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Sign up todayThe Suspect
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Learn moreA contributing source for the Warner Bros.’ film Richard Jewell starring Sam Rockwell, Kathy Bates, Jon Hamm, Olivia Wilde and Paul Walter Hauser!
A gripping insider account of the terrorist bombing at the 1996 Olympic Games that captured the world’s attention, and the heroic security guard-turned-suspect at the heart of it all
On July 27, 1996, a hapless former cop turned hypervigilant security guard named Richard Jewell spotted a suspicious bag in Atlanta’s Centennial Olympic Park, the town square of the 1996 Summer Games. Inside was a bomb, the largest of its kind in FBI and ATF history. Minutes later, the bomb remotely detonated by the attacker amid a crowd of 50,000 people. But thanks to Jewell, it only killed two and wounded 111, not the hundreds who authorities estimated could have otherwise died. With the eyes of the world on Atlanta, the games continued. But the pressure to find the bomber was intense. Within seventy-two hours, Jewell went from the hero to the FBI’s main suspect, a false accusation that forever changed his life and let the true bomber roam free to strike again.
In a triumph of reporting and access, Kent Alexander and Kevin Salwen’s The Suspect is a gripping story of the rise of domestic terrorism in America, the advent of the 24/7 news cycle, and an innocent man’s fight to clear his name.
Kent Alexander was the US Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia at the time of the 1996 Olympics. He spent hundreds of hours working with the FBI to find the bomber, and he ultimately wrote and hand-delivered Richard Jewell’s clearance letter.
Journalist Kevin Salwen was a longtime Wall Street Journal reporter and editor who ran the paper’s southeastern section during the Olympic Games. He is the coauthor (with his daughter, Hannah) of The Power of Half: One Family’s Decision to Stop Taking and Start Giving Back.
Paul Michael, winner of several Earphones Awards, has also won the prestigious Audie Award for best narration. He has acted on stage, radio, television, and in feature films in Canada, Great Britain, and the United States. He has had leading roles in series and made-for-television movies and has guest starred in such series as VIP and Alias. He has been nominated for a Canadian Emmy and has recorded over 150 audiobooks, including the international bestseller The Da Vinci Code.
Reviews
“Domestic terror, white nationalism, FBI profilers, a trial by punchline in the infancy of the twenty-four-hour news cycle—what happened in Atlanta’s Centennial Park during the ’96 Olympics still echoes like a bomb blast today in this engrossing and meticulously researched ticktock about the railroading of Richard Jewell and the killer who almost got away.”
“Meticulously reported, bracingly written, full of memorable and bizarre characters…It’s a story with no winners—except for readers of this terrific book.”
"[A] compelling, insightful new investigative account of the bombing and the immediate aftermath…[of] this misunderstood tragedy.”
“Lays bare how Jewell became their unwitting victim in the rush to solve the biggest and most public crime of the era. It is a cautionary tale that reminds us that criminal investigations are often lengthy and painstaking, ill-suited for today’s media frenzy. The Suspect is an important, highly relevant book.”
“Intensively reported and fluidly written.”
“A thorough recounting of failures by federal law enforcement and the media that upended the life of an innocent man.”
"Marvelously rich with fresh insights and authority…Alexander kept a detailed journal, and his unique perspective powers the book.”
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