Justice in the Age of Judgment by Anne and Doug Bremner

Justice in the Age of Judgment: From Amanda Knox to Kyle Rittenhouse and the Battle for Due Process in a Digital Age by Anne Bremner
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - in and out over 4 days

Pages - 248

Publisher - SkyHorse Publishing

Source - Review copy

Blurb from Goodreads

In Justice in the Age of Judgement, Anne Bremner and Doug Bremner take us inside some of the biggest cases of recent times and offers her expert, thought-provoking insights and analysis as our legal system faces unprecedented forces fighting to tip the scales of justice their way. Why couldn’t prosecutors convict O.J. Simpson despite all of the evidence seemingly proving he killed his wife Nicole? Could a jury remain unbiased in the face of overwhelming public pressure in the trial of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd? Why was Kyle Rittenhouse exonerated after shooting three people (killing two) with an assault rifle at a violent rally despite widespread media reports seemingly proving his guilt, and national calls for his conviction?

Justice in the Age of Judgement is an unparalleled and unflinching look at the captivating cases tried on Twitter and TV, where the burden of proof and fundamental legal tenet of “innocent until proven guilty” is under assault from the court of public opinion.


My Review

I love reading true crime books and those covering court cases. Everybody has heard of Amanda Knox and the case, it was hugely publicised and on the news so much. There are many cases in the book that you will know and some I didn't, all are fascinating.

The first few chapters the author takes us through how she came to take the case and then the next what it is like to be in the jury. We then go into the cases, the author gives facts and some commentary on her thoughts as we explore the cases. Her brother doesn't come into the book until much later and gives his take.

I found the examinations and views of the public, social media and how this influences and or influenced cases so interesting. There is information on Amanda Knox and how corrupt some things were, professionals involved in her case (I remember the trial in the news but not a lot of actual details). After seeing a high profile case (not murder) and then how some of it was spun in the media, portrayal and attack on individuals and peoples views it does make you appreciate just how shocking it can be. It makes you question agendas, why people are doing XYZ whereas in days of old you just assumed the police/courts got it right and it was looking at innocence and guilt whereas the reality is what you can prove and nowadays the sway/pressure of the public opinion.

The cases are quite short snippets, just a few pages (excluding Amanda Knox as she features more than once in the book) and I would like more in depth on the cases as they are really interesting. I would like to see more cases examined like in this book. Darrell Brooks I think, I still cannot believe what I watched on the days I managed to catch snippets from the court. The Depp vs Heard case (whilst not murder it was televised and public opinion was huge on this, even now still debated). There are so many cases that I feel this book could absolutely be a series of books, there is so much material/cases that could be used and examined but again I would like more depth on the cases as it is a very interesting read, 4/5 for me.

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