A Horrible Crime. A Shocking Conviction.
Review by Kim Cantrell
When David Hendricks couldn’t reach his wife by phone, he hurriedly returned home from a business trip in Wisconsin.
He would be too late.
On this night in 1983, a horrendous crime would change the sleepy community of Bloomington, Illinois.
As Susan Hendricks and her children slept, someone viciously murdered them with an ax.
David, of course, was the first suspect.
And it seems he would remain their ONLY suspect.
It didn’t matter that the police only had only one piece of highly debately evidence, they charged David with the crime.
The events that follow will leave readers shocked and amazed.
While David Hendricks’ story is one worth telling, Steve Vogel does a pitiful job of doing it in his 1992 book Reasonable Doubt.
The majority of this book is copied straight from the Court records, which I absolutely despise since I’m looking for a story to avoid the mundanity of transcripts.
Yet I will give kudos and applause to Vogel for his ability to remain as neutral as possible in the parts he did actually write.
It’s difficult to say I recommend this book. On one hand, it’s boring but, on the other, I think everyone should read about the Hendricks case.
So, I guess what I am really trying to say is this: buy it used at a very cheap price, be prepared to do some skimming, and look at the overall story, not just the writing.
Updates on David Hendricks:
Shortly after his release in the early 1990s, David and his second wife divorced.
Today, he married to his third wife and lives in Orlando, Florida, where he owns and operates HOPE Orthopedic.
