THE POISON TREE A True Story of Family Violence and Revenge

Hardback, 1st US edn. A shocking crime and at the time one of the most widely publicised and least understood murders. An outwardly respectable IRS agent was slain by his 16yr. old son, who was aided by his 17yr. old sister. The "execution" of Richard Chester Jahnke received national attention in 'Newsweek', 'People', 'Rolling Stone', and on '60 Minutes', and was the basis for a television movie, 'Right to Kill?'. But the family secrets that lay behind the slaying were even more shocking than the crime itself. The patricide was the bitter fruit of beating, child abuse, and sexual molestation. In the words of one of the attorneys in the case, "Violence begets violence" - and the cycle of brutality and fear in abusive families is one of the central themes of this book. The narrative follows the Jahnkes over 20yrs., tracing Jahnke's early domination of his wife snd children, the family's eerie, isolated double life, the teenagers' growing defiance of their parents, a botched child abuse investigation by local authorities, and finally the shooting and its aftermath, including 2 dramatic trials. Both teenagers were tried as adults, and their experience in the legal system raised several thorny issues. Was their crime an act of private vengeance, self-preservation, or both? What rights do abused adolescents have when they are no longer regarded as children? What role did the surviving spouse play in the father's abuse and in his death? A book which yields fresh insights into the psychological complexities of family violence - and the plight of teenagers who are legally and emotionally trapped in abusive homes. 318pp. 8vo. h/back. Lightly sunned and foxed edges, sl. slanted sp. o/w Vg. in Nr. Vg. protected dw. which has small hole to fr. cover (see image). A scarce 1st edn.