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Journey Toward Justice
Dennis Fritz was an ordinary middle-aged man leading an ordinary life, when, on May 8, 1987, he was on his way to jail on charges of rape and murder. An overzealous prosecutor bent on winning relied on flimsy circumstantial evidence and Dennis was convicted and sentenced to life in prison while his co-defendant, Ronnie Williamson was sentenced to death. After twelve years of incarceration, with the help of Barry Scheck of the Innocence Project, and DNA testing, Dennis and Ronnie were exonerated and the real killer is found guilty. On April 15, 1999, Dennis and Ronnie walk free from prison. "The story of the unwarranted prosecution and wrongful conviction of Dennis Fritz is compelling and fascinating. After serving eleven years for a murder he did not commit, Dennis was exonerated and had the strength and courage to put his life back together." —John Grisham "As I write these words, there have been one hundred eighty-one post-conviction DNA exonerations in America. The exonerated, many crime victims and their families (including the Carter family from the Fri and Williamson case) are the heart and soul of this movement. In this unique and brave community of survivors, there is no more decent and dignified a man, nor a more gentle soul, than Dennis Fritz. For eight years he has unstintingly supported our work in every way possible, re-living what are often very painful memories in service to a just cause. And now he has had the fortitude to tell his whole story. As always, I am in awe of his courage and humbled by his efforts." —Barry C. Scheck Co-Director The Innocence Project. Journey Toward Justice is the one and only companion book to John Grisham's, The Innocent Man. After having read Mr. Fritz's book, John gave his full and heart felt endorsement, stating that it was most compelling and fancinating. Futher, John stated that Dennis had the strength and courage to put his life back together after having served 11 years for a murder he did not commit.
458 pages, Hardcover
First published October 6, 2006
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
January 18, 2010
There are four books about this topic. If you want to read the best book of the four, by far, read The Innocent Man, by Grisham. If you want to read all four, first read The Innocent Man by Grisham. Next, read Barry Schecks Actual Innocence, then read this book. Last, do a google search, and look for Bill Peterson's web page. If you can read it without vomitting, you are a better man than I am. He still does not get it - he almost put to death men who had no connection in any way to any crime, and was thankfully reversed by a federal judge. The men were later released after DNA tests exonerated them and triggered the conviction of the man who really did the crime.
Two men, Dennis Fritz and Ron Williamson were railroaded by Bill Peterson, prosecutor in the small ( 16,000 ) town of Ada Oklahoma. Simply, to Bill it was a game, a game that resulted in these two innocent men spending a dozen years in jail for a crime they did not commit. Peterson, and the police, did no real investigation - if they had, they would have investigated the last man to see the woman alive, the man finally found to be guilty of the heinous rape and murder.
When I read the Innocent Man, I wondered if Grisham had simply inserted some fiction into his supposedly non-fiction book. I then read Peterson's large, very large, web site. Then I read Scheck's book where he covers the case, then this book. Simply, Grisham got it right.
Is this book a good book? No. It was going to get two stars. It simply states, in Dennis' own words, what happened to him - a blow by blow description. It is not well written. But, the last chapter is great, worth reading the rest of the book to get to it.
Now, my conclusions. Peterson belongs in jail. He was totally out of control. He has now retired, and the law and Ada Oklahoma are better off without him. Despicable behavior, and that is putting it mildly.
Two men, Dennis Fritz and Ron Williamson were railroaded by Bill Peterson, prosecutor in the small ( 16,000 ) town of Ada Oklahoma. Simply, to Bill it was a game, a game that resulted in these two innocent men spending a dozen years in jail for a crime they did not commit. Peterson, and the police, did no real investigation - if they had, they would have investigated the last man to see the woman alive, the man finally found to be guilty of the heinous rape and murder.
When I read the Innocent Man, I wondered if Grisham had simply inserted some fiction into his supposedly non-fiction book. I then read Peterson's large, very large, web site. Then I read Scheck's book where he covers the case, then this book. Simply, Grisham got it right.
Is this book a good book? No. It was going to get two stars. It simply states, in Dennis' own words, what happened to him - a blow by blow description. It is not well written. But, the last chapter is great, worth reading the rest of the book to get to it.
Now, my conclusions. Peterson belongs in jail. He was totally out of control. He has now retired, and the law and Ada Oklahoma are better off without him. Despicable behavior, and that is putting it mildly.
December 30, 2022
Okay, hear me out. This is not a 5 star book in terms of how well written it is. However, I had to give it 5 stars because I have been fascinated, heartbroken, and inspired by this man and his co-defendant’s story for the past few months. I had previously read the other book on the subject: “The Innocent Man” by John Grisham. I then watched the Netflix docuseries, “The Innocent Man”. While I would recommend that everyone go watch that, do not take on this book unless you are as dedicated to Dennis Fritz and Ron Williamson as I am. It is a long, painful read. It is so incredible that someone who was in prison on a life sentence for 12 years can not only write and file his own appellate briefs (all the way up to the Supreme Court), but also write a memoir to this caliber. This book has only furthered my hopes to work with the Innocence Project one day.
