Bloodsworth

The true crime story of Kirk Bloodsworth, the first death row inmate exonerated by DNA evidence—perfect for fans of Serial and Making a Murderer.

“Chilling, heartbreaking, and ultimately inspiring. I urge you to read it.” —Sister Helen Prejean, author of Dead Man WalkingAtlanta Journal Constitution, Best Nonfiction of the Year

Christian Science Monitor, Noteworthy Nonfiction of the Year

Charged with the rape and murder of a nine-year-old girl in 1984, Bloodsworth was tried, convicted, and sentenced to die in Maryland's gas chamber. From the beginning, he proclaimed his innocence, but when he was granted a new trial because his prosecutors improperly withheld evidence, the second trial also resulted in conviction.

Bloodsworth read every book on criminal law in the prison library and persuaded a new lawyer to petition for the then-innovative DNA testing. After nine years in one of the harshest prisons in America, Bloodsworth was vindicated by DNA evidence.

Intense and hard-hitting, Bloodsworth is the story of a man's tireless fight against a justice system that failed him.

“The reader will be swept along to an amazing and shocking conclusion that could never be believed as fiction.” —Joseph Wabaugh, author of The New Centurions

“Unbroken by the horror and anguish of his ordeal, [Kirk Bloodsworth] has now dedicated himself to saving other innocents from the living hell he endured.” —Senator Patrick Leahy, ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee