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A Warrant to Kill
She tried to tell her friends. She even went to the police. No one would believe her--and now she was dead.
Problems had always followed Susan White, but when she remarried and moved to Houston's posh suburbs, she thought the past was behind her--until she met a deputy sheriff named Kent McGowen who would soon become her worst nightmare.
McGowen was an aggressive cop with a spotty record. When Susan rebuffed his advances, she claimed he stalked and harassed her, using her troubled teenage son as bait. And then, in an act of arrogance and revenge, he made good on his threats, setting her up for the kill.
In A Warrant to Kill, Kathryn Casey meticulously pieces together the tragic shards of the case to create a riveting story of vengeance, fear, and justice--of the terrifying power a badge can have in the wrong hands.
Problems had always followed Susan White, but when she remarried and moved to Houston's posh suburbs, she thought the past was behind her--until she met a deputy sheriff named Kent McGowen who would soon become her worst nightmare.
McGowen was an aggressive cop with a spotty record. When Susan rebuffed his advances, she claimed he stalked and harassed her, using her troubled teenage son as bait. And then, in an act of arrogance and revenge, he made good on his threats, setting her up for the kill.
In A Warrant to Kill, Kathryn Casey meticulously pieces together the tragic shards of the case to create a riveting story of vengeance, fear, and justice--of the terrifying power a badge can have in the wrong hands.
395 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 1, 2000
185 people are currently reading
507 people want to read
About the author
Kathryn Casey
33 books640 followersAn award-winning journalist and a critically acclaimed bestselling author, Kathryn Casey has written eleven true crime books and is the creator of the Sarah Armstrong and Clara Jefferies mystery series. ANGEL FALLS, her first historical fiction, was inspired by the life of Ruth Robertson, who in 1949 measured the world’s tallest waterfall.
Casey’s books have been Literary and Mystery Guild selections, and DEADLY LITTLE SECRETS was made into a Lifetime movie. Her first novel, SINGULARITY, was named a Best Crime Novel Debut by Booklist, and Library Journal chose THE KILLING STORM for its annual list of Best Mysteries. Elle Magazine picked DIE, MY LOVE as one of the ten best thrillers and crime books written by a woman. True crime matriarch Ann Rule praised Casey as "one of the best," and #1 NY Times bestselling author Gregg Olsen has called Casey "a true crime great."
In addition, Casey has written more than a hundred national magazine articles and pieces for The Washington Post, the Boston Globe, and the Houston Chronicle. In 2022, Casey was featured on the top ten Netflix limited documentary series “Crime Scene: The Texas Killing Fields.” She’s appeared on dozens of television and radio programs, including The Today Show, Good Morning America, 20/20, 48 Hours, Oprah, Investigation Discovery, the Travel Channel, A&E, and other venues.
Casey’s books have been Literary and Mystery Guild selections, and DEADLY LITTLE SECRETS was made into a Lifetime movie. Her first novel, SINGULARITY, was named a Best Crime Novel Debut by Booklist, and Library Journal chose THE KILLING STORM for its annual list of Best Mysteries. Elle Magazine picked DIE, MY LOVE as one of the ten best thrillers and crime books written by a woman. True crime matriarch Ann Rule praised Casey as "one of the best," and #1 NY Times bestselling author Gregg Olsen has called Casey "a true crime great."
In addition, Casey has written more than a hundred national magazine articles and pieces for The Washington Post, the Boston Globe, and the Houston Chronicle. In 2022, Casey was featured on the top ten Netflix limited documentary series “Crime Scene: The Texas Killing Fields.” She’s appeared on dozens of television and radio programs, including The Today Show, Good Morning America, 20/20, 48 Hours, Oprah, Investigation Discovery, the Travel Channel, A&E, and other venues.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 60 reviews
November 3, 2021
This story is unbelievably outrageous! I'm just stunned. Flabbergasted. I don't know if there is an English word to describe what happening here
I just googled the guy. He looks EXACTLY like I thought he would.
I just googled the guy. He looks EXACTLY like I thought he would.
December 3, 2017
I read the paperback version of this book when it came out seventeen years ago, but when I came across it again recently, I couldn't remember the details so I gave it another go. I'm glad I did; it was very good. The story of a creepy cop harassing an innocent citizen is enough to give anyone the chills.
March 13, 2019
Kathryn Casey always writes a good book even if the topic is boring. This book was well written once again. McGowen was a guy who thought he could just get away with the murder. Well too many people trusted their gut instincts and thats why we get them. Thankfully the judicial system saw this.
January 19, 2023
Interesting.
April 3, 2012
What to say? A Warrant To Kill is a story of true crime, a subject I enjoy reading every once in awhile. This was not one of those enjoyable reads, where you are pulled in, invested in the story and anxious to discover what happens next. To begin with, there were several places where it seemed as if a word were simply missing. Everyone knows how these little boo boos annoy me. The author used too many examples of the same 'theme', if you will, of basically the same trait or occurance. Also, it was, quite frankly, boring. What, I wonder, does the fact that I find a true story of harassment and murder boring say about how jaded I've become?
When I read a story, especially a true story, of a brutal murder I like to feel a bit of sympathy for the victim. I simply could not rouse up any sympathy for Susan White. She was a flake. A money grubbing addict who should have never birthed a child. I guess I need to feel at least a tiny bit of sympathy for the victim of the story.
Whether the author lacked the ability to tell a great story, my inability to care for any of the people in the story or because this sad story was, sadly, just not that, well, interesting, I can only give it a weak 2 stars with a strong 'meh'. Then why, you ask, did you finish it? I'll tell you why. I am hardheaded and I refuse to feel defeated by a mere tome of a conglomeration of words. Unless a story is simply horrid, I will stubbornly bull my way through to the end. I can count the number of books I've left unfinished on one hand and still have a couple of fingers left. I've sat and pondered, trying to think of someone to whom I would recommend this book.
I got nuthin'.
"One day you'll believe me, but by then I'll be dead."
She tried to tell her friends. She even went to the police. No one would believe her-and now she was dead.
Problems had always followed Susan White, but when she remarried and moved to Houston's posh suburbs, she thought the past was behind her-until she met a deputy sheriff named Kent McGowen who would soon become her worst nightmare.
McGowen was an aggressive cop with a spotty record. When Susan rebuffed his advances, she claimed he stalked and harassed her, using her troubled teenage son as bait. And then, in an act of arrogance and revenge, he made good on his threats, setting her up for the kill.
In A Warrant To Kill, Kathryn Casey meticulously pieces together the tragic shards of the case to create a riveting story of vengeance, fear, and justice-of the terrifying power a badge can have in the wrong hands.
When I read a story, especially a true story, of a brutal murder I like to feel a bit of sympathy for the victim. I simply could not rouse up any sympathy for Susan White. She was a flake. A money grubbing addict who should have never birthed a child. I guess I need to feel at least a tiny bit of sympathy for the victim of the story.
Whether the author lacked the ability to tell a great story, my inability to care for any of the people in the story or because this sad story was, sadly, just not that, well, interesting, I can only give it a weak 2 stars with a strong 'meh'. Then why, you ask, did you finish it? I'll tell you why. I am hardheaded and I refuse to feel defeated by a mere tome of a conglomeration of words. Unless a story is simply horrid, I will stubbornly bull my way through to the end. I can count the number of books I've left unfinished on one hand and still have a couple of fingers left. I've sat and pondered, trying to think of someone to whom I would recommend this book.
I got nuthin'.
"One day you'll believe me, but by then I'll be dead."
She tried to tell her friends. She even went to the police. No one would believe her-and now she was dead.
Problems had always followed Susan White, but when she remarried and moved to Houston's posh suburbs, she thought the past was behind her-until she met a deputy sheriff named Kent McGowen who would soon become her worst nightmare.
McGowen was an aggressive cop with a spotty record. When Susan rebuffed his advances, she claimed he stalked and harassed her, using her troubled teenage son as bait. And then, in an act of arrogance and revenge, he made good on his threats, setting her up for the kill.
In A Warrant To Kill, Kathryn Casey meticulously pieces together the tragic shards of the case to create a riveting story of vengeance, fear, and justice-of the terrifying power a badge can have in the wrong hands.
