THE STALKING OF KRISTIN. A Father Investigates the Murder of His Daughter

Hardback. In May 1992 Kristin Lardner, a lovely, bright and promising young art student at the Museum School in Cambridge, Massachusetts, was shot three times in the head at point-blank range. Her killer was an ex-boyfriend, a known criminal whose occasional brushes with the law had done nothing to moderate his penchant for violence toward women. Kristin had seen enough of this violence to obtain a restraining order against the man - "the number one weapon," according to authorities, "women have to protect themselves." But in the end it had been little more than a piece of paper. Kristin's father, a veteran investigative reporter for the 'Washington Post', knew nothing of the restraining order, when he and his wife made the agonising flight up to Boston to identify their beloved daughter's body. They had only known that Kristin had been away from home in a relatively safe community, that she was enjoying her studies, and that she had recently broken off a relationship with a boy they had never really liked the sound of. Lardner's ignorance would soon end. For in an extraordinary act of fatherly love and professional courage, he asked his editors at the 'Post' if he might be allowed to report on this case that had touched his life so profoundly. This book is the powerful result of his investigations. It is at once the vividly and painfully realised story of his daughter's death and of the man, Michael Cartier, who stalked and killed her, and a passionate and penetrating look at the criminal justice system that averts its eyes from domestic violence. Kristin's death could - and should - have been prevented. Her killer simply should have been behind bars at the time of the murder. The article the author wrote for the 'Post' about the murder of his daughter was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1993. With Notes and Index. 340pp. 8vo. h/back. From the library of true-crime writer, Wilfred Gregg, with his personal b/plate. Nr. F. in nr. f. dw.