A Matter for the Jury

Description

1964 brings fresh challenges to Ben Schroeder, now a member of chambers headed by Bernard Wesley QC. A courting couple have been attacked on the banks of the River Ouse near Ely. The news of beating, rape and murder soon become January's sensational headlines. Schroeder is called to assist the defence but lead QC, Martin Hardcastle, has a reputation that goes before him. As the pressure mounts, talk of alcoholism fills the court with Hardcastle's repeated absences and seemingly reckless actions risking the support of his team. It is left to Ben to deal with the consequences.

Born in 1946, Peter Murphy graduated from Cambridge University and pursued a career in the law in England, the United States and The Hague. He practised as a barrister in London for a decade, then took up a professorship at a law school in Texas, a position he held for more than twenty years. Towards the end of that period he returned to Europe as counsel at the Yugoslavian War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague for almost a decade. In 2007 he returned to England to take up an appointment as a judge of the Crown Court. He retired as Resident Judge and Honorary Recorder of Peterborough in 2015. Peter started writing fiction more than twenty years ago, but following his retirement from the bench he became a full-time author, often drawing on the many experiences of his former career. Two political thrillers about the American presidency: Removal and Test of Resolve were followed by eight legal thrillers in the Ben Schroeder series about a barrister practising in London in the 1960s and 1970s. Alongside those he also penned the light-hearted series of short story colllections featuring Judge Walden of Bermondsey in the 'Rumpole' tradition, based in part on his own experiences as a lawyer and judge, and recently published A Statue for Jacob, based on the true story of Jacob de Haven. Peter passed away in September 2022.

"a page-turner recommended for anyone who enjoys courtroom fiction or the history of 20th century law"--Editor's Choice Review from Historical Novel Society, November 2015