April 9, 2022
In 1982, Debbie Carter was raped and murdered in Ada, Oklahoma. Four or five years later, Dennis Fritz and his friend Ronnie Williamson were arrested. Dennis knew nothing at all about the murder, but he was tried and sentenced to life in prison, based on next-to-no evidence. In prison, Dennis spent as much time as he possibly could in the law library to figure out how to prove his innocence and get out of there. Finally, after 11 (12?) years, DNA set him (and Ron) free.
The is the same murder covered in John Grisham’s “The Innocent Man”, though Grisham focused on Ronnie, and of course was an outsider’s point of view, whereas Fritz’s book is a memoir, so we see what all happened through his own eyes – an innocent men arrested and on trial for a murder he knew nothing about. Interesting book (and frustrating – between the lack of evidence to begin with and all those letters Dennis wrote to higher and higher levels of court to try to get someone to listen to him!).
Dennis did learn a lot about how the law works while he was in prison, and there were times in the book where he used legal terms and phrases and I wasn’t quite sure what exactly he meant, though the gist was there. But a bit of an explanation would have been nice. Oh, and Dennis was a single dad with a 13-year old daughter at the time of his arrest, so really sad that his daughter had to go through that, as well.
The is the same murder covered in John Grisham’s “The Innocent Man”, though Grisham focused on Ronnie, and of course was an outsider’s point of view, whereas Fritz’s book is a memoir, so we see what all happened through his own eyes – an innocent men arrested and on trial for a murder he knew nothing about. Interesting book (and frustrating – between the lack of evidence to begin with and all those letters Dennis wrote to higher and higher levels of court to try to get someone to listen to him!).
Dennis did learn a lot about how the law works while he was in prison, and there were times in the book where he used legal terms and phrases and I wasn’t quite sure what exactly he meant, though the gist was there. But a bit of an explanation would have been nice. Oh, and Dennis was a single dad with a 13-year old daughter at the time of his arrest, so really sad that his daughter had to go through that, as well.
April 7, 2020
Read after watching the documentary on Netflix. The story is told by Dennis fritz, wrongfully accused of murder. His trials and tribulations in prison and the justice system. Good read but dragged on just a little bit.
June 23, 2025
what a heart wrenching true story of an innocent man’s experience being convicted of murder
February 24, 2014
I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Fritz during the Irish Fest at Weston MO last October. He was out on the street STILL hawking this book since 2006. He was doubleparked, so me and my drinking buddy tended his spot for him. I gave him a promo card for my novel The Standard (which I bet he tossed), and in turn I ordered Justice from Amazon for 0.01 plus shipping. Cold dog-doo, friends, as the autobio will agree is par for his course.
Actually, John Grisham got hold of this and added it to his anthology. That is an incidental on my part as I've never read Grisham and have had plenty of Fritz. It all goes back to 1987, back when DNA had the same significance as UFO. Fritz and his pal Ronnie Williamson got busted on suspicion over the rape and murder of Debbie Sue Carter. The Oklahoma DA brotha-rigged a case against the two, and got Fritz a life sentence and Williamson the death penalty. It led Fritz into a twelve-year journey as a jailhouse lawyer that resulted in defeat after defeat until DNA findings concluded that the Okies' version of what happened...never happened.
Fritz's narrative provides readers with a clear view of the horrors awaiting the average citizen having his everyday life exchanged for the mundane, monotonous and sometimes violent world of incarceration. Crappy food, subhuman fellowship and inadequate living conditions were only alleviated by his seemingly unwinnable war against the System in the prison library. Fritz suffered the anguish of having two of his closest relatives die as well as having his daughter grow into teenhood without being able to share a moment of it. If I'd have read the book before I met him, I would've gotten him drunk on my tab.
And, if I had to do it over again, I *might've* picked up Grisham's version instead. This book goes 500 pages (about 200 too long), most of it railing on about prison life and the sordid details of his legal battle. The courtroom drama was the meat of the story; the second half of the book recounting the aftermath got repetitive after a while.
All in all, it was a worthy read, but I'd have to blame Fritz's editor for the work product. I would've handed half of the manuscript to a ghostwriter and had him give John Grisham a run for his money.
August 8, 2010
The plot of this book was good, and the insights to a primitive "justice" system are fascinating.
The publishing company left much (if not all) of the author's writing unedited, presumably to preserve his voice and help the reader build a personal relationship with him. Yes, the book is a biography. But rather than helping me build a relationship with the author, his publishing company's lack of grammatical editing served as a distraction. I wish I'd been able to focus more on the plot, and less on poorly worded phrases like "me and Ronnie" that could have been changed without detracting from his story.
Secondly, I wish the latter part of his book had included a simplified explanation of his legal action. The author spent most of his sentence in prison teaching himself the law. He presumes his readers have a similar level of familiarity with Latin-based legal phrases. I don't. Much of the general population does not. A little clarification here could have gone a long way.
