Essay on "Trail of in Cold Blood"
Essay 4 pages (1129 words) Sources: 1
[EXCERPT] . . . .
Cold BloodReceiving a Fair Trial in Nonfiction Crime: Issues with the Defense in Capote's in Cold Blood
In Cold Blood, the last major work by author Truman Capote, is often considered to be the first ever work of long-form true crime. Capote set out to write a magazine article on the brutal killing of a family in a small Kansas town by two career criminals who didn't amount to much separately, but proved a very lethal combination for the Clutter family. What the author ended up with was several years of following the sensation of the crime and the ensuing trial, followed by the lengthy appeals process and eventual execution of Perry Smith and Dick Hickock, the two men that had murdered a family in the middle of the night, after rousting them in a botched robbery (and possibly rape) attempt. The issue of whether or not these men had actually committed the murders was in little doubt; Smith gave conflicting confessions in which he either ascribed some of the killings to Hickock or took the blame for all of the actual murders himself. The issue of their actual guilt, however, is somewhat in question.
It is quite possible that Perry Smith was certifiably insane, possibly a paranoid schizophrenic. This is what is suggested at various points in the proceedings as they are described in Cold Blood, but evidence of this was not allowed to fully surface at court. The mental capacity and capabilities of at least one of this duo, and possibly the only one who committed any real acts of violence, has a definite impact on the real guilt that these men bear for the murders, and on the scope and direction that their defense should have taken.
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The Problems
The primary problem, as stated above, was the lack of a real presentation during the trial of evidence regarding the mental competency of the defendants, and especially of Smith. Under the rules of the court, all that the psychologist that had examined Smith and Hickock was allowed to testify to was whether or not the defendants were capable of telling right from wrong at the time they committed the crimes for which they were being tried. Replying that he could not be certain about Smith, the psychologist is… READ MORE
Quoted Instructions for "Trail of in Cold Blood" Assignment:
How do you evaluate the work of the defense attorneys in their courtroom defense of Perry Smith and Richard (Dick) Hilcock and the various stages of the appeals process? Did the defense attorneys do the most they resonably could be expected to do on behalf of thier clients? Did Smith and Hicock recieve a fair trail? If not, how would you have structured defense*****'s courtroom presenataion so that Perry and Dick would have had the best possible representatoin by attorneys?
This question is based on the novel In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
Please quote from the book to support the point of view in which I have no preference.
I would prefer the *****: ***** but if this person is unavailable this is ok.
How to Reference "Trail of in Cold Blood" Essay in a Bibliography
“Trail of in Cold Blood.” A1-TermPaper.com, 2010, https://www.a1-termpaper.com/topics/essay/cold-blood-receiving-fair/82996. Accessed 28 Sep 2024.
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