April 16, 2013
This is only the 2nd book by Casey I have read...but, she has fast become my fav true crime author. Some time in life, we get dealt a bad hand, and Susan Harrison White was one of those ppl, as well as her son Jason. They were both wonderful ppl, but trouble seemed to always come knocking at their door...enter, Joseph Kent McGowan. If you like arrogance, narcissist, bold, rude, thinks the world revolves around him, and doesn't know the truth from a lie, then Kent is the man for you...he took his "I can do whatever I damn well please", one step too far, and it backfired in his face..Reading this book, you will not miss any minute detail, as Casey lays it all before you in her eloquent style of writing.
October 10, 2014
I listened to this book on audible.com. It's always amazing to me that people truly think they can get away with murder. Like they live above the law, even a cop! While I didn't really care for Suzanne and her choices in life, she didn't deserve to die. I was also unaware of the sentencing process in Texas (15years 1 day vs 15 years or less). I can't believe that he was allowed to walk free for so long even after being convicted of murder. I can't imagine what it was like for Kathryn Casey to sit in his presence to and listen to him lie over and over again. It was as though he lies so much he can't tell the truth any longer. So sad for Jason. I wonder what he's up to now?
December 11, 2022
Excellent book. Scary story.
September 14, 2025
This true crime novel details the case of Susan White, gunned down in her Texas home by a deputy sheriff with a spotty employment record and an attitude problem. She may or may not have rebuffed his advances, but she told anyone who would listen that he stalked and harassed her, using her teenage son as bait. She filed a lot of complaints, but in true good-old-boy fashion, the police officers she complained to brushed off her complaints. Until she ended up dead and some alert, suspicious investigators decided things just weren’t adding up.
This was another well-researched, well-written true crime story but it sort of bored me. Clearly the author did her due diligence and research, backing up what she said with eye witness testimony or court records. It moved slowly for me, and I’m not sure that it needed to be novel length. This seems more like a featured piece in Texas Monthly rather than a book.
That said, I really like this author and will read more by her. This particular story wasn’t for me, but her work reminds me of the early Ann Rule books, which are my standard for true crime, so I’ll be checking out her other offerings.
This was another well-researched, well-written true crime story but it sort of bored me. Clearly the author did her due diligence and research, backing up what she said with eye witness testimony or court records. It moved slowly for me, and I’m not sure that it needed to be novel length. This seems more like a featured piece in Texas Monthly rather than a book.
That said, I really like this author and will read more by her. This particular story wasn’t for me, but her work reminds me of the early Ann Rule books, which are my standard for true crime, so I’ll be checking out her other offerings.
December 4, 2008
Imagine not being able to trust those people you were always told were safe. Kathryn Casey’s book takes a long, hard look at an aggressive, mean cop named Kent McGowen.
The author is a journalist, and the writing is quick and clean. Her research took her from a sultry Houston night in August 1992 through a 1994 court trial and beyond. The story focuses on the life and untimely death of Susan White, a single mom, who was stalked and finally gunned down in her home by one of those entrusted to serve and protect us. It’s a scary thought and when you get into the book and see how a truly bad man is able to secure a police job after accruing a rather ugly record with other agencies, you might not look at the boys in blue quite the same.
Susan isn’t an altogether sympathetic victim, which makes the story more compelling, in my opinion. The woman makes mistakes and acts a little crazy at times. She is too lenient with her son and refuses to recognize his behavior problems. But she certainly doesn’t deserve to become the target of Deputy McGowen, the rogue cop.
Even other cops didn’t like him. Yet they allowed him to become the next guy’s problem without much comment or warning. McGowen started out trying to join the Houston Police Department in 1984 but was rejected because of a polygraph test that revealed he had used marijuana within the past year. McGowen wanted to be a cop, though, so he instead became an unpaid reserve officer with the Waller County Sheriff’s Department while he waited out the time until he was eligible to try for HPD again.
In 1986, 21-year-old Kent McGowen became a Houston police officer. But he made waves, bragging and lying to his coworkers, and they developed a distrust and dislike for the rookie one officer called a “John Wayne-type.” He lasted less than three years before he resigned, claiming lack of leadership and opportunities. In truth, McGowen exhibited poor performance, a bad attitude, and treated other officers with contempt. This, however, wasn’t passed on officially to the Tomball PD, though the acting chief of police received a call from a detective who knew the brash young policeman’s record.