Third, I was disappointed at his explanation of the DNA testing that resulted in his release. I would have enjoyed his summary of how and why DNA testing works. If not for my own personal interest in how biotechnology helped to improve his life, I might not have read his story at all. It seems odd that the evidence which provided a key turning point was skimmed over so quickly, while all the legalities which resulted in his imprisonment were elaborated upon ad nauseum.
In summary, I wish Dennis Fritz had received more editing help from his publishing company.
The publishing company left much (if not all) of the author's writing unedited, presumably to preserve his voice and help the reader build a personal relationship with him. Yes, the book is a biography. But rather than helping me build a relationship with the author, his publishing company's lack of grammatical editing served as a distraction. I wish I'd been able to focus more on the plot, and less on poorly worded phrases like "me and Ronnie" that could have been changed without detracting from his story.
Secondly, I wish the latter part of his book had included a simplified explanation of his legal action. The author spent most of his sentence in prison teaching himself the law. He presumes his readers have a similar level of familiarity with Latin-based legal phrases. I don't. Much of the general population does not. A little clarification here could have gone a long way.
Third, I was disappointed at his explanation of the DNA testing that resulted in his release. I would have enjoyed his summary of how and why DNA testing works. If not for my own personal interest in how biotechnology helped to improve his life, I might not have read his story at all. It seems odd that the evidence which provided a key turning point was skimmed over so quickly, while all the legalities which resulted in his imprisonment were elaborated upon ad nauseum.
In summary, I wish Dennis Fritz had received more editing help from his publishing company.
September 16, 2009
In 1987 in Ada, OK, two men were erroneously convicted of a 1982 brutal murder and sent to prison. Twelve years later, with help from The Innocence Project and DNA testing, they were both released. The story of Ron Williamson, who was a little crazy thanks to alcohol and drug use and was sentenced to death for the murder, was well written by John Grisham in The Innocent Man. An interesting website http://myweb.cableone.net/ldpeterson/... purporting to be from District Attorney Bill Petersen points out several inaccuracies in Grisham's reporting.
The second man, Dennis Fritz, whose story is told in his own words in Journey Toward Justice, was sentenced to life in prison. While there he found faith in God and learned all who could about the law in the prison library and wrote letters and briefs trying to appeal the court's decision. He finally found The Innocence Project, and with their help is now a free man. DNA testing also identified Glen Gore as the guilty man. He had previously testified against Williamson and Fritz and was in a minimum security prison on another offense. He escaped from outside prison duty on the very day Williamson and Fritz were freed. In 2006 Gore was convicted of the murder but is appealing that decision.
The second man, Dennis Fritz, whose story is told in his own words in Journey Toward Justice, was sentenced to life in prison. While there he found faith in God and learned all who could about the law in the prison library and wrote letters and briefs trying to appeal the court's decision. He finally found The Innocence Project, and with their help is now a free man. DNA testing also identified Glen Gore as the guilty man. He had previously testified against Williamson and Fritz and was in a minimum security prison on another offense. He escaped from outside prison duty on the very day Williamson and Fritz were freed. In 2006 Gore was convicted of the murder but is appealing that decision.
June 8, 2012
This is the true story about a man was served about 12 years for rape and murder. He was innocent. He spent as much time as he could in the prison library learning all he could about the law. He fought for years for justice, writing hundreds of letters and appellate briefs, hoping someone would take an interest in his case. After 10 years he discovered The Innocence Project, a non profit organization that is devoted to exonerating wrongfully convicted people. John Grisham ,who wrote The Innocent Man, said that Dennis's book is compelling and fascinating. Dennis lives in KCMO. A movie is going to be made of this book. Can't wait to see it!
I ran into Dennis Fritz last week at the grocery store where he was selling his books. He told me the movie will be out sometime between fall and the first of the year. Sean Penn will play Dennis and George Clooney will play Dennis' friend, Ron.
I ran into Dennis Fritz last week at the grocery store where he was selling his books. He told me the movie will be out sometime between fall and the first of the year. Sean Penn will play Dennis and George Clooney will play Dennis' friend, Ron.
May 7, 2010
A true story of the conviction of an innocent man and his continued fight to prove his innocence. He was finally freed from prison after 12 years of being wrongfully imprisoned based on DNA testing and legal representation provided by The Innocence Project, headed by Barry Scheck. It was interesting to read this book and to compare it to the book written by John Gresham about Ron Williamson, who was given the death penalty for his alleged role in the murder of Debbie Sue Carter. It is hard to believe the degree to which the prosecution and its witnesses railroaded Mr. Fritz and Mr. Williamson and it is extremely doubtful they would have eventually been exonerated without DNA testing being completed years after their convictions.
January 14, 2016
I enjoyed reading the first hand account by one of the Ada accused. After reading several accounts of the Ada injustice, I was glad to see at least one of the accused rebuilding his life again. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in criminal justice, social issues and nonfiction.
May 20, 2008
The companion book to Grisham's "The Innocent Man". This is the first person account of the other man sentenced life in prison for a murder he did not commit.
October 15, 2011
Remarkable. It is amazing that someone and many, many innocents souls can endure this and still keep their faith in the Lord!
Want to read
May 25, 2016First, re-read Grisham's An Innocent Man....
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews