American Taboo: A Murder in the Peace Corps

by Philip Weiss

TABOO (n) [Tongan tabu] 1: a prohibition against touching, saying, or doing something for fear of immediate harm from a supernatural force.

In 1975, thirty-three Peace Corps volunteers landed in the island nation of Tonga. It was an exotic place -- men wearing grass skirts, coconut-thatched huts, pigs wandering the crushed-coral streets -- governed by strange and exacting rules of conduct. The idealistic young Americans called it never-never land, as if it existed in a world apart from the one they knew and the things that happened there would be undone when they went home.

Among them was a beautiful twenty-three-year-old woman who, like so many volunteers before her, was in search of adventure. Sensuous and free-spirited, Deborah Gardner would become an object of desire, even obsession, in the small expatriate community. On the night of October 14, 1976, she was found dying inside her hut, stabbed twenty-two times.

Hours later, another volunteer turned himself in to the Tongan police, and many of the other Americans were sure he had committed the crime. But with the aid of the State Department, he returned to New York a free man, flown home at the Peace Corps's expense. Deb Gardner's death and the outlandish aftermath took on legendary proportions in Tonga; in the United States, government officials made sure the story was suppressed.

Now Philip Weiss unravels the truth about what happened in Tonga more than a quarter century ago. With bravura reporting and vivid, novelistic prose, Weiss transforms a Polynesian legend into a singular artifact of American history and a profoundly moving human story.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, Crime, History, Mystery, Travel, American History

347 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 2004

Reviews

[Marieke · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have some ambivalent feelings about how to rate this book. In some ways three stars is a little bit generous. I thought the writing was surprisingly poor for someone who is apparently a contributing editor to high profile publications. Many of his sentences were poorly constructed, as were entire paragraphs, which really distracted and detracted from the story. Also, he unfortunately used that horrible technique of reconstruction which made the story have the cheap feel of a made-for-TV reenactment of unsolved mysteries and the like. Overall the writing felt sloppy yet earnest, like a high-school student who shows some promise in writing yet overdoes his attempts at writing a compelling and dramatic narrative.

Despite those problems, the story did evoke a strong visceral reaction in me. Mostly it made me feel sad and distressed. But most importantly, i thought the author achieved his goal in exposing the U.S. government's role in the outcome of this case. He successfully explained the Peace Corps' mission and its emphasis on personal responsibility on the part of volunteers and he successfully illustrated the political and foreign relations issues that dictated the bureaucracy's handling of the case, rather than its own guidelines. This was the part of the story that was so fascinating to me: whose interests ultimately get protected in the aftermath of a terrible tragedy like this? And what happens with the victim's family? How is the victim's family notified and what help is offered to them? This aspect was equally compelling and because of that, i overcame my initial cynicism about the author's motivations in researching and writing this book. Families of the victims of violent crimes need to know things and families need to be treated a certain way. The U.S. government really failed Deb Gardner's family in this regard and i do agree with the author that this case needed to be exposed. Hopefully its publication has helped bring closure to the people who needed it.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

An upsetting book for any Tonga PCV. It took me back to a lot of places I passed every day and even to a lot of people who are still living in Tonga.

The book itself could do with an aggressive edit. It would be better with perhaps 150 pages culled.

[Irene · Rating 3 out of 5]

Catholics by Brian Moore

Written in 1972, as the implementation of the reforms of the Second Vatican Council was causing tension in many parts of the Catholic world, this short novel uses a controversy over similar reforms in a future Church to explore issues of faith and religion, of certitude and doubt, of secularism and traditionalism, of descent and obedience. Despite being 50 years old, I found this to be a very thought provoking book. I appreciated Moore’s understated writing. 4.5 stars


91.
Catholicism In A Time of Coronavirus by Stephen Bullivant


92.
The Fifth Season by N. K. Jemisin

I am not a fan of fantasy fiction, but read this because it was a book group pick. I am sure this deserved its awards, but it did not make me a convert. The dialogue between characters and with the reader had the feel of a young adult novel, but the sex scenes, including the threesomes, were not young adult material. This is part of a series, so the cliff-hanger was not a satisfying ending.


