“Very few historical nonfiction writers capture the essence of an era. Fewer do that with the grace and talent of a novelist. George Dekle not only presents the story of what could be the first #MeToo moment in American history—complete with deception, psychopathy, murder, and justice—but elevates his narrative by compassionately showcasing victim Helen Potts’s role in American history as a forgotten martyr for women’s rights. An incredible book, Six Capsules is the first must-read of the spring 2019 season ... teeming with vitality, integrity, insight, new information ... delving into the dark elements of a society long forgotten. A stimulating, lavish and page-turning narrative.”—New York Times bestselling author M. William Phelps
“‘Was an innocent man murdered by the State of New York?’ Dekle deftly, and broadly, addresses that question on two fronts—yesterday, through a detailed deconstruction of the late 19th century trial proceedings, and today, from his perch as both prosecutor and law professor emeritus.”—William L. Tabac, author of The Insanity Defense and the Mad Murderess of Shaker Heights: Examining the Trial of Mariann Colby
As Ted Bundy was to the 20th century, so Carlyle Harris was to the 19th. Harris was a charismatic, handsome young medical student with an insatiable appetite for sex. His trail of debauched women ended with Helen Potts, a beautiful young woman of wealth and privilege who was determined to keep herself pure for marriage. Unable to conquer her by other means, Harris talked her into a secret marriage under assumed names, and when threatened with exposure, he poisoned her.
The resulting trial garnered national headlines and launched the careers of two of New York’s most famous prosecutors, Francis L. Wellman and William Travers Jerome. It also spurred vigorous debate about Harris’s guilt or innocence, the value of circumstantial evidence, the worth of expert testimony, and the advisability of the death penalty. Six Capsules traces Harris’s crime and his subsequent trial, and highlights what has been overlooked, the decisive role that the second-class status of women in Victorian Era culture played in this tragedy.
George R. Dekle Sr. served as a legal skills professor at the University of Florida, where he directed the Prosecution Clinic. His most recent book, Prairie Defender: The Murder Trials of Abraham Lincoln, won a Superior Achievement Award for Scholarship from the Illinois State Historical Society and Gold Medals for Biography and Politics from the Florida Authors and Publishers Association.
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