Unmaking a Murder: The Mysterious Death of Anna-Jane Cheney

by Graham Archer

An investigation into an intriguing murder case and an unprecedented account of how the decisions made by organs of government can be defended and mistakes covered up. Anna-Jane Cheney worked at the epicenter of the conservative Adelaide legal community. She was vivacious, popular and talented with an impeccable middle-class upbringing. The man she loved, Henry Vincent Keogh, was a divorced 39-year-old Irish migrant with three children. She died just six weeks before their wedding date. Journalist Graham Archer became fascinated by the case. It wasn’t a matter of Henry Keogh’s guilt or innocence, but that a man could be sentenced to life in prison without him having received a fair trial. The story became an odyssey for Graham. Deliberately, he had no contact with Henry Keogh in the 13 years it took to have the case reviewed by the Supreme Court and have his conviction quashed. According to the prosecution Keogh had planned the drowning murder of Anna-Jane 18 months in advance. He had taken out five insurance policies amounting to $1.2 million over his fiancée’s life and forged her signature on them. In the end dogged determination prevailed, and after 20 years behind bars Henry Keogh was released.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, Audiobook

234 pages, Paperback

Published December 1, 2017

Reviews

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this a fascinating read, especially in light of having read Colin McLaren's "Southern Justice" - also dealing with an, as yet unresolved, case in which some believe a miscarriage of justice has occurred. I found Archer a much more plausible narrator than McLaren, although I acknowledge that this may largely be because I had personal knowledge of many of the factual inaccuracies and "alternate facts" in McLaren's book. Certainly, I found Archer's book substantially better written.
It seems that South Australia as a jurisdiction is subject to many of the same issues of nepotism and issues of personal conflicts through relationships between various parties that Tasmania does. This unfortunately does sometimes give rise to situations where perceptions arise that the justice system is far from blind. Certainly, all Australian jurisdictions, until the very recent past, have made it extraordinarily difficult for those who have been convicted and exhausted their appeal options to later bring new exculpatory evidence before the courts. While the policy background for such difficulties may be based on solid grounds, it can give rise to gut-wrenching injustices, as in Henry Keogh's case.

[Sue Gerhardt Griffiths · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘Graham Archer has spent the last 25 years in news and public affairs television. He has a special interest in investigative journalism and has won many awards for his coverage of institutionalised child abuse, miscarriages of justice and abuses of government power.’

So, I’ve read a few books revealing the disturbing facts of our justice system but this book… oh my gosh, this book, Unmaking a Murder, is crazy scary, the information in each page is almost mind-boggling. The author gives the reader a complete and detailed account of the corruption in the criminal justice system. My heart went out to Henry Keogh, a man convicted of a murder he didn’t commit, was sentenced to life imprisonment. So friggin’ sad.

I take my hat off to journalist Graham Archer for pursuing Henry Keogh’s case for 13 years, never giving up…, ‘and producing more than 60 television stories challenging the fairness of Henry Keogh’s conviction.’

After 20 years behind bars Henry Keogh was finally released.

This book is a real eye-opener and should be read by every Australian.

#Book Bingo 2018: ‘A non-fiction book’ - Unmaking a Murder by Graham Archer

[Olwen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, this story was an eye-opener. My naive self thought that justice was administered well by the courts, and that the forensic investigators always did their best and.... clearly I have been misinformed my entire life. This great read explains why it took two decades for justice to be administered (correctly). Don't read it if you want to maintain a belief that the world works as it should.

[Erinne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely could not put this book down. Riveting, fascinating and even frustrating at times. Utterly interesting insight into the justice (?) system in South Australia. Innocent or guilty, the amount of blind eyes turned for Manock almost made me feel embarrassed.

[Angelique Simonsen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting reading. I'm pretty convinced he didn't do it but it was pretty tough to get him out

[Denise Grantham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unmaking a Murder is a fascinating read, the story becomes an odyssey for the author and a dedicated few as they investigate and seek to change the conviction of Henry Keogh sentenced to life for the murder of his fiancée.
Journalist Graham Archer’s investigation uncovers mistakes and cover ups.
It certainly made me query my faith in the legal system.

[Kaz Bland · Rating 3 out of 5]

Listened to the audiobook of this. Although the story was good, I found the book went into detail that I thought was unnecessary and made it a lot longer than it needed to be. Reading the book may be different. Great story though in terms of an injustice that occrred and how ridiculously long it took to be resolved.

[Shirley · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Interesting read about miscarriage of justice. Lots of legal terms and people that, at times, I found difficult to follow. At times, felt it lacked some objectivity as it's seen only from the author's point of view.

[Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was really good. Shed light on a lesser known case.

[Carol · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very sad and sordid story.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

An amazing true story of the apparent miscarriage of justice. Very detailed - how do you compensate a person for 20 years wrongful imprisonment?

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Graham Archer obviously does his research meticulously and his writing is engaging, especially the court room scenes. Great investigational journaling.

[Marion · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting case. Hard to say how I feel about.