Stories from the Old Yard: Book One

by J.M. Fitzmaurice

In his book Stories from the Old Book One, the Murders, J. M. Fitzmaurice chronicles two decades of brutal murder inside the MAX-custody federal penitentiaries at Lompoc, California, and other Bureau of Prisons facilities. From Lompoc to Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, and Florence, Colorado, to Marion, Illinois, Fitzmaurice reveals the backstory behind the brutal killings carried out in medieval fashion by deadly prison gangs and ruthless predators on the federal penitentiary circuit. Interlaced with humanity, humor, and compassion, Stories from the Old Yard is much more than regurgitated investigative reports—it captures the courage and heroism of the young men and women who risk their lives daily to protect one another and Convict Nation alike! Some of these BOP staff gave their lives in this mission, and Fitzmaurice pays them the tribute they earned by making the ultimate sacrifice! The afterword includes a sneak peek from book two, More Stories from the Old Yard!

284 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 15, 2020

Reviews

[Kay]

The author is my cousin! Otherwise, I never would have picked up this book. He had a stellar career as a prison guard and investigator at Lampoc Federal Prison. I guess I never considered that when criminals are locked up together, there will be crime. I was shocked at the amount of murders that happen inside prisons, where inmates who are already serving long terms have no qualms about incurring more time inside. To be honest, I did not finish the book. I was too overwhelmed by the reality. But I'm incredibly proud of J.M. Fitzmaurice for his detailed chronicle of his experiences.

[Jeremy T]

As a former corrections professional of nearly two decades myself I found the book to be incredibly raw. Fitz does a good job detailing his experience in the BOP as well as describing the gruesome grind of the continued criminal activity behind bars. While I hoped this book would have been more appealing considering the shared career background this unfortunately was not the case. The chronology of the book felt disjointed and I routinely found it difficult to follow along at times.
While I highly respect Fitz's dedication to a career that quite frankly goes unseen, unheard and unrecognized, this book was not for me. However, for those who have interest in real life crime and drama I now have a book I just might be able to recommend.

[J.M. Fitzmaurice]

I love this book of course, but I can't review because I'm the author and that wouldn't be right! Fitz