What do you think?
Rate this book
Mean Justice: A Town's Terror, A Prosecutor's Power, A Betrayal of Innocence
Besieged by murder, rape, and the most vile conspiracies, the all-American town of Bakersfield, California, found its saviors in a band of bold and savvy prosecutors who stepped in to create one of the toughest anti-crime communities in the nation. There was only one problem: many of those who were arrested, tried, and imprisoned were innocent citizens. In a work as taut and exciting as a suspense novel, Pulitzer Prize-winning author and journalist Edward Humes embarks on a chilling journey to the dark side of the justice system. He reveals the powerful true story of retired high-school principal Pat Dunn's battle to prove his innocence. And how Dunn, prosecuted for killing his wife to inherit her millions, was the victim of a case tainted by hidden witnesses, concealed evidence, and behind-the-scenes lobbying by powerful politicians.
Even more disturbing, Humes demonstrates how the mean justice dispensed in Bakersfield is part of a growing national trend in which innocence has become the unintended casualty of today's war on crime. American cities are enjoying their lowest crime rates in decades. But at what price? Mean Justice provides answers both compelling and frightening.
Even more disturbing, Humes demonstrates how the mean justice dispensed in Bakersfield is part of a growing national trend in which innocence has become the unintended casualty of today's war on crime. American cities are enjoying their lowest crime rates in decades. But at what price? Mean Justice provides answers both compelling and frightening.
496 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1999
28 people are currently reading
369 people want to read
About the author
Edward Humes
21 books278 followersEdward Humes is a Southern California author, journalist and writing teacher whose most recent nonfiction book is “The Forever Witness.” His next book, “Total Garbage: How to Fix Our Waste and Heal Our World,” will be published in time for Earth Day 2024. He shares his home office with a pair of rescued racing greyhounds, Valiant and Dottie.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
June 5, 2016
"Witch Hunt!" How many of you remember the catch phrase? And I'm not talking about the one in Salem... I'm talking about the one associated with Satanic child molestation rings that became popular in the 80's. Well, I remember it clearly because it all started in my home town of Bakersfield California.
This ones going to be hard to review. Subjective? Very likely considering I have some personal connections with this book. No, there is no one in my family named in any of the cases (travesties) and none have ever been accused of any acts of molestation, but they were caught up in a legal system that is about as corrupt as they come. I have a lot of family, friends and acquaintances from this town that may read this and I know there is the possibility someone might be offended. It's not my intention. I just want to tell you how I feel about this book and I want to share a little story with you.
I know that in every aspect of life, there are good people and there are bad people. I point that out because I want to acknowledge that there are good people in law enforcement and there are good people in the judicial system. But, there are also bad ones and if you don't believe that just because they are wearing a uniform or a black robe then I have a bridge I would like to sell you.
Even though there is corruption all throughout society, the corruption like that revealed in 'Mean Justice' is one that strikes fear and anger because these are the people we grow up being told are the good guys...the ones we call for when we need help. So when we discover that our hero's are actually sometimes worse than the criminals we fear, we feel betrayed, distrustful, angry.
Mean Justice tells the story of a man who was tried and convicted (but very likely innocent) for killing his wife, but the book is also integrated by many other cases of misconduct, the most infamous being the Witch Hunt era in which hundreds of families were accused and convicted of partaking in Satanic rituals and molesting and sacrificing children. None of which was ever proved. There was never a single thread of evidence concerning the Satanic rites. The only thing that was accomplished was that countless families and children had their lives ruined. Children who had lived normal lives were whisked away, interrogated for days and weeks and months, and taught more about sexual deviancy than most adults are aware of. Most of the innocent have been set free in recent years but unfortunately, because of the misconduct, so were a few who really had molested a child!
The Witch Hunt craze eventually spread through many other places in the country, but most of them, with intervention from the Supreme Courts, are also correcting the misconduct in their systems.
I feel exhausted after reading this book. At one point early on I found myself feeling furious as I read. Mostly because it brought back old memories of a time when my family fell under the net of corrupt system.
Obviously, my family, as I'm sure is the case with the rest of you, is as I described in the beginning; some good... some bad. There have been a few that are certainly not innocent. But in one instance, we were innocent. But because we were poor and we were caught in that web of corruption, innocence didn't mean Jack!
I will try to make this brief and I only share it because it is very similar to some instances mentioned in the book.
In 1985 my little brother, who was only about 2 years old at the time, fell while playing with my dad and gave himself a shiner. It happened right in front of me. I remember even trying to catch him but wasn't in time. Oh, well! 2 year old boy with a shiner. He was up and playing again and doing what boys do.
About a week later I was told he had been taken in the parking lot of a grocery store by a social services worker and a police officer. Someone in the store called because they saw his black eye. Okay, I tried to be understanding. I struggled with the "innocent until proven guilty" right being thrown out the window but I understood they might be thinking of the childs protection. Still, I thought it would be no problem because I had personally seen him fall and could let them know he hadn't been abused.
My dad was accused of physically abusing my brother. I was called to see a detective and seriously believed I was going to straighten the whole misunderstanding out. What I ended up with was not a detective, but a lying corrupt son-of-a bitch!!! He placed an envelope in front of me telling me there were photos of serious bodily injuries to my brother. I had already told him my story but he wanted me to sign a piece of paper saying my dad beat my brother. He said I had to do that before he would show me the pictures. Why??? Well, I'm not a complete idiot and I refused to sign the paper. And of course, he never showed me any pictures. My wife drug me out yelling ( I'm surprised I didn't go to jail) and I told him that he was a liar and I knew he didn't have any pictures.
My brother was passed around through the system and we did not get him back for almost a year and a half. The worst part is how the matter concluded.
At the last proceeding, my dad went in before a judge and lawyers (we were not allowed in) and when he came out he was in tears. He told us that they had just given him a choice: confess and they would give custody to the grandparents or resist and you will never see your son again!
I won't describe the scene outside...
Right or wrong, and I will never judge him for it, my dad went back in and plead guilty and my brother went to his grandparents.
So yeah, there is a lot of corruption in the system. And even though I know there are good ones out there, I can't help but get a bitter taste in the back of my throat when dealing with the legal system. I don't trust them, and I probably never will. You can argue that they are only human like you and I... but unlike you and I, they wield far too much power to be ignored when they are abusing that power.
Well, you don't have to be from Bakersfield California to appreciate this book. There is a ton of interesting, if not disturbing, information inside. I think it's worth the read, but depending on your own past experiences, just be warned this might cause some steam to pour out of your head.
And for my closing comment... yeah, I'm gonna say it; if District Attorney Ed Jagels was on fire...I wouldn't piss on him!!!
For anyone interested in more on the Witch Hunts there is a documentary narrated by Sean Penn called 'Witch Hunt'.
April 9, 2016
Our justice system is so broken. Don't believe it? Read this book.
It took me over a week to read this one. I would pick it up and get so angry that I think blood vessels popped in my little mind. I couldn't stop reading though. I even took the time to look at this author's footnotes in the story and I never do that.
This book is the story of some wrongful convictions in Bakersfield, California..BUT don't think it ends there. Things like this are still happening and could happen to anyone at anytime. The biggest part of this book is Pat Dunn's story. He is charged with the murder of his wife Sandy. He is the kinda grumpy older man who doesn't show emotions very well..so that was used against him. Not much evidence that wasn't tainted was found. Did that matter? Not a bit.
The prosecution was going to have their conviction and that little part about evidence not being tainted was just overlooked.
Not just in his case either. That small area of California has a dirty, dirty past of false convictions and a witch hunt that took children away from innocent parents that were accused of molestation, child abuse and even satanism.
Now..this book for me is very personal..I'm not going to bore you with any details but DON'T think that the justice system always works. It doesn't.
Of the approximately six thousand death sentences imposed between 1973 and 1997, a total of seventy-six have been reversed, with a third involving substantial allegations of police and prosecutorial misconduct. Most of these sixty-nine men and women, in fact, have been fully exonerated and released, when previously they had been scheduled to die.
Now for the important part of this really non-review. (I can't really review this one)
Most of my reviews have this little image at the end,
The reasoning for it was I was fed up with some of the practices and some very good reviewers getting over-looked because of the whole popularity thing on here. I'm not going on a bitchfest so calm down. I'm one of the top reviewers and I admit my reviews are pretty crappy. I pretty much just ramble about a book or tell way too much personal info and put up a few gifs. BUT there are some reviewer's that just deserve the spotlight..thus my little attempt to showcase some of their reviews.
This is one of those times. My friend Wayne Barrett's review is what led me to read this book. Wayne is an author on this site but he is very quiet about that part. He is a reader first and foremost. He writes some amazing dang reviews also. His review for this book is probably one of the best that I've seen on this site. So in my little mind I think he deserves the attention. Not my little rambly review. Go check his out. Do that whole popular thing of "liking" his review. Follow him if you want. He reads a bunch of books that I steal for my TBR..and he won't spam you a book he wrote.
It took me over a week to read this one. I would pick it up and get so angry that I think blood vessels popped in my little mind. I couldn't stop reading though. I even took the time to look at this author's footnotes in the story and I never do that.
This book is the story of some wrongful convictions in Bakersfield, California..BUT don't think it ends there. Things like this are still happening and could happen to anyone at anytime. The biggest part of this book is Pat Dunn's story. He is charged with the murder of his wife Sandy. He is the kinda grumpy older man who doesn't show emotions very well..so that was used against him. Not much evidence that wasn't tainted was found. Did that matter? Not a bit.
The prosecution was going to have their conviction and that little part about evidence not being tainted was just overlooked.
Not just in his case either. That small area of California has a dirty, dirty past of false convictions and a witch hunt that took children away from innocent parents that were accused of molestation, child abuse and even satanism.
Now..this book for me is very personal..I'm not going to bore you with any details but DON'T think that the justice system always works. It doesn't.
Of the approximately six thousand death sentences imposed between 1973 and 1997, a total of seventy-six have been reversed, with a third involving substantial allegations of police and prosecutorial misconduct. Most of these sixty-nine men and women, in fact, have been fully exonerated and released, when previously they had been scheduled to die.
Now for the important part of this really non-review. (I can't really review this one)
Most of my reviews have this little image at the end,
The reasoning for it was I was fed up with some of the practices and some very good reviewers getting over-looked because of the whole popularity thing on here. I'm not going on a bitchfest so calm down. I'm one of the top reviewers and I admit my reviews are pretty crappy. I pretty much just ramble about a book or tell way too much personal info and put up a few gifs. BUT there are some reviewer's that just deserve the spotlight..thus my little attempt to showcase some of their reviews.
This is one of those times. My friend Wayne Barrett's review is what led me to read this book. Wayne is an author on this site but he is very quiet about that part. He is a reader first and foremost. He writes some amazing dang reviews also. His review for this book is probably one of the best that I've seen on this site. So in my little mind I think he deserves the attention. Not my little rambly review. Go check his out. Do that whole popular thing of "liking" his review. Follow him if you want. He reads a bunch of books that I steal for my TBR..and he won't spam you a book he wrote.
February 25, 2011
Non-fiction. This book is very well written. The true story leaves you feeling very very angry about all of the truth in this book. I would recommend this book to anyone.
May 10, 2022
A compelling study on how fear, power, and corruption go hand-in-hand (in-hand?). Felt like three books in one...which distracted me more than anything. Is the book about corruption and power in Kern County? Yes. Is it about fear of satanic child molestation rings in Kern County and beyond? Yes. Is it about one man's fight against the corruption and power in Kern County? Yes.
It's a book worth reading if you have any interest in the topics above, but if you are interested in more than one it'll be more enjoyable.
It's a book worth reading if you have any interest in the topics above, but if you are interested in more than one it'll be more enjoyable.
August 7, 2017
This book was hard to put down, but difficult to read at the same time. The subject matter enrages the reader. It is great insight into our justice system and how easily one of us could be snatched out of our lives without provocation.
November 7, 2015
Brutally scary true story all about how innocent people can end up behind bars for the rest of their lives. Dishonest cops, lawyers, and judges, attribute to this egregious injustice!
August 10, 2019
Injustice in a California town
True crime writer Edward Humes (Mississippi Mud 1994, et al) takes apart the criminal justice system in Bakersfield, California and Kern County. The main story is about Pat Dunn, convicted in 1993 of murdering his wife for her money. The evidence was slight and relied heavily on a heroin addict's testimony, a career criminal who had gotten a deal to testify. Humes makes a good case for Dunn's innocence.
Humes also devotes some serious space to some notorious child molestation/satanic abuse cases prosecuted in Kern County during the eighties and nineties. It's the Little Rascals and McMartin all over again, except worse and prior. There's the usual brainwashing of the children by social workers to get them to tell horrific tales, and a criminal justice system out to satisfy the lust of the mob at any cost. This is very readable and Humes pulls no punches when it comes to going after the prosecutors. It's an irony of our criminal justice system that sometimes in places like this there's a public so quick to convict that they end up sending innocent people to jail, while in other places—I'm thinking of Houston, Texas and the case of Cullen Davis (see Final Justice: The True Story of the Richest Man Ever Tried for Murder (1993) by Steven Naifeh and Gregory White Smith) and of Los Angeles with you know who—we get juries that will not convict regardless of the evidence. Humes is doing the good people of Bakersfield a favor in this book, although I doubt if most of them realize it, because if the system gets too corrupt, the juries will eventually be like the jury that tried O.J.: they'll put the system on trial instead of the defendant and deliver a verdict against it.
