deserve new trials. Small town America at it's finest. A sitting prosector who clearly thinks the masses could never hold the intellect of himself. After review of the Facebook page for this book, and his rantings about "keeping an open mind" are clearly derived from a biased Manitowc County official. I truly gave this a shot, and truly gavehis facebook page a shot. These guys could be guilty, but under this system, full of what appears to be Griesbach-type personnel, we'll never know.

In the beginning, it is relatively decent delve into the case, albeit with a culinary concentration that is rivaled only by Tsutomu Shimomura. Near the end, the author is reduced to quoting Internet comments, and critiquing these in a similarly internet-esque manner, as though that has any real relevance to the case at hand. In the end, the author seems to take whichever side he has assisted in accomplishing to be the correct outcome, and this is left as somewhat of a boast-piece. I imagine the book will sell well in the area in which it takes place, due to the geographical and culinary narratives alone, and I can only think that it must be in every local gift shop, to that end.

In closing, I wonder if corruption can only be seen from afar, at least further afield than it is explored here.

Don't waste your time...Even though the Netflix documentary can be construed as biased, you can't argue that the film makers had nothing to gain from portraying Avery and Dassey in a more innocent light. The issue with this book - apart from the awful prose - he is/was an Asst Prosecutor for Manitowoc County. What is, and always will be, the most important issue raised in this particular story, is the insanity that is the US justice system and its treatment of the 'underclass' as such. Their prejudice is pervasive, unrelenting, and heartbreaking...and don't ever forgot that this man is part of that system.

After watching MaM, I was excited to see this book, coming from someone on this inside. I was even more shocked to find that he was involved in determing innocence and uncovering corruption. Then, we get tonthe Halbach case. This was even more shocking. This part showed me that the original part, and crux of the book, the wrongful conviction, was total misdirection in order to show that no bias existed. Oh, there is bias. The forst part is so detaile, and the second is totally a glosses over event showing only "how could I have been a part of getting him free?" narrative. I'm glad I had a free subscription to audible to hear this calculated detail that does nothing more but prove that Avery and Dassey both deserve new trials. Small town America at it's finest. A sitting prosector who clearly thinks the masses could never hold the intellect of himself. After review of the Facebook page for this book, and his rantings about "keeping an open mind" are clearly derived from a biased Manitowc County official. I truly gave this a shot, and truly gavehis facebook page a shot. These guys could be guilty, but under this system, full of what appears to be Griesbach-type personnel, we'll never know.

The author is profiting from an innocent man sent to prison for the second time where he still sits along with his innocent nephew who was only 16 years old when crooked cops and District Attorneys including the author of this book stole his life with lies!

I bought this some time after having watched Making a Murderer. I thought it was a good read. The book is divided into three parts. In the first part the author goes into a lot more detail about the case with Penny Beerntsen. If the documentary didn't already convince you Avery was innocent of this crime, than this book certainly will. It also gives insight into how Denis Vogel managed to prosecute Avery -even though all they had was one bit of evidence (Beerntsen's identification)- by playing on the emotions of the jury and having some employees of the Sherrif's Department lie under oath for him.

The second part is about the aftermath of this case and Avery's exoneration. IIRC it also goes into a bit more detail about Gregory Allen and the crimes he had committed (and how he committed them) and how Vogel knew of him. Interesting stuff.

The third part is all about the Teresa Halbach case. It sheds a very different light on this case compared to Making a Murderer. Buting and Strang are mentioned quite a lot less frequently for example. The author clearly has a certain opinion about Avery, which seems to stem from some of Avery's 1980's crimes. Two in particular. Avery doused a cat in oil and then threw it in a fire to watch it suffer as it died a soundly and horrible death. He also mentions the gunpoint incident multiple times. In MaM Avery says the gun wasn't loaded when he drove his female relative off the road, but on the other hand, he hid the gun in a family members bedroom and when it was found by the police it in fact was loaded. The author seems convinced that Avery was up to something evil. Perhaps rape, because Avery spied on her with binoculars and masturbated publically while watching her. The author didn't convince me, and seems to leave out a lot of "counters" by Strang and Buting, such as there being only Avery DNA on Halbachs car keys. Nor does he spent much time on how spear headed the case was, there being no Halbach DNA anywhere on Avery's property except on the "magic" bullet and Dasseys confessions. It would've been a more interesting read to see how the author, a lawyer himself and one who does believe in Avery's guilt, would have to say about these counters. The third part is not as detailed as the first two and it was by no means an eye-opener or a part that learns you anything new. This doesn't make this part bad though. It was fun to read a different view, but it just wasn't convincing.

Nonetheless, if you were left wanting more after watching MaM, I really recommend this book! A great read! All three parts!