American Taboo by Philip Weiss


In 1976, an American Peace Corps volunteer serving in Tonga was murdered by another Peace Corps volunteer. Although the guilt of the accused was never in doubt, the U.S. government mounted a vigorous defense, spending a fortune on his legal team. Their goal was the safeguarding of the reputation of the Peace Corps. Many believed that the outcome was a case of justice denied. This book follows the events surrounding the murder and recounts the trial. The author is an investigative journalist. I think I would have enjoyed this more had it been a long feature article rather than a 400 page book.

[Fishface · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent read about a dreadful crime within the Peace Corps and the way it resolved -- or didn't. The author explains how the case never really made the news, and how it was swept under the rug by the officials involved after they stood back and let a woman be murdered without intervening, then rewarded themselves for the way they handled it. The haunting nature of this crime will follow me. But thanks to this author, we know that murder will out...

[Erika · Rating 5 out of 5]

How do you rate a story like this? You don't pick this book up looking for beautifully pieced together sentences and fluffy writing!

5 stars to Weiss for the years of time he put into researching and piecing this book together and for plainly stating how the American government failed Deborah Gardener. This is an infuriating but worthy read.

[A · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF - could not get passed the obvious victim-blaming and slut-shaming narrative the author used to tell the story. Right from the start the author starts off by implying a love triangle might be part of the reason Deb was murdered and then spends the next 3 chapters describing how interested men were in Deb, how pretty she was (even without make-up, which she hardly ever wore *eye roll*), and how she never really gave any man a chance for his “turn” (direct quote: “Under the gruff crust, he could be extremely sensitive. He was afraid to look her in the eye. Still he thought he should get a turn with her.”).
There were other reasons for putting this book down like the incoherent storylines, unclear writing, and too many characters without defining characteristics.

Hard pass.

[Caitlin · Rating 2 out of 5]

an interesting story but this book would have benefited from being much shorter and much more linear

[Karlie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Someone left this book at a restaurant where I used to work the graveyard shift when I was in university.

This book chronicles the murder of a 20-something-year-old American peace corps volunteer in Tonga and the great efforts that the American government and peace corps went to in order to protect “the good name” of the peace corps- because spoiler alert: Poor Deborah was murdered not by a local, but by a fellow volunteer.

The cover up efforts were so fantastical that it allowed a murderer to go home to the United States and live the rest of his life comfortably and without consequences, thus demonstrating the peace corps are far from being a benign aid organization. Like countless organizations/institutions/entities they are happy to extract labour from a woman and then dispose of her, literally, when she becomes a slight nuisance.

My co-worker and I took turns reading each chapter on our breaks and discussing it at 4 AM whilst nursing the ump-twenty coffee of the night and flinging bagels into the oven for the 6 AM rush. When we had finished chatting about this depressing tome, co-worker would break into song to lighten the mood(usually Bruno Mars but he also took requests. Did a great rendition of Chris Isaac once) Subsequently, anytime I hear Bruno Mars I think of this book and time spent with a damn good co-worker. I miss you Pato.

[Caitlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This has to be one of the most infuriating books I've ever read - not because of the book itself, but because of the story. It is impossible for me to comprehend the mindset of an American official who would prioritize the life of a man who murdered a fellow Peace Corps volunteer who rejected him sexually - stabbing her over and over - somehow after her death his life was the important one. Peace Corps higher ups protected the killer in ways too numerous to describe, her fellow volunteers slut shamed her, and there were no consequences. The Tongan government cared more about this young woman than her own country did. Her murderer was returned to the States where he worked for the Federal government until his retirement and her friends and family feared that they were in danger from him should they open up about events. A gigantic fault line appeared amongst the Tongan volunteers - those that were for him and those that were against him and an idealistic young woman was almost nowhere to be found after her murder.

The book itself is pretty basic reportage - nothing special - and that in its own way is as infuriating as its story, although its flatness certainly sharpens the horror.

[Dots · Rating 4 out of 5]

I actually found this book in our shared library in the Peace Corps office (Philippines). I read it during Typhoon Ruby while we were consolidated in a hotel in Manila with nothing to do. It definitely caught me off guard. As I was reading it I kept thinking about Peace Corps, my service so far, and where the organization has gone from it's humble beginnings till now. The story that Weiss pulls up is one that I had not heard of before. Weiss tells the story in a way that seems almost fictional- switching from an omniscent point of view in 1976 to his present day point of view in researching the topic. All aspects of the story tie together and are written in a way that you understand the case, what happened, and why he was about to get away with it. I'm glad this book was written- to educate people about the short comings of the Peace Corps. But there are also a bunch of good, positive Peace Corps books out there too!
Overall, the writing wasn't fantastic- I fell asleep twice while reading it and really had to push through some sections. Because I knew this book was researched, the omniscent point of view during the 1976 scenes seemed kind of forced. You can be pretty sure conversations didn't quite happen like that.