This is top drawer true crime written by one the best in the business. In his ability to involve the reader with the story, he's on a par with Ann Rule. In his desire to expose injustice, Humes is like "Sixty Minutes" turboed.
--Dennis Littrell, author of the mystery novel, “Teddy and Teri”
True crime writer Edward Humes (Mississippi Mud 1994, et al) takes apart the criminal justice system in Bakersfield, California and Kern County. The main story is about Pat Dunn, convicted in 1993 of murdering his wife for her money. The evidence was slight and relied heavily on a heroin addict's testimony, a career criminal who had gotten a deal to testify. Humes makes a good case for Dunn's innocence.
Humes also devotes some serious space to some notorious child molestation/satanic abuse cases prosecuted in Kern County during the eighties and nineties. It's the Little Rascals and McMartin all over again, except worse and prior. There's the usual brainwashing of the children by social workers to get them to tell horrific tales, and a criminal justice system out to satisfy the lust of the mob at any cost. This is very readable and Humes pulls no punches when it comes to going after the prosecutors. It's an irony of our criminal justice system that sometimes in places like this there's a public so quick to convict that they end up sending innocent people to jail, while in other places—I'm thinking of Houston, Texas and the case of Cullen Davis (see Final Justice: The True Story of the Richest Man Ever Tried for Murder (1993) by Steven Naifeh and Gregory White Smith) and of Los Angeles with you know who—we get juries that will not convict regardless of the evidence. Humes is doing the good people of Bakersfield a favor in this book, although I doubt if most of them realize it, because if the system gets too corrupt, the juries will eventually be like the jury that tried O.J.: they'll put the system on trial instead of the defendant and deliver a verdict against it.
This is top drawer true crime written by one the best in the business. In his ability to involve the reader with the story, he's on a par with Ann Rule. In his desire to expose injustice, Humes is like "Sixty Minutes" turboed.
--Dennis Littrell, author of the mystery novel, “Teddy and Teri”
May 12, 2011
About misguided legal systems(prosecutors and police) that sometimes are more concerned about convictions than the truth and rights of the accused. Interesting, frightening, but bogged down in the middle.
August 17, 2009
Crazy book about the corruption of Bakersfield department of justice!
Read
October 24, 2019It was quite interesting!
June 5, 2019
The outlook of the world is never black or white. Especially, when one never witnessed the occurrence of the events in question. I am not an apologist for the Ed Jeagles and his team in Bakersfield who launched widespread investigations and prosecutions against innocent 'child molesters'. In fact, I denounce the practice of subjecting innocent citizens to the rigors of the criminal justice system without any basis. I highly respect all law enforcement agencies. Prosecutors and police, they do a great job. Unfortunately, they are not angels. They may have the best intentions, but the course they choose to take may be absolutely wrong and unjustified. When this happens, they fail. They fail the country, the society, their families, the victims and the system as a whole. The results are usually disastrous and irreparable.
I have struggled with this review. I know that I must write something about this book. Especially since this is my second time reading it. First, I read it last year. Then I had a different outlook of it. So, I thought of reading it for a second time so as to get the big picture. Now, here I am. Speechless! How can one defend himself against false accusations from their own children? A prosecution should only be mounted on credible evidence and not on fabrications. Unfortunately, the criminal justice system with all its law books and fine talk does not play that way. Overzealous prosecutors and corrupt investigators will always find a way of cutting corners.
I have struggled with this review. I know that I must write something about this book. Especially since this is my second time reading it. First, I read it last year. Then I had a different outlook of it. So, I thought of reading it for a second time so as to get the big picture. Now, here I am. Speechless! How can one defend himself against false accusations from their own children? A prosecution should only be mounted on credible evidence and not on fabrications. Unfortunately, the criminal justice system with all its law books and fine talk does not play that way. Overzealous prosecutors and corrupt investigators will always find a way of cutting corners.
July 11, 2016
I have read numerous true-crime books, but never any from the point of view that the person (or persons) is innocent. So this book was something quite new for me. I have to say that it was quite eye-opening. The central story is that of convicted wife-killer Patrick Dunn. The story takes place in Kern County, CA which was/is a community rife with prosecutors who run amok with power. Dunn's story is central, but the book is in fact a showcase for dismantling how the justice system actually does not work not only in Kern County, but all over the country. The author Edward Humes, a true-crime writer and journalist, has done a fantastic job proving what a failure the justice system truly is. He dismantles so many cases, including that of a most definitely innocent Patrick Dunn, with such aplomb it will make you furious. Not at the author, but at the injustice.
