Fatal Flaw: A True Story of Malice and Murder in a Small Southern Town

by Phillip Finch

A real-life account of a miscarriage of justice details the conviction of Tommy Ziegler for the murders of his wife, in-laws, and a bystander and presents evidence that could reopen the case, clear... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0679408614
• ISBN13: 9780679408611
• Release Date: October 1992
• Publisher: Villard Books
• Length: 327 Pages
• Weight: 1.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.5" x 9.6"

Customer Reviews

A must-read for either side of Capital Punishment

The reporter who wrote this supposedly went into it thinking the guy was guilty, but when he was done with the research, he had a different opinion. I read this book for a college paper and was shocked at how the best legal system in the world (which I still believe it is) can go so wrong. After reading this book I was so angry, that I thought that even if this guy is guilty, he should walk free, because everybody else acted so wrong throughout this case's history. Even today, over 30 years later, he is still sitting on death row. The problem is in the appeals system, where even this jury thought it would be righted.

Killers go free....

Have you ever stopped to think that cases such as Tommy's, whose innocence I believe in, the person or persons that committed a murder are still free to kill again? After being involved in a case of someone I care about and having the police, prosecutors, and the judge betray that person, I started reading stories of other real life people who had also been betrayed by the police, prosecutors, judges, well... the whole "justice" system. One of the first books I read was "Fatal Flaw". After reading this book, with my heart breaking for Tommy and his mother, I contacted Tommy. He became a very dear friend of mine, as did his precious mother. Tommy has lost both his father and his mother while being in prison. I cannot think of a more hurtful thing in the world than to be in prison, an innocent person, and to lose someone you love. Not to mention Tommy's wife having been murdered, and not by him. This book is the most wonderful book about the way the lack of justice is allowed in our country. It is easy to read, easy to follow and understand. Phillip Finch is a wonderful author who did not go into the telling of this story because he believed in Tommy's innocence. Because of his ability to do research and his honesty, he had to come to the conclusion that Tommy is innocent. If you read this story, you will see why he and others thought Tommy could be guilty. You will think... wait! I thought he is suppose to be innocent. Keep reading. You might also think on this while reading. Other facts have come to light since the book was written to prove even further that Tommy is not just "not guilty" but totally innocent. Where are those who committed these murders? Not in prison! Does that worry you? Does it make anyone safer because "someone" is in prison for the murders? Sadly that does satisfy too many people. Does it bother you that this can happen to anyone? Maybe you or someone you love? You might think that it never would, but if you are in the wrong place at the right time for the police, you could have evidence put together to make you or someone you love look guilty. Think about that! Read this story. You can read this book online at no cost. Do a search for Tommy Zeigler. One thing that I would like to tell you about this book that was most shocking to me is concerning the jury. Did you know that other than physical abuse, a jury can do or say just about anything to get other jurors to change their mind. Nothing is suppose to leave the jury room about what is said or done during the trial. Nothing is recorded. In this book you will learn how a juror was allowed to hold a gun to another juror's head and pull the trigger. This woman was a hold out for "not guilty". The juror wanted her to change her mind. The woman tried to tell the judge, but he would not allow the woman to talk. He did not want a mistrial. Finally the woman managed to get a message to the judge. He had a doctor write her a prescription for

Fatal Flaw: A True Story of Malice and Murder in a Small Southern Town, by Phillip Finch

A true-crime account involving the brutal murders of a wife, her parents, and a by-stander, this book could also fall into the cold case category as unsolved. The convicted, William Thomas Zeigler, is presently on death row, appeals exhausted, but still hoping for justice. Through the years he has had a large number of supporters, legal, forensic, and others interested in his appalling situation who believe he should be exonerated. The reader will be shocked at the magnitude of the crime, the investigation(s), and the astonishing conclusions.

Southern Fried Justice

That Southern justice can be an oxymoron is no surprise. But this book lays out in stunning detail how the system can close ranks to create an impenetrable thicket of corruption. It methodically deconstructs the state's case to reveal a disturbing array of official misinformation, mistakes and misconduct. The case is no less pertinent today, almost 30 years later, for the defendant still resides on death row. Perhaps the most stunning aspect is that the case has never been successfully appealed as it wended its way North through Federal courts. One suspects that the trial of a wealthy white businessman who killed his wife and three bystanders for insurance hardly makes even the most strident card-carrying ACLU member's heart race. Indeed, a drug dealer who murdered a policeman has more success in the courtroom - overturning a case on nearly identical grounds under which the defendant's is not. How did he find himself in the Kafkaesque struggle? He broke perhaps the highest law of the deep South one year earlier by coming to the defense of a black man. The guilt in this frightening indictment of our legal process does not end with the defendant: It does not even begin there. Unfortunately, however, neither does it end with the original perpetrators of the crime. If you liked "The Thin Blue Lie", you will love this book.

Why Some Death Row Inmates Get Life?

In 1975, Winter Garden, Florida was a small, one-horse migrant labor and truck stop town bypassed by the supposed prosperity brought to Central Florida by the Disney Company. Spared the rapicious raping of the Kissimmee-St Cloud area, with its swamp draining killing of animals, Winter Garden remained as it had been--a lower class white working community dependent on trucking and citrus for its existence.Enter William Thomas Zeigler who, by the author's own description drove oldsmobiles and detested rock and roll music. Unknown to many residents, the Zeigler family wealth stood at just over one million dollars--a princely sum in the 1970s. The quiet, modest veneer of the Zeigler family was broken by the existence of sexual problems between Tommy and Eunice Zeigler. Two weeks before the murder of Eunice, the couple stopped having intercourse with Eunice threatening to go to a fertility specialist in Orlando. Rumors abounded that Tommy was homosexual and a member of a sex ring of important local men. The author points out that Zeigler commited two unforgiveable crimes. One, he helped a black man retain a liquor license in the face of local and state opposition. Two, he helped break up a loan sharking ring manned by members of the Orange County (Orlando) Sherrif's Department. Later that year, the Sherrif, Dave Starr, resigned under pressure and his chief deputy, Leigh MacEachern, wne to jail convicted of charges of official corruption.Finch outlines in great detail the malfeasance of police and prosecutors. First, sherrif's deputies trampled evidence at the crime scene. Later, judges and FBI authorities joined in to complete a fait accompli ensuring the swift journey of Mr. Zeigler to Florida's death row, where he remains to this day. Despite having two of the finest criminal defense lawyers in orlando--Ed Kirkland and Terry Hadley, Zeigler stood no chance of even getting a routine continuance or investigator access to the crime scene. Additionally, Finch outlines how key witnesses were not interviewed nor called to trial leaving the reader no doubt that the fix was in. Finch leaves the reader wondering an age-old question--how can a nation that calls itslef a democracy allow such malfeasance in its criminal justice system? I have a special interest in this book having lived in Orlando at the time of the crime and having visited the crime scene as recently as last year. Finch has written an important, readable indictment of southern justice.