[Michael Thoeresz · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is poorly written and I would only recommend it to someone who is somehow affiliate with the Peace Corps.

"America doesn't exist when you're here. Tonga doesn't exist when you're back, the older volunteers had told them. In no time they would pick up their lives. Their friends would lose interest in their stories, and the Kingdom would be as foreign as a hot shower was now. Then one day they'd open a drawer to discover something they had brought home, a tortoise shell bracelet, or a folded piece of Tapa, and they would wonder, did that really happen? what did it mean?"

[Susan · Rating 1 out of 5]

One of the most poorly written books I have ever tried to read. I gave up halfway through. It rambled on and hopped between different time periods and people from paragraph to paragraph. When I started skipping pages I realized that it was a waste of my time as I wasn't enjoying the book at all. Could have used a good editor because the extraneous stuff the author threw in ultimately diluted what seemed to be a very interesting subject matter.

[Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the true story of an American Peace Corps volunteer in Tonga who was murdered by a fellow corpsman, who never served a day in jail in the USA for his vicious crime. I was drawn to it because of my Peace Corps service, and due to the great disappointment I felt when I heard the US government had so botched the case that the murderer walked away.

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a Who-Done-It as much as a How'd-He-Get-Away-With-It.

[Bob Reutenauer · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is surprisingly bad. Author’s back of the book impressive, if self-congratulatory, 21-page discussion of sources and acknowledgements points to the amount of time and work devoted to the project. I’m familiar with the written sources, and several of the individual sources he finds in Tonga. Just enough to wonder if they were used much at all. Without notes or index that sense is pervasive.

“Every word of American officials can be documented,” Weiss declares to unsurprised readers who could hardly expecting less. Unless, well, the expectation includes reference to those sources. In a big book.

Weiss obviously spent a great deal of time researching and learning about the crime, the open and agonizing trial, Tonga, and the Peace Corps in Tonga during a very brief period in the late 1970s. Global mega-publisher made a big bet on this: Taboo! Murder! Peace Corps! Hard cover first edition blurbs from five big foot literary non-fiction voices promise sophisticated analytical original contribution inside. Did they read it? Did publisher bust Weiss to just finally get it done? Feels like it.

First 150 pages are not necessary or interesting. Author’s narrative strategy of invented dialog among Peace Corps volunteers was worth a try but Weiss is not a good enough stylist to pull this off. Jumping around the voices of a long list of characters in time, location, institution is sloppy and uneven.

His presumption of proximity- of listening -to the scene is marked by the embrace of a macho shit head approach of a late 1970s bro [“white dude”?] cultural milieu. Familiar references abound as if the book was written in late 1970’s. From this imaginary comes a further wobbly invention, indeed the books central framing conceit— a supposed Dennis-Deb-Emile love triangle. Victim blaming and sexist – a grotesquely mediocre 150 pages it is.

The chapter “Extraterritoriality” begins what could be a long form journalism essay. And rightfully well placed if an editor was involved. Read by friends, at least one of whom is an editor, but apparently not an editor for the book we learn of at back of book. That is too bad.

The book fundamentally disrespects to the people and institutions of Tonga. Starting with the
alarming title to sell books. Tapu has nothing whatever to do with the book. And it is wrong to rely on it this way. Felony murder is a crime. It is not tapu. American behavior, every bit of it here, was consistent with US foreign policy since before the Mexican War. Imperial history.

“Everyone in Nuku’alofa was watching, and understood the case as a test of their modern system.” No person though this ever. Tonga’s modern legal system- the author should know – from the books he read, and people he met has been tested often and rarely bested since the first Vava’u Law Code in 1839 included: “Foreigners [“papalangi”] subject to same law.” Further elaboration of 1839 law code in mid-century added that “crimes committed by Tongans abroad punishable by Tongan courts.” That Tonga’s own imperial hubris—the presumption of its own sovereign reach, matches that of it’s erstwhile allied partners—is a modern stance consistent with it’s own unique history of independence.

