The Thirteenth Crime: The Ghosts of Injustice in Frontier Otter Tail County

by Janet Preus

227 pages, Paperback

Published January 23, 2025

Reviews

[Erin Cataldi · Rating 3 out of 5]

A young girl by the name of, Lillie Field was, brutally murdered in Otter Tail County, Minnesota in 1887. The author speculates that justice was being served, because prior to Lillie's murderer being punished for his crimes (by hanging) many others before had not served time for murder. In fact, the little county was getting a reputation for letting murderers walk free. The author sensationalizes the many instances (twelve to be exact) of murderers walking free in part one and then in part two she goes into the death of Lillie Fields and talks about how justice was finally served. I liked the concept of this book, but the execution left a lot to be desired. I loved that maps were included but I would have liked to have seen photos an newspaper clippings as well. My biggest beef was that nothing was cited; newspapers and dates were referenced but when the book ends there is no works cited. This could easily have read as fiction, especially since so much was embellished (mannerisms, dialogue, etc). A blurb on the back of the book touts "an insightful, creative and well researched account of crime and punishment in 19th century rural Minnesota..." It was creative all right!

[Lindagail Roy · Rating 5 out of 5]

What do you do when a teenagers ghost grabs you and won't let go? Writing that makes the past come alive with unvarnished historical facts that expose frontier life. Meticulous historical research that creates an accurate pictures of our early justice system. Ms. Preus uncovers the injustices of the law in the newly organized county of Otter Tail, Minnesota. And she paints it using lovely prose; "...pale blue eyes, empty and lost, like a summer sky with no clouds to define it." The ghosts of these crimes wouldn't let go until the author put them to rest on paper.