A Trail of Corn: A True Mystery

Sure, I hypothesized a little and related what Burton Abbott was thinking. But what he thought wasn't entirely made up. He told his family how he felt, and they related it to me. I think the thoughts expressed in the book were close to the truth. It's still a true story. Book too long? I purposely made it detailed and brought out every little point and possibility because I wanted to give the reader every opportunity to make up his or her mind as to whether Abbott was guilty or innocent. Any of those details could have changed the reader's judgement. Some, of course, were untrue or unrelated--but they might have been. It was not for me to judge or censor them. The book was about a mystery--a controversial one--and it takes some intellectual thinking to separate out the details, especially at first. It's not for lazy skimming, but for digging for the true facts. The effort is worth it. The ingredients are there. The experience did strike Abbott's mother deeply, and she did vacillate between grieving victim and fighting warrior. She had some good ideas, and some of the ideas she expressed proved invaluable. It is true that sometimes defendants get a raw deal from prosecutors or judges. This is partly because the prosecution sometimes reaches biased conclusions, and believes the defendant is guilty and must be punished. Or it may be that the prosecutors are fighting a game to win, and refuse to acknowledge that there may be truth in the defendant's interest. Their eyes may be blinded to anything except what helps convict the prisoner, and they are good at it! Or, the evidence may be close and could go either way. After 30 years of investigation, I came to the conclusion that Burton Abbott couldn't have done it. He wasn't there when the girl was kidnapped, but far north near Red Bluff on his way to the family cabin. Key testimony from very valuable, competent and sincere witnesses who did not know him, without an axe to grind, placed him there. But the district attorney and judge kept out this testimony, which would have been damaging to the prosecution case, and the jury never heard it.

A truly unbelievable book !!! This case has always fascinated me. Keith Walker does an amazing job of exploring the truths of this case, and leaves the reader amazed. Not to mention an inside look at our deplorabel justice system in the 1950's.

The mid-fifties murder of 12-year-old Stephanie Bryant in Berkeley, California, fascinated me at the time -- I was also 12 and had been born in Berkeley. From newspapers of the time, I simply did not believe Burton Abbott could have committed the crime. This well-researched book finally provides some other possibilities and brings that early case back into the limelight. Very much worth a read.

Knowing the conclusion of this sensational murder trial of the fifties doesn't diminish the mystery and intrigue of this true murder case. An investigative reporter at the time, the author spent thirty five years researching this compelling work.