American citizens who kill abroad can expect to face a range of consequences under US law—from the punishing to the justifying and to the commending. Long term criminal incarceration in foreign prison not a common one, though. Treaties governing prisoner exchange give this the color of law. Treaty terms to this end were not in place between the USA and the Kingdom of Tonga in 1978. He does mention this, but with less importance it may deserve. The man convicted of murder by reason of insanity found the escape hatch engineered by US power, in the absence of law, and without much exertion or talent from any American officials —walked away if not toward freedom certainly away from justice.

I’m at work researching and writing, at least one essay, about Tonga-US relations in middle 1980s. Six years after this horrible crime I was two years in Tonga as a US Peace Corps volunteer. No one ever mentioned the murder. No one. I have an idea or two about that. Though my subject is well distant from that horrible night in a tiny village outside Nuku’alofa, this pretty bad book is a welcome provocation for me.

[Fiona · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting story about a Peace Corp volunteer killing another Peace Corp volunteer in Tonga in 1976. True story.

Dennis Priven was a Peace Corp volunteer teaching chemistry in Tonga. He was part of the class of Tonga 14. He was a shy man especially around women but he was very methodical and smart. Deb Gardner arrived in Tonga about a year later in the class of Tonga 16. She also taught school. She was a beautiful woman and a free spirit. Dennis like her a lot but the feeling was not mutual. In fact, she feared him. On October 14, 1976, he stabbed her to death in her hut 22 times. Before the night is over, he turns himself in to the police and is charged with murder. A few months later the Tongan courts find him not guilty as a result of insanity. The Tongan government finally released him to the US government so he could be hospitalized in Washington, DC until he is no longer a danger to society. However, he never spent any time in the hospital, he lived freely in Brooklyn.

This is a story of the Peace Corps and Tongan culture and lies between governments. During the trial, the Peace Corps "took the side of" the defendant because, as the country director said, Deb is gone and we must now think of the living. By the way, the country director is the highest US official in the Kingdom of Tonga. The Peace Corp also performed their own investigation and hid some of their results from the Tongan prosecutor and from the State Department. What a shamble! The Tongan defense counsel played into the Tongan culture of the devil invading homes and the local traditions. This worked well with the 7 jury members who were all local farmers.

A couple of interesting facts:
1. The only Tongan word that is also an English word is tabu or tapu meaning taboo or forbidden
2. The defense attorney, Clive Edwards, is a direct descendant of the mutineers on the HMS Bounty.

The author did an excellent job of research and explaining the emotions and words of everyone concerned in addition explaining the policies of the Peace Corps. When the organization was first established, the policy was that the volunteers would not have diplomatic immunity and that if they got into trouble with the law, then the local law would prevail and the Peace Corps would have a hands-off approach. Slowly from the 1960's to 1976, this policy disintegrated so that by this trial, the Peace Corp was helping and paying for the defense.

There are a lot of characters in this story mainly because there were many in each class of volunteers. They all socialized and worked with each other at some point during their assignment. I found that I had to keep a list of the volunteers and from which class and their relationship with Deb and Dennis.

Very thorough and good book

[Msellen88 · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. I decided to read this as I have worked with many former Peace Corps Volunteers and the case is not widely known. In the Kingdom of Tonga in 1976, a male PCV brutally murdered a female PCV who was a close colleague. The book depicts the murder and trial in great detail and the author places most of his investigative writing on the cover-up of the case by the US Government in Washington DC as well as in the Tongan capital. The book has far too much pointless detail and should have been much shorter. What was distasteful to me was the way the author characterizes the victim as overly promiscuous and sinful while he spares the perpetrator and the other males any judgement for their own excessive drinking and carousing. He seems to shake this off with a "bros will be bros" attitude.

[Eileen Granfors · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a haunting investigation into a young woman's murder. Deb Gardener, enthusiastic and outdoorsy, loved life. She sought to share her dynamic spirit through her work in the Peace Corps. She was assigned to the South Pacific island kingdom of Tonga. It's a lot tougher than most people would think to be a Peace Corps volunteer to a small and culturally different village far from home. Deb was dedicated to her tasks. People loved her. But one man was obsessed with her. He murdered her. The whole case was kept very quiet for 25 years. Phillip Weiss brings her story, of life, death, and aftermath, to vivid and well-documented prose. This is a gripping story of loss and the subsequent government role in putting reputation of an organization above truth.

