Blood Ties Bloody Lies

"I am Estelle Blackburn, an investigative journalist, with a passion for pursuing injustice and truth. I agreed to write the foreword to Blood Ties - Bloody Lies because it has a similar theme to my award-winning book: Broken Lives - The Complete Life and Crimes of Serial Killer Eric Edgar Cooke. I originally set out to write about the notorious serial killer who changed the fabric of society in Perth, Western Australia. A city in which, in the early Nineteen Sixties, people never locked their cars or houses. A once innocent and carefree Perth became frightened, insular and under siege. However, during my research, I uncovered many inconsistencies and overlooked evidence on at least one case - the conviction of John Button for allegedly killing his girlfriend. Eric Cooke later confessed to the killing. That research led to the quashing of John's conviction and the freeing of Darryl Beamish for a similar wrongful conviction. Their Bios and photos are in the Appendix to this book. Blood Ties - Bloody Lies whilst a fictional story of secrets and lies is a believable account of choosing your friends wisely and how prejudice and injustice impact on those around them. I resonate strongly with the character Kate, the Community Legal Aid lawyer and her actions, as they mirror my journey in uncovering the truth, such as the wrongful conviction of John and Darryl and malfeasance by both Police and Judiciary in prosecuting their cases. Not only is Blood Ties - Bloody Lies a good read, but also a cautionary tale about knowing when to tell the truth and when to speak up before events change beyond the point of no return. It shows how prejudice and injustice can divide a community. Yet when called to account, the community healed those wounds. So I thoroughly recommend the book to you."" Estelle Blackburn - Canberra ACT ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ A reminiscent tale of injustice and bigotry set in the late 1970s, well before the age of political correctness. It will make you cringe with the horror of once was and grateful we're more enlightened these days. But are we? CG Clark - Perth"