In this tale of courtroom intrigue from critically acclaimed author J.F. Freedman， a disillusioned lawyer accepts a life-or-death case in search of his own redemption. Luke Garrison is hiding from the past. Once a brilliant， successful prosecuting attorney， he now lives in rustic Northern California， trying to forget the only mistake he ever made in a courtroom... sending a man to his death， only to find out later he was innocent. But three years later， a judge and former mentor to Luke asks him to come to Santa Barbara to defend a high-profile television newscaster accused of murdering a 14-year old girl. At first Luke is hesitant. He likes his new life， and he has a great relationship with a beautiful local woman. But as he learns more about the case， his old instincts kick in and he interrogates the defendant， only to emerge unconvinced of the man s innocence. He takes the case anyway， determined to get back in the game...a case that could redeem his life， or finish him for good.