[Kim Ingham · Rating 4 out of 5]

Peace Corp Coverup

I'm not sure what I expected but it definitely was not what I got. The writing was fine but the politics were all wrong! How is it possible that we grew up in the 60s and 70s receding the Peace Corp and glamourizing what an exceptional chapter it would be to our lives only to read something like this. I want to blame the government (since they are the blame for everything else) right now, but truthfully the Peace Corp covered this murder up and let a murderer walk free on our streets - UNBELIEVABLE. Good read but
left me depressed AND glad I never joined the Peace Corp.

[April Taylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Peace Corps didn’t want to get shut down, so they did everything necessary to get murderer Dennis Priven out of legal trouble in Tongo. This included lying to Tongo police, a judge, etc.

Basically, a man got to brutally murder a woman (Deb Gardner) and only dealt with three months locked up before his trial. When he was sent back to the US, it was with many assurances that he would be checked into a mental hospital, where he would be treated for “schizophrenia.” All of this was a lie. He never spent a single day in any facility. Instead, he went on to get a government job, which he received a pension from until his death in 2023.

There are no words to express my anger.

[Lynzo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wow, wow wow. I remember my graduation plan to join the peace corps - that was the only plan - and then I was medically disqualified from serving. I've always had such a high idea of the org, this story really changed that. (Not to mention my years of learning about white savior syndrome, plus how awful the US is abroad in general.)

The american government helped this guy get away with murder. They covered it up to protect their reputation, to not sully the org's name. The whole story is infuriating, I hope his life was miserable up until he died.

[Bookworm · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tonga
Ya know… back in the day, I applied to be a Peace Corp volunteer as a Registered Nurse.
They said: “You can’t help people for free unless you have a Bachelor’s Degree!”
At the time, I was sad… now I’m not.
A. The peace corp victim-blamed a woman for a man murdering her.
B. Peace Corp and American government covered up her death because it made them look bad.
C. No justice.
Thanks, book! You made me realize it’s a good thing I didn’t have enough college to join the Peace Corp! I could get victim-blamed for a man killing me at home — I don’t need to go across the world for that!

[Kaitlyn Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

6/10 I’m so glad this book was written and the Deborah Gardner’s story was finally able to be heard. I’m grateful for the authors perseverance and dedication to tracking down sources and visiting the nation of Tonga decades after the murder took place. However, I was confused during a lot of the book. The story telling seemed a bit all over the place and I kept mixing up the characters. Overall a need to read story for any true crime or Peace Corps fan. Fuck you Dennis Priven and family.

[Steven Yoder · Rating 5 out of 5]

A few years ago, I heard a radio interview with the author in which he described a murder of a Peace Corps worker in 1976 by another Peace Corps worker in Tonga. I had never heard of this. The book describes the murder of Deb Gardner by Dennis Priven and how the Peace Corps response was to help Priven get away with it. It makes for an infuriating story.

[Carissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you like true crime, you might like this book. If you like true crime and have been involved in the Peace Corps in any way, you will probably like this book since there’s lots of details of both.

And when I say like, I mean you will be horrified reading about the crime, how it was handled, and the fact that Deb never got justice.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent investigative journalism, attempting to bring light and closure to a decades old murder in the Peace Corps in Tonga. US government cover up and duplicity let a murderer go free. Gives another perspective from the official US government point of view.

[Pam · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a very interesting book that looked into a murder that almost no one knew about. The author did an amazing job of researching the why and how. The idea that this was glossed over by so many is just amazing.

[Suzanne Ondrus · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a page turner. This is the story of Deborah Gardner who was murdered by a fellow PC volunteer in Tonga. It is the story of our government's cover up and suppression of that story too. Shocking.

[Ellen · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was some incel toxic masculinity s*** -- from the murder to the author's portrayal of it. It was not nearly damning enough of the murderer or of peace corps (with the exception of the one woman leader).

[Vicki robles · Rating 3 out of 5]

Shocking

Very sad to lose such a beautiful girl sacrificing to help others by a senseless act of violence. No justice