The Shooter at Midnight: Murder, Corruption, and a Farming Town Divided

by Sean Patrick Cooper

The harrowing true story of a cold-blooded murder and one attorney’s quest to bring justice to a suffering Midwestern town

On a November night in 1990, Cathy Robertson was murdered in her home in Missouri. When the months-long police investigation stalled out, local law enforcement put the case into the hands of a private eye with his own agenda. In a close-knit town still reeling from the aftereffects of the farming crisis, friends and neighbors turned on each other. Mark Woodworth, the Robertson family’s neighbor, received four life sentences for Cathy’s murder, and the original suspect would be largely forgotten.

In a surprising, dramatic narrative that spans decades, Mark’s seemingly unwinnable case is taken on by Robert Ramsey, an attorney determined to uncover the truth. But the community’s way of life is irrevocably damaged by the trauma caused by the parallel tragedies of the farming crisis and the unsolved murder—raising crucial questions about the moral code of conduct of our entire nation.

Genres: Nonfiction, True Crime, Crime, History, Audiobook

384 pages, Paperback

Published April 30, 2024

Reviews

[Brendan (History Nerds United) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Corruption is a word that gets overused nowadays. I feel it should really be applied only when an entire system fails because of nefarious reasons. So when the subtitle to Sean Patrick Cooper's The Shooter at Midnight mentions corruption, I was ready to get my pedantic pants on. After having completed this book, my only quibble would be that "corruption" probably doesn't go far enough.

It's 1990 in Missouri when a husband and wife are shot in their beds while they sleep. The husband survives while the mother does not. Quickly, a very obvious suspect is identified. Then, very slowly, another suspect is seemingly chosen at random. This is one of many insane twists in this story where your sense of injustice will go into overdrive.

I liked this book a lot, but I will admit I didn't love it as much as I could have. Cooper is a good author and he can tell an engaging story. There are two major issues which keep this book from reaching its potential. The first problem (which I have noticed other reviewers have latched onto as well) is a subsection where Cooper talks about American farming from the 1970s onward. This section is way too long and, at best, provides background but barely has anything to do with the case. Secondly, Cooper gives a bit too much away about the corruption in the beginning of the book. There are quite a few details that could have been mind-blowing and enraging if revealed later in the book instead of the first half.

These missteps are distracting but not fatal. This is an amazing case and Cooper keeps it engaging throughout even if off on a tangent. If you are a true crime junkie, then this needs to be on your reading list.

(This book was provided as an advance copy by Netgalley and Penguin Group Books.)

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don’t read much true crime but this murder took place in Chillicothe, Missouri, which is very close to where I grew up. It’s always scary to read about how easily someone can be wrongfully convicted. I see that some readers here on Goodreads didn’t like the author’s digression into the 1980’s farm crisis and its impact on people in the community. I found that interesting and I think most people who were raised in rural communities in the Midwest would appreciate that part.

[Mrs. Read · Rating 2 out of 5]

Typical true crime books are about a crime, its discovery, the ensuing investigation and identification of the probable perpetrator, and subsequent trial[s]. The Shooter at Midnight, by Sean Patrick Cooper, is atypical. There is a crime and it is “discovered” in real time by one of its victims. Several chapters are devoted to a likely suspect (made all the more likely by the fact that the survivor recognizes and names him) who, according to the writer, is casually dismissed by the local small-town police force. The rest of the book concerns the tribulations of the teenager across the street, who is inexplicably targeted as and twice convicted for being the murderer. The writer makes clear his belief that entire police force and at least some of the state (Missouri) judicial system was dishonest, much of it corrupt, but he provides no convincing explanation of how that led to the scapegoating of the neighbor. Actually, he seems to believe that the murder, the false accusation, and virtually every other bad thing that happened in that era could be blamed on the farming crisis of the 1990’s,* which he describes in great detail. The book also provides a lifetime’s worth of ballistics instruction, which is equally fascinating.** It concludes with an argument in favor of the original suspect’s guilt. The Shooter at Midnight is several orders of magnitude longer than this review, and hard as it may be to believe, way more boring. True crime readers won’t miss anything by skipping it, although it may resonate with farming crisis aficionados.