Almost 1/3 of the hardback edition includes the author's endnotes and appendixes and here you will find all the facts needed to back up what he has written. It's impressive and it will scare you, as it should.
The book is very easy to read even which is somewhat surprising considering the topics and cases it includes.
Almost 1/3 of the hardback edition includes the author's endnotes and appendixes and here you will find all the facts needed to back up what he has written. It's impressive and it will scare you, as it should.
The book is very easy to read even which is somewhat surprising considering the topics and cases it includes.
September 20, 2015
"Alone among government officials, prosecutors operate with little public scrutiny or accountability in deciding who to prosecute and what evidence to share with defense attorneys". Think about that. That would allow for many opportunities of abuse of power and prosecutorial misconduct.
Pat Dunn was railroaded by an over-zealous prosecutor in Kern County, California during a period of law & order hysteria there. The author lays out a convincing case that Dunn never murdered his wife and how, in the light of hindsight, justice was not served. Each time an innocent person is convicted, the real perpetrator remains unpunished. This is some scary stuff. If it could happen to well-to-do Pat Dunn, it can happen to anyone.
An exceptionally well-written book about an infuriating, disheartening true story.
Pat Dunn was railroaded by an over-zealous prosecutor in Kern County, California during a period of law & order hysteria there. The author lays out a convincing case that Dunn never murdered his wife and how, in the light of hindsight, justice was not served. Each time an innocent person is convicted, the real perpetrator remains unpunished. This is some scary stuff. If it could happen to well-to-do Pat Dunn, it can happen to anyone.
An exceptionally well-written book about an infuriating, disheartening true story.
December 14, 2009
Kind of depressing. We put so much faith in the justice system to keep us safe, and here they are chucking innocent people in jail. And poor Pat still ends up getting convicted.
March 14, 2019
If you think justice is just, you need to read this book. It is a sharp reminder that the legal system is not concerned about justice, but "winning" and prosecuting "crime" becomes so obsessive that legality goes out the window. Humes paints a most damning picture of the Bakersfield California legal system that would make you want to avoid every level of the law. Police withheld info; prosecutors misquote testimony, DA accept any criminal for a prosecution witness. The only explanation for the prosecution of Pat Dunn is laziness on the part of the police. They had their own theory and forced all evidence and statements to fit that interpretation and never looked at any other option and refused to believe any statement contrary to their theory.
This is not a case where money corrupts justice. There were many cases where race was a major part of the miscarriage of justice, Pat Dunn is not that. The system just leaped to a conclusion immediately and never wavered.
Well researched, well written, it will make you scared of the legal system.
This is not a case where money corrupts justice. There were many cases where race was a major part of the miscarriage of justice, Pat Dunn is not that. The system just leaped to a conclusion immediately and never wavered.
Well researched, well written, it will make you scared of the legal system.
March 8, 2022
This book makes me angry. How can people do so much to craft the world in a way that suits them, but that isn't the truth? It's hard to take that the main characters in this non-fiction book so abused the premise of evidentiary rules to violate the goals of the American justice system that 9 guilty men should go free so that one innocent man is not found guilty. That did not happen here for Pat Dunn and hundreds of others in Kern County, which as the author points out, is sadly not an isolated instance. Support your local Innocence Project to do right by those illegitimately imprisoned.
October 14, 2022
Way, too much input.
February 25, 2023
This was ... unreal. I was am still in awe after finishing it. Wow.
May 28, 2023
I would not have believed there was so many incidences of prosecutorial misconduct had I not read everything about the Duke rape case. Very interesting.
August 14, 2023
For fans of the true crime genre - read this to undo some of the brain damage that you undoubtedly got watching Law and Order. This book is a gripping dive into the case of a falsely convicted man and exposes the cruelty of Kern County Prosecutors and Police Officers.
May 8, 2020
Having lived through much of this history, it was a painful reminder of how the "Good Ol' Boys" network did its business. The Lords of Bakersfield were indeed powerful, and a poorly held secret among the Kern County gay subculture of the 70s and 80s.
June 29, 2012
I liked reading about the miscarriages of justice, and how the quest for being 'tough on crime' can lead to witch hunts and over-zealousness, but the writing was just too redundant and repetitive. Many of the set-ups did not really lead to a payoff.
July 8, 2012
One of the most frightening books I've read.
September 22, 2013
It wasn't too bad. First book that I read by this author.
June 17, 2010
Great read on the spirit of justice in Kern County
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews