Ultimate Verdict by Michael Winstead

Ultimate Verdict by Michael Winstead

Judge Raleigh Westlake has dedicated his career to the pursuit of justice. For a decade he toils within a broken system, until a notorious murder case lands in his court. A young woman has been murdered on a snow-covered mountain, and her killer has confessed. The killer is convicted and sentenced to the ultimate verdict-death.

But the appellate court reverses the conviction on a technicality because the killer was deaf at the time of his arrest. A confessed murderer goes free. This miscarriage of justice launches Judge Westlake and four colleagues on a quest for justice despite the system. With the cooperation of two determined lawyers and two dedicated US marshals, Westlake creates his own mobile courtroom, hidden within a semi-trailer. The most perverse and arrogant criminals are tried secretly and given the final, unappealable verdict.

The sentences are harsh, and swift executions are disguised to look like accidents or suicide. Judge Westlake needs more. He must send a message with one final verdict. A traitor among them informs US Attorney Caroline Bannister about the secret court. With Bannister in pursuit, Westlake is forced to confront his lawless actions and test his dedication to true justice.

Michael Winstead, a thirty-year veteran of courtroom battles, enjoys delving into complex issues such as law and disorder, crime and punishment, and life and the ultimate verdict-death. In the tradition of lawyer authors like John Grisham and Scott Turow, Winstead probes the intricacies of our justice system, wrapping significant questions in a fast-moving plot. He writes from places that inspire creativity and imagination, including the mountains and the sea.