HARLAN, Iowa -- Months after the release of my best-selling book, DIXIE's LAST STAND: WAS IT MURDER OR SELF-DEFENSE? I visited the hometown of Dixie and Scott Shanahan and gave a pair of PowerPoint book presentations in the same community where Dixie's momentous 2004 murder trial occurred. wildbluepress.dixie Thursday's presentations at the Harlan Community Library was a trip down memory lane. Back in 2003 and 2004, I covered the criminal … [Read more...]
Who was your favorite character in DIXIE’S LAST STAND?
When I wrote DIXIE'S LAST STAND: WAS IT MURDER OR SELF-DEFENSE? I made a concerted effort to limit the number of key characters in this feature-length book for #WildBluePress. You can find out more about the book and how to purchase it at #Amazon #Kindle by clicking here https://dev.wildbluepress.com/dixies-last-stand-john-ferak-true-crime/ Sure, there were plenty of names and positions that were paramount to the case. Iowa Division of … [Read more...]
A small Iowa sheriff’s office comes up big in Ferak’s new book, DIXIE’S LAST STAND
(Seated: Shelby County Sheriff Gene Cavenaugh, with chief deputy Mark Hervey ) Photo Courtesy of The Harlan Newspapers As I set out to produce this story as an original True-Crime Feature for WildBlue Press, there was no shortage of angles. Questions about self-defense, justification and mandatory sentencing laws. The crime was bizarre given the length of time that Scott Shanahan's body was left in his bedroom. A body in the bed. A … [Read more...]
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