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| The D.A. Draws a Circle | 
 enlarge | Author: Erle Stanley Gardner
Publisher: Pocket Books
Category: Book
Buy New: $5.99
New (1) Used (7) Collectible (5) from $2.00
Avg. Customer Rating:  1 reviews
Sales Rank: 2068917
Media: Mass Market Paperback
Pages: 216
ASIN: B000878LX8
Publication Date: 1946
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Another Murder Mystery Solved September 26, 2006
The D.A. Draws a Circle
In Chapter I Mrs. Rita Artrim visits D.A. Doug Selby to ask if he can prevent Alphonse Baker Carr, the famous criminal lawyer, from moving into Orange Heights, the exclusive neighborhood of Madison City. Carr's presence would lower property values. Then Selby gets a letter and photograph from L.A. on bail-jumper Peter C. Ribber. They learn he had been picked up last night, then released. Next a cleaner found a suit with a bloody bullet hole in it. Selby and Sheriff Rex Brandon go to see Police Chief Larkin, and they learn the body of a man was found next to Carr's house! The body is identified by his fingerprints. Pete Ribber's fingerprints are on the gun found next to the body. But two bullets from two different guns are in the corpse (Chapter V). Abner Hendrix, the father of Rita Artrim, visits Selby to tell him of his worries. Then Ellen Saxe, the practical nurse for Mr. Artrim, brings her suspicions to Selby; she has no proof.
Chapter VI has a lesson in practical politics from the editor of the 'Blade'. In Chapter VII Selby learns something from Carr's housekeeper, and they search Carr's house. Upon their return they learn that Ribber was caught in L.A. Selby gets a call from Brandon; Mrs. Artrim's crippled father-in-law has disappeared in the night (Chapter VIII). Police Chief Larkin returns from L.A. with Ribber, who is put into the County Jail. A criminologist from L.A. comes to inspect the bloodstains in Mrs. Artrim's house (Chapter X). The Preliminary Hearing is in Chapter XI. This has a warning for any witness who tries to emulate a corpse instead of using photographs or a mannikin. [The testimony here appears to have been inspired by an actual case.] The judge binds the defendant for trial. The criminologist says a big-city D.A. would only present the evidence that points to guilt; he congratulates Selby on his integrity. [No Brady Rule then.]
In Chapter XII Selby comes up with a ruse to get information. A professional criminal would not drop a gun with his fingerprints near a dead body. They play their hunch in front of Ribber to see what develops. Selby meets Carr, Ribber's lawyer, and tells him what he wants. Sheriff Brandon applies pressure to Ribber by using trusties to spread a rumor. With a new clue Selby and Brandon drive to a small town, and then to a trailer park where they get an answer to their search (Chapter XIV). Their plan works; Ribber talks and spills the beans to save his neck (Chapter XV). Mrs. Artrim will not tell anything. You can read the interesting details and match it to true crime stories. Selby advises Carr to stay close to his house. The people in Madison City value sincerity over slick ingenuity. Does the "big-time lawyer" remind you of a familiar figure in criminal court practice in the 1930s?
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