*analogous to the 2008 housing crash after millions were convinced that since “what goes up must go up” they could could make a fortune by borrowing more money than they’d earn in their lives to buy overpriced houses that would surely appreciate, farmers enjoying the proceeds of several very prosperous years borrowed money to buy expensive farm equipment on the theory that markets and weather would naturally get even better.

**elderly OJ fans may be reminded of the days of boring, unintelligible DNA evidence

[Jimmy Chaillot · Rating 4 out of 5]

Now I never have heard of this wrongful conviction book but it makes my blood boil as much as the devil’s knot did.

This is the stuff of nightmares regarding our criminal justice system. The difference between this one and the West Memphis Three was they actually had a legit suspect with evidence they chose to ignore.

Now this book does drag on a bit so it’s not a highly recommend but I do recommend.

[Amanda Newland-Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a criminologist, I find stories of injustice appalling. Wrongful convictions top that list for me. So, the story of Mark Woodworth- and the railroading of him- written out in plain English, is absolutely stomach churning.

I can’t believe it’s taken so long for someone to write this book, although, given what it took for Cooper to write it- I guess it shouldn’t be surprising. He’s done a marvelous job making the story coherent.

If you’re a victim advocate, and an advocate for justice- you’re not going to want to miss this book.


Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Kat · Rating 2 out of 5]

Who knew there could be so much soap opera drama in a small farming community! I was enraged by the injustice of this story, but as far as true crime cases go, it was not my favorite. The story meandered a bit into farming history, which gives a great background on which to set our scene, but overall, left parts of the book feeling sluggish. If you like history, farming, or true crime with slithery serpents as lawmen, you will enjoy this. This one just wasn’t for me.

[Nicole Wijendra · Rating 1 out of 5]

i thought i could do it, and make my way through but i couldn’t. i think id love this as a podcast episode, but as a book it’s just not my cup of tea. very boring and just spitting facts out. unfortunate, cuz i wanted to enjoy it!

[Jamie Bright · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting story and horrifying injustice, but the story digresses quite a bit to set context, which was distracting in the audio version.

[Tori Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really glad this book was written and that attention was drawn to Mark Woodworth's absolute shams of trials, because holy shit this was one of the most shockingly blatant miscarriages of justice I've encountered in some time, for reasons that I still find murky and obtuse. That said, the read itself was almost punishingly dry, and seemed more than a little padded out with long, needless recitations of trial transcripts and prolonged in-depth discussion of the Midwest farming crisis of the late-20th century and its effect on the lives and livelihoods of local farmers. As far as the latter was concerned, I grew up in the region but was a child at the very tail end of this period, and lived in a far more urban city to boot, so much of this was brand-new information to me. So I personally found it extremely eye-opening, to realize that a crisis of that magnitude had been happening all around me and yet I'd never heard anything about it. Unfortunately I did not find it all that relevant to the crime and botched investigation and miserable trials this book was about--except perhaps to explain a bit of why the surviving victim was so willing to go against his initial testimony and to conspire to frame an innocent young man for his attack and his wife's murder--certainly not at the extent it was covered here.

I do think this case is well worth looking into, especially if you, like me, are interested in examining the ease and scope of police corruption in America, and addressing how our justice system is constructed in ways that easily accommodate these bad actors and allow these miscarriages to run rampant through our communities. I might just recommend picking up a physical copy or an ebook of this title, so you can skim some of the less directly relevant sections more easily than I could with the audiobook.

[Avid Reader and Geek Girl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read if you're in the mood for something: challenging, emotional, informative, reflective, & sad
Pacing? Medium

Overall Rating: 3.75 stars
I'd never heard of this case, and I doubt people outside of Missouri have. The case was horrifying because of this town's legal system's corruption.
However, the book got a bit too much into the farming crisis of the 19080s to today. While it was interesting and informative it was not what I was looking for when I picked up this book.
Overall, the book was a bit dry and told from a bit of an emotionless perspective.

Narrator Rating: 3.0 stars
The author did an okay job narrating his book, his voice was nice and smooth, just dry.

Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Drug abuse, Addiction, and Drug use

Moderate: Murder, Blood, Medical content, Death, Violence, Bullying, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Confinement, Toxic relationship, Death of a parent, and Stalking

Minor: Alcohol, Cancer, Mass/school shootings, Terminal illness, and Abortion

[Dona · Rating 5 out of 5]

Were you ever afraid of being accused of something you didn't do because of a combination of circumstances, corruption and preconceived ideas? That's exactly what happened to Mark Woodworth when he was sixteen years old. The combined effect of tensions caused by the farming crisis in the 1980's plus a healthy dose of good old provincial attitudes (what? a 16 year old who is quiet, likes to work with his father on the farm and isn't into cars and girls? Odd! Must be the killer!), and a police chief, private investigator and judge whose wackadoo influences were allowed to run rampant in rural Missouri robbed Woodworth of the 18 years of his life he spent in prison for a murder he did not commit. Far from sensationalistic true crime, this book is comprehensively and meticulously researched, delving into the causes of the farming crisis, systemic corruption and finally, Woodworth's exoneration. Only difficult to read because of the sheer injustice of the situation.

[William · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent book. The ridiculous “investigation,” by police and PI is beyond absurd and incompetent. The prosecutor had zero ethical or moral dilemmas which speak volumes about the asinine decision to pursue the case without a sober review of the so-called “evidence.” A local judge drunk on power and ego improperly acting to ensure a teenager was indicted! A PI taking material evidence out of the country to get a lab to obtain a very dubious ballistic evidentiary “expert” report? A PI interrogating a teenager in a murder case?! This case never should’ve made it to court in the first place. Police should’ve followed the real evidence. Not some SWAG (stupid wild assed guess) of a PI about the psychological make up of a quiet teenager. What an abysmal cast of characters from police, the PI and including the prosecutor and the judge. All of them should be ashamed of their conduct.

[Didine · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good non-fiction book about Mark Woodworth’s case. I did learn a lot about the Midwest farming crisis in the 80s and how it indirectly gave a narrative to the investigators involved in the case. It remains unclear how facts did not prevail earlier. What a waste of time and energy for both the Woodworth & Robertson Families.
On a bright note, it gives hope about some people in the judicial branch were willing to shed light on the pettiness of some of its “high public servants” and make things right at the end for Mark. It does remain unfair and heartbreaking that the Robertson family has still not been served justice 30+ years later.

[Jodie Bartz]

This True crime novel was very reminiscent of Netflix's "Making a Murderer". The setting is rural Missouri and the defendant is akin to Brenden Dassey--somewhat of a loner, possibly on the spectrum. Sean Patrick Cooper does an tremendous job of setting the scene and bringing readers into the farm crisis which helped to truly set the scene for the David Goliath battle of the political machine and uncheck power and the little man. Scary to think how sideways things can go. Not sure there are any victors at the end of the story but a truly good read.

[Rebecca Oliver · Rating 3 out of 5]

this wasn’t good, but i finished it. the case didn’t make any sense and the author took long (not entirely unfounded) detours into the economics and interpersonal drama that affected the town of this particular true crime situation. it was useful but made it hard to focus because i kept wondering when we’d get back to the murder. it was also like look, it’s this guy, and this other guy is innocent. not compelling but i have a book goal to meet!

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

True crime story details miscarriage of justice as a socially award 16 year old farm boy is convicted of the murder of a neighbor and spends nearly 20 years in prison before having the conviction reversed. Story doesn't flow as well as it could have due to the inclusion of lots of information that doesn't need to be there.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting story that I’m surprised I don’t remember since I lived within 100 miles of the area at the time. The book was a little hard to follow at times. Interesting section on the farm crisis but seemed kind of misplaced with the rest of the book.

An update on both families as of today would have been nice as well.

[Holly Dolezalek · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a super compelling read. Cooper does a great job of narrating the case from beginning to end, showing how corruption crept in and how the context of the farming crisis contributed to what happened. It's surprisingly easy to read and flows really naturally. Excellent work.

[Cassandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Audiobook. 5.0. This is my hometown. These are the people and places of my childhood. The author has clearly done his research and I appreciate his grasp of the lasting impact of the farm crisis on the town and those who lived through it.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great journalism! Fair warning he tells a lot of backstory that may not be for anyone looking for a true crime story. He spends time explaining the farming loan crisis of the 80s and a deep dive into a local judge but I found it gripping.

[Margie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A true life story of how a person can be charged and convicted when they truly did not do it. Long and drawn out but a good story of trust and community.

[Qamar · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[J.J. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting and well researched but not super gripping.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5

[Beth Ann Garcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating tale of murder and corruption with a hint of farming history.

[James Butler · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️ 1/2