McGowen was let go after nine months.
He tried to get back on with HPD, was denied, appealed, and was rejected again. On February 6, 1990, he returned to his position of unpaid reserve deputy, this time with Precinct Four in the small community of Cypresswood. On March 27 he was discharged for assaulting a civilian. On October 4, McGowen joined the Harris County Sheriff’s Department as a jail deputy. Things may have been fine if he’d stayed there, but in April 1992 McGowen was transferred to patrol. And on August 25, Susan White, terrified and begging the 911 operator to send someone – anyone but McGowen - was shot.
Casey eases the reader into the unfamiliar world of policing. She slips in language - jackets, gypsy cops, bumping an officer – so naturally, it almost goes unnoticed. She shifts from McGowen to White and back again, tying the two into a tighter and tighter web of obsession and fear. It’s a great book. Carlton Stowers, the Edgar Award-winning author of Careless Whispers, hit the nail on the head when he wrote, "Kathryn Casey has crafted a gripping psychological study--a real-life nightmare wherein the darkest form of evil wears the disguise of a trusted public servant. A book as fascinating as it is troubling." Casey also wrote an excellent book called The Rapist's Wife.
The author is a journalist, and the writing is quick and clean. Her research took her from a sultry Houston night in August 1992 through a 1994 court trial and beyond. The story focuses on the life and untimely death of Susan White, a single mom, who was stalked and finally gunned down in her home by one of those entrusted to serve and protect us. It’s a scary thought and when you get into the book and see how a truly bad man is able to secure a police job after accruing a rather ugly record with other agencies, you might not look at the boys in blue quite the same.
Susan isn’t an altogether sympathetic victim, which makes the story more compelling, in my opinion. The woman makes mistakes and acts a little crazy at times. She is too lenient with her son and refuses to recognize his behavior problems. But she certainly doesn’t deserve to become the target of Deputy McGowen, the rogue cop.
Even other cops didn’t like him. Yet they allowed him to become the next guy’s problem without much comment or warning. McGowen started out trying to join the Houston Police Department in 1984 but was rejected because of a polygraph test that revealed he had used marijuana within the past year. McGowen wanted to be a cop, though, so he instead became an unpaid reserve officer with the Waller County Sheriff’s Department while he waited out the time until he was eligible to try for HPD again.
In 1986, 21-year-old Kent McGowen became a Houston police officer. But he made waves, bragging and lying to his coworkers, and they developed a distrust and dislike for the rookie one officer called a “John Wayne-type.” He lasted less than three years before he resigned, claiming lack of leadership and opportunities. In truth, McGowen exhibited poor performance, a bad attitude, and treated other officers with contempt. This, however, wasn’t passed on officially to the Tomball PD, though the acting chief of police received a call from a detective who knew the brash young policeman’s record.
McGowen was let go after nine months.
He tried to get back on with HPD, was denied, appealed, and was rejected again. On February 6, 1990, he returned to his position of unpaid reserve deputy, this time with Precinct Four in the small community of Cypresswood. On March 27 he was discharged for assaulting a civilian. On October 4, McGowen joined the Harris County Sheriff’s Department as a jail deputy. Things may have been fine if he’d stayed there, but in April 1992 McGowen was transferred to patrol. And on August 25, Susan White, terrified and begging the 911 operator to send someone – anyone but McGowen - was shot.
Casey eases the reader into the unfamiliar world of policing. She slips in language - jackets, gypsy cops, bumping an officer – so naturally, it almost goes unnoticed. She shifts from McGowen to White and back again, tying the two into a tighter and tighter web of obsession and fear. It’s a great book. Carlton Stowers, the Edgar Award-winning author of Careless Whispers, hit the nail on the head when he wrote, "Kathryn Casey has crafted a gripping psychological study--a real-life nightmare wherein the darkest form of evil wears the disguise of a trusted public servant. A book as fascinating as it is troubling." Casey also wrote an excellent book called The Rapist's Wife.
July 6, 2008
Clearly, I need to go back to work. But another walk to the beach, another true crime book down the tubes.
This one tells the story of a really needy woman who grew up with little, wanted more, got hooked on pills and men, and had a REALLY troubled child who might as well have worn a big sign that said "BOUND FOR JAIL" - but she only saw him as her baby, and the kid had no accountability or rules, and it all just go creepy, especially when the woman slept with the kid's best friend. So the best friend gets pressured by this wacko macho cop, who has pretty much devolved to being a glorified security guard in the ritzy glitzy Houston suburb where the woman and the kid live...except it isn't so ritzy-glitzy inside their house because her 2nd husband is dumping her so she has hidden the good stuff (like furniture) in a storage locker...and the cop gets the friend (the one the mom slept with, ick) to rat our the son on some phony gun selling charge - then the mom calls the friend and the friend's mom to say WTF and the cop then gets a warrant to arrest the woman for retaliation...and he gets a giant erection at the idea of busting her and goes to her house and kills her. ("Police! Open the door! BANG! Drop the gun!" as in shoot first then ask questions) he claimed she had pulled a gun on him - untrue. But she is still dead.
And the worst part is there was some Texas-style F-up in court so the cop never serves a day although he was convicted of murdering her. ICK ICK ICK aren't you glad you don't live in Texas? "Justice" - yeah, right.
Anyway it is a total train wreck, but like all good train wrecks, you just CAN'T LOOK AWAY.
This one tells the story of a really needy woman who grew up with little, wanted more, got hooked on pills and men, and had a REALLY troubled child who might as well have worn a big sign that said "BOUND FOR JAIL" - but she only saw him as her baby, and the kid had no accountability or rules, and it all just go creepy, especially when the woman slept with the kid's best friend. So the best friend gets pressured by this wacko macho cop, who has pretty much devolved to being a glorified security guard in the ritzy glitzy Houston suburb where the woman and the kid live...except it isn't so ritzy-glitzy inside their house because her 2nd husband is dumping her so she has hidden the good stuff (like furniture) in a storage locker...and the cop gets the friend (the one the mom slept with, ick) to rat our the son on some phony gun selling charge - then the mom calls the friend and the friend's mom to say WTF and the cop then gets a warrant to arrest the woman for retaliation...and he gets a giant erection at the idea of busting her and goes to her house and kills her. ("Police! Open the door! BANG! Drop the gun!" as in shoot first then ask questions) he claimed she had pulled a gun on him - untrue. But she is still dead.
And the worst part is there was some Texas-style F-up in court so the cop never serves a day although he was convicted of murdering her. ICK ICK ICK aren't you glad you don't live in Texas? "Justice" - yeah, right.
Anyway it is a total train wreck, but like all good train wrecks, you just CAN'T LOOK AWAY.
November 24, 2009
I was going to start this..... until I realized I'd already read it years ago. Which kind of ticks me off since I only ordered and received it this week but oh well....
very good book - Casey did a wonderful job and this will petrify any reader. The fact that this man was a police officer sends shivers down my spine to this day. I feel for this woman and her parents. Not one to miss!
very good book - Casey did a wonderful job and this will petrify any reader. The fact that this man was a police officer sends shivers down my spine to this day. I feel for this woman and her parents. Not one to miss!
March 7, 2016
Kathryn Casey put a lot of hard work into this book and it paid off. Nice balance of background information and court case. Does not go into a lot of the unnecessary gory details of the crime but gives you a clear picture of how ugly it was. This story made me so frustrated. Not a quick read and not one to read before bed.
April 2, 2014
Bad cop
Bad cop
This story is so sad that a bad cop wasn't stopped years before he killed someone. This should have never happened and I am glad he was finally convicted and jailed.
Bad cop
This story is so sad that a bad cop wasn't stopped years before he killed someone. This should have never happened and I am glad he was finally convicted and jailed.
October 25, 2008
Yes, cops can be the bad guy.
August 22, 2014
Justice takes too long sometimes.
March 5, 2015
Great read!
July 16, 2015
Fast paced & rings true
We want to believe a badge makes you "the good" guy. Reading this book confirms that even a badge can't change a psychopath in a "good guy."
We want to believe a badge makes you "the good" guy. Reading this book confirms that even a badge can't change a psychopath in a "good guy."
May 26, 2017
Well written book! But then, all Kathryn Casey's books are well written!
July 30, 2021
I need to go back to reading romance novels. But, I've been reading them for decades and thought I'll switch to stories that are none fiction. Then I came across this novel. Let me just say the author did a great job telling the story and getting the interviews. I think I should have tested the waters before I jumped in. I've went from a racing heart of passion to a pumping heart of fear. And to think there are so many true crime murder stories written whereas, I never heard of the crime. I always knew evil lived among us. And some people have no humanity for other's lives. But, reading this book is like yelling at a horror movie where you scream at the person to run and you know it's not going to happen. Besides, it's only a movie, right. Well, as I read this story I knew what was going to happen and the sad part, I knew it was real. Knowing Susan White was going to be murdered was a whole different type of emotions, coming from me. And yes, I will read another one of this author's none fiction, true crime, murder stories. Sometimes it's best to face reality and get ones' head out of the clouds. By the way, I also purchased the audible after reading this story, the narrator did a great job. I highly recommend this story.
June 3, 2022
Let me preface this review with saying that true crime is something I have really enjoyed at times, but I just haven't figured out how to find interesting material. Most of the true crime books I've read over the past few months have come from an Amazon reviewer that enjoyed one of my favorite true crimes: "Turned On" by Dick Schaap. Naturally I've got "In Cold Blood" waiting for the perfect moment.
SPOILERS
Meanwhile, this book was quite breezy to read, almost too easy. The backgrounds of the people were mildly interesting at best. I liked reading about McGowan's messups all over and how the bureaucrazy can allow for a monster to stay in police. However, there were so many boring contributions from minor characters - e.g. every character got a page reacting to the death of Susan White. Not necessarily a bad thing, but it's not brilliantly written and the information endowed with the words doesn't tickle my
And then the court case is completely superfluous and poorly done - I skipped over at least 60 of the last 90 pages.
SPOILERS
Meanwhile, this book was quite breezy to read, almost too easy. The backgrounds of the people were mildly interesting at best. I liked reading about McGowan's messups all over and how the bureaucrazy can allow for a monster to stay in police. However, there were so many boring contributions from minor characters - e.g. every character got a page reacting to the death of Susan White. Not necessarily a bad thing, but it's not brilliantly written and the information endowed with the words doesn't tickle my
And then the court case is completely superfluous and poorly done - I skipped over at least 60 of the last 90 pages.
March 9, 2022
An unfortunately bland book that makes the crime and surrounding history hard to parse. Even if the perpetrator has already been convicted, I find it negligent on the part of the author to set up the beginning of the book so starkly against the defendant. The cop involved in this offence has a clear history of negligence, unwarranted violence, and anger against women. The victim made many statements to many, many people that she felt he was stalking her and planned to kill her. It was undeniably tragic and undeniably preventable.
Yet this does not excuse the sloppy writing on the part of Ms. Casey, who spends a good sixty percent of the book giving a chronological timeline of both victim and perpetrator in tandem. This sounds perfectly reasonable and yet it fails to emphasise the relevant events, making it hard for the reader to glean the most egregious moments between them.
This is like reading a first draft of word vomit. It does not do justice to the cruelty inflicted.
Yet this does not excuse the sloppy writing on the part of Ms. Casey, who spends a good sixty percent of the book giving a chronological timeline of both victim and perpetrator in tandem. This sounds perfectly reasonable and yet it fails to emphasise the relevant events, making it hard for the reader to glean the most egregious moments between them.
This is like reading a first draft of word vomit. It does not do justice to the cruelty inflicted.
March 9, 2019
There are two problems with A Warrant to Kill. It was written and published before the story truly ended. And it is extremely one sided. Kathryn Casey addresses the one sided presentation by identifying that the case was one sided and that the defendant and his family were very tight lipped during the journalistic process. As to the timing, the publisher most likely demanded the book be released because as Casey laments, the court system isn't exactly timely.
Casey does an excellent job developing the characters of Susan White, Jason, Mike, and Kent. This true crime story is compelling. The language used, the topics discussed, and the consequences would be okay for older teens into adults, but specific people could easily trigger with some of the scenarios presented.
Casey does an excellent job developing the characters of Susan White, Jason, Mike, and Kent. This true crime story is compelling. The language used, the topics discussed, and the consequences would be okay for older teens into adults, but specific people could easily trigger with some of the scenarios presented.
September 12, 2025
This is one of her oldest publications and my guess, her best. After reading numerous, it holds the best progression and ordering of complex histories and material information. Dividing the sections by the biographies of the two primes FIRST most essentially gave depth to the intersect and aftermath.
Long but most interesting to see how this on again, off again cop got enabled. He did. I was disgusted at the long term consequence. Susan was flawed but that was not any equivalency justice served at all.
Few, if any of the real people in this had either common sense or IQ quotient. Continually making crass and abject self serving decisions is putting it mildly. Police hires need far more requisite testing than in this period in Texas. Much more.
Long but most interesting to see how this on again, off again cop got enabled. He did. I was disgusted at the long term consequence. Susan was flawed but that was not any equivalency justice served at all.
Few, if any of the real people in this had either common sense or IQ quotient. Continually making crass and abject self serving decisions is putting it mildly. Police hires need far more requisite testing than in this period in Texas. Much more.
October 30, 2017
I can't believe that I didn't read this 17 years ago when it was released. Of course I'm almost seventy years old, so maybe I did and just forgot.
I really enjoyed the book, I like her writing style. I especially like true crime books that don't take half the book for the trial. I find those to be a bit boring. The trial portion of this book takes maybe 20% of the book, reasonable.
The book was written before the final resolution of the legal proceedings. I had to Google to see the fate of the person charged with the murder.
Read it if you haven't. If you like true crime , you'll like this book
I really enjoyed the book, I like her writing style. I especially like true crime books that don't take half the book for the trial. I find those to be a bit boring. The trial portion of this book takes maybe 20% of the book, reasonable.
The book was written before the final resolution of the legal proceedings. I had to Google to see the fate of the person charged with the murder.
Read it if you haven't. If you like true crime , you'll like this book
July 4, 2019
Although I have lived in Houston for seven years I had never before heard of Susan White or Kent McGowen. I went into this book not knowing how it was going to end and it made for a very emotionally difficult read. I had to put the book down many times because I had a hard time reading over, and over, and over again how the blue code of silence basically lead to Susan White's murder. It wasn't until the very last page of this 372 page book that justice was finally served, yet I didn't feel relief. My heart is still heavy with sadness at what Susan White had to endure in life and what her family had to endure during the 10 years following her murder. May she rest in peace.
May 23, 2020
Well, I started reading this book when I was drunk but by the time I was finished I was damn sober. If this account is factual, and from what I’ve read additionally, it is, it’s a shocking indictment of how easy it is to be a thoroughly rotten cop in the U.S who can get away with murder, just because it’s possible to move these shitbags on without consequences. It happened in the 80s but I don’t think it’s any better today, in these shameless arse-covering times.
A great but utterly upsetting and disturbing read.
Despite the often clunky and indelicate writing, definitely worth a read.
A great but utterly upsetting and disturbing read.
Despite the often clunky and indelicate writing, definitely worth a read.
August 4, 2020
Excellent book but not for the Harris County sheriff’s office. I totally felt for this woman and not until later on after I watched a documentary on this that went into depth the horrific life she had to lead after meeting the doomed police officer. There are bad cops but very few. Amazing how her concerns went on deaf ears. Hopefully now and in the future a woman’s fears of a person never gets to this situation. Thank goodness for excellent detective and District Attorney work to bring justice for this killing.
June 20, 2024
Oh what a doozy this one is. What happens when an officer of the law sexually harasses a member of the public? What happens when an officer who has negative reviews at all of his places of employment still manages to get another law enforcement job? What happens when a habitual liar gets a job with a badge?
It all leads to a night of murder. This one was pretty good one. I have to say this is a new one on me. But this guy should have never been a cop in the first place.
It all leads to a night of murder. This one was pretty good one. I have to say this is a new one on me. But this guy should have never been a cop in the first place.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 20, 2018
This story was really sad. It shows just how much our society needs to reevaluate the way police officers are screened. This lady suffered through so much torment and fear, and she tried on numerous occasions to warn the police about what was happening to her. However, her cries went unheard because she was talking to the police about on of their own... Sad for her son and family
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