Having had two crime writers and lawyers debating the Steven Avery case recently on my blog and having watched the controversial “Making a Murderer” documentary on Netflix, I was very interested to read this book and get another insight.

It should be noted that this book concentrates for the most part on the original wrongful rape conviction and only slightly on the later murder case – so if you are hoping for more on the case featured in MAM then this will not necessarily satisfy although there are some thoughts on that in here.

I found this fascinating – the original conviction, whilst touched upon in the documentary, is looked at in a lot more detail in “The Innocent Killer” – as such, this is a great companion read to the show and to the many social media discussions going on in the wake of the latest developments.

Michael Griesbach, the writer,is a prosecuting attorney for the Manitowac County Prosecutor’s Office which makes things interesting and he puts his points across well and in a highly informative lay fashion which helps garner understanding of the real issues behind this case. There are points raised that you may not have heard before and overall it was a very engaging read.

I’m not sure it adds that much to the discussion but it does give pause for thought on some of the issues and it is entirely successful in making you give due consideration to any original feelings you may have had after watching the show. In that respect I would definitely recommend it. I would also recommend it if you like true crime and especially if you are reading to hear different viewpoints and opinions.

**Netgalley Copy UK**

Book: The Innocent Killer: A True Story of a Wrongful Conviction and Its Astonishing Aftermath

Author: Michael Griesbach

Release date (if applicable): Published

Synopsis: Steven Avery was convicted of a horrible rape even though he had an alibi. An innocent man who spent 18 years in jail. for a crime he didn't commit. Two years after he was released and ready to claim millions of dollars for his false conviction, he is arrested for the brutal murder of a missing journalist. Did he do it or was he a victim of a justice system gone wrong?

My rating: 4 Stars

My opinion: Creepy and horrific in its own way. Sometimes the old saying that truth is stranger than fiction is true. This story is living proof. Living in the area, never heard of this case.

With the good comes the criticism. This book did have drawbacks. Periods of it were very dryly written, particularly the court room scenes. It is critical since these tend to flow well as just the nature of the beast is that court room scenes are dry. I tend to see this in books written by attorneys and Mr. Griesbach is a former prosecutor.

A second criticism is that the book had periods of being too wordy and "overwritten". It felt as though he was going too deep into the weeds. This made it a much longer read to me.

Had the author developed these areas in a more concise manner, yet engaging manner, this book easily would have been a five star read for me.

Source: Publisher for Review

Would I recommend? : Yes, I have. It is a very important story.

Stand Alone or Part of a Series: Stand Alone

Disappointing. Read it up till the end, expecting outrage at the conviction, the author even knowing that there was NO blood found anywhere in Avery's room, the history of the police railroading him, he STILL thought he was guilty? He should've thought, as many did later, IF he did it, why didn't Avery crush the car, the evidence that led to him being charged?? He didn't crush it cause he didn't know the police planted it!!

He states he is good friends with Lenk and Colborn so therefore he knows the cops didn't plant anything. There is no insight or investigation. Just they are my buds = Steven and Brendan are guilty. He also repeats himself a lots. There is also a ton of fluff about him and his wife. Not recommended.

If you are curious about purchasing this book, DO NOT DO SO. If you would like to see how misguiding and untrue this book is, just see for your own eyes on facebook. search for "the innocent killer" from the facebook search bar. Make sure and read all the comments on all the posts and Michael Griesbach's responses. This book is NOT a true crime book, it is based on misleading false facts. Also this book shows how grossly unethical Michael Griesbach is as he has worked for Manitowoc County since 1991, The same Manitowoc county that wronged Steven Avery from 1985-2003 and is now capitalizing on his own departments notoriety.

The author's bio explains it perhaps:
"Michael Griesbach is a veteran prosecutor in the state of Wisconsin where the events recounted in his book occurred."
This book is nothing but a biased attempt to profit off the high emotions around Steven Avery's case.
Griesbach, greasebag, hardly "challenges" the system. He applauds and defends it.
WASTE OF MONEY and TIME. I won't waste another second except after this warning: Do not waste your money here.

READ THIS REVIEW - PROOF MICHAEL GRIESBACH PUBLISHED MISLEADING FALSE FACTS!
If you are curious about purchasing this book, DO NOT DO SO. If you would like to see how misguiding and untrue this book is, just see for your own eyes on facebook. search for "the innocent killer" from the facebook search bar. Make sure and read all the comments on all the posts and Michael Griesbach's responses. This book is NOT a true crime book, it is based on misleading false facts. Also this book shows how grossly unethical Michael Griesbach is as he has worked for Manitowoc County since 1991, The same Manitowoc county that wronged Steven Avery from 1985-2003 and is now capitalizing on his own departments notoriety.

Full of conjecture that was never confirmed this author attempts to make money and a name of one of the US's biggest miscarriages of justice - and not in a clever way. Perhaps he should write Mills and Boons where fantasy is welcomed, but in the pursuit of true justice his account further soldifies the abbhorrent disregard for the truth that was evident with all members of the LE involved in the wrongful convictions of Brendan Dassey and Steven Avery

I read this after watching 'Making a murderer' thinking it would be interesting and full of factual information. Do not waste your money. The first half is interesting but the second half is just the authors bias account of Steven Avery's guilt based on nothing but his own seemingly dislike for Steven Avery. Comes across as just another one trying to make money on the back of Teresa Halbach's murder. The author has done himself no favours, the second half is rushed, badly written and gives a very poor account of the facts.

MISLEADING TITLE
This author thinks Steven Avery and Brendan Dassey are guilty of the murder of Teresa Halbach.
Only he first half of this book has any truth in it, when he was SET UP by the sheriff's office and convicted of rape and 18 years later exonerated through a DNA test.
He has titled this book to deceive people into thinking the book is about Steven Avery being innocent of a murder. This author thinks he's guilty

The author does make some pretty grand statements in the book as if this is first hand knowledge that he possess. This book was horrible to read and i would not recommend this book to anyone. Michael Griesbach thinks that just taking a stance on the other side of the guilty/not guilty line makes him some sort of martyr. He is not a professional or proficient in anything that he writes about and was just hoping to snag some easy money from the huge popularity of this documentary. Just calling the book the innocent killer implies that when writing he had already found Steven Avery guilty in his head the way the rest of the Manitowoc County drones and ignorant bureaucrats. There is missing truth in the Teresa Halbach case and Ken Kratz knows what it is and who it is. We all know that Micheal Halbach, who works for the Green Bay Packers had something to do with the cover up. DEFINITELY DO NOT READ THIS BOOK.

MISLEADING TITLE
This author thinks Steven Avery and Brendan Dassey are guilty of the murder of Teresa Halbach.
Only he first half of this book has any truth in it, when he was SET UP by the sheriff's office and convicted of rape and 18 years later exonerated through a DNA test.
He has titled this book to deceive people into thinking the book is about Steven Avery being innocent of a murder. This author thinks he's guilty

The author does make some pretty grand statements in the book as if this is first hand knowledge that he possess. This book was horrible to read and i would not recommend this book to anyone. Michael Griesbach thinks that just taking a stance on the other side of the guilty/not guilty line makes him some sort of martyr. He is not a professional or proficient in anything that he writes about and was just hoping to snag some easy money from the huge popularity of this documentary. Just calling the book the innocent killer implies that when writing he had already found Steven Avery guilty in his head the way the rest of the Manitowoc County drones and ignorant bureaucrats. There is missing truth in the Teresa Halbach case and Ken Kratz knows what it is and who it is. We all know that Micheal Halbach, who works for the Green Bay Packers had something to do with the cover up. DEFINITELY DO NOT READ THIS BOOK.

this book is so bias. What does steven Avery smell have to do with anything. You have so many lies in this book that is is not even funny. I think you should go read transcripts and get your information straight.

No doubt the author is out to leverage the Netflix success but he falls short on credibility page 282 references a set of keys found in bedroom!!!
Steven Avery may be a wackadoodle and made some stupid choices and done some stupid things. That doesn't make him a murderer and it certainly doesn't provide authorities an excuse to lock him up and pin something on him b/c they THINK he's an abvious choice. We are not 100% convinced that Teresa's last stop was in fact the Avery's. Listen to this [...]

This book does NOT tell the truth period. It clears nothing that was brought up in the aftermath of TH's murder. I myself do not know if he did it but I do know the Police and Prosecuting office lied, made up evidence and that alone is why he can not be found guilty in a "true" house of justice!

DO NOT BUY THIS BOOK! MICHAEL GRIESBACH IS PART OF THE PROSECUTION AND WAS ONE OF THE PROSECUTORS THAT PUT STEVEN AVERY AWAY FOR LIFE! YOU BUY THIS BOOK, YOU ARE JUST LINING THE POCKETS OF THOSE WHO PUT STEVEN & BRENDON AWAY! THIS BOOK IS FITLTH AND ALL UNTRUE, DONT WAIST YOUR TIME!

Wow. I read this book after seeing the documentary on Netflix. I couldn't believe all the lies and CYA this guy does to help out Fat Bastard Ken with his dishonorable persecution of Steve Avery...but then again...he has a vested interest in doing so. Save yourself the money. This book is trash.

This book is full of misinformation and unproven facts. Purely a work of fiction. If your looking for an unbiased opinion on this trial, don't go to a Manitowoc prosecutor looking to make a buck. Because that's all Michael Griesba check is doing here.