Texans need to read Michael Morton’s new book, Getting Life, An Innocent Man’s 25-Year Journey From Prison To Peace.

The memoir details his life in prison after being erroneously convicted of killing his wife, and the ordeals that pervade in a justice system that has again failed.

The horrible murder occurred on Aug. 13, 1986, in which his wife, Christine, was savagely bludgeoned to death in the couple’s bed after Mr. Morton had gone to work. His son was an eyewitness who said that it was not his father who committed the murder, but law enforcement politics dismissed this and pompous officers aggressively pegged Morton with the killing anyway. It wasn’t until DNA evidence became available and the testing of a bandanna with the killer’s DNA on it that Morton was finally released. It was also learned that the same murderer had killed another woman in a similar fashion near the Morton house.

As has happened frequently in other Texas cases, evidence had been collected just a few days after the murder that was never investigated. The rush to convict even an innocent person was the paramount goal of authorities.

The book includes information logged by Morton as a prisoner – recollections, court transcripts, and journals he penned during the two-and-a-half decades of incarceration where he was stripped of his freedom and was subject to the real dangers and hellacious ineptitude of Texas prison life.

Morton describes the inner workings of the prison system in great detail and the heartbreaking mental conflicts that he went through. For instance, a truly innocent person in Texas does not qualify or parole, since the inmate has to admit the crime and show remorse. Do you lie about your innocence in order to qualify and forever possess the label of confessed murderer even if you didn’t do it, allowing a free pass to the real killer who can continue to murder, or do you remain steadfast in the truth that you are innocent and perhaps spend the rest of your life in prison? There were also conflicts regarding family members who knew he was innocent but felt incapable of proving it because of dramatic flaws in the justice system that is fraught with roadblocks for those wanting truth to prevail.

DNA testing was not available 25 years ago. Now it is, which has caused the release of many innocent victims whereby law enforcement personnel have protected the guilty parties and gone after the wrong man.

Recently it came to light that personnel in the DPS labs have for years lied about results in order to obtain convictions, which throws into question whether their trust is ever warranted.  One lab individual had over 3,000 such cases that came into question, where errors were purposely made. This has caused backtracking on cases and the release of several innocent people. However, some had already served their full term. Again, the powers that be protected the guilty in accomplice fashion, allowing the guilty to continue to commit crimes while destroying the lives of the innocent.

We highly recommend Morton’s book Getting Life. It is an adventure nobody should ever have to take. His writing style is compelling, his descriptions moving, and the story itself one of a kind. It’s a book that you won’t be able to put down.

Two endorsements on the back cover are noteworthy:

Dan Rather wrote, “A true Texas story of how our system of justice can itself be criminal. Michael Morton’s powerful take will take you with him into mourning, into prison, and finally, thankfully, back out into the light.”

David R. Dow, founder of the Texas Innocence network, wrote: “Imagine spending 25 years in prison for a murder you did not commit. Imagine the murder victim was your wife, the love of your life. And imagine it all happened because prosecutors and law enforcement officials cooked up a case against you and hid evidence that would have identified the real killer. Michael Morton doesn’t have to imagine, because he lived it. It’s usually a cliché to say someone has been to hell and back, but in Morton’s case that is exactly what happened, and his stunning and lyrical account of the journey will break your heart, then make you mad, and finally fill you with hope.”

The book can be ordered on Amazon, http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Life-Innocent-25-Year-Journey/dp/1476756821. There is also a DVD version entitled An Unreal Dream – The Michael Morton Story, which also gets high praise. It is a documentary film by Al Reinert and can also be ordered from the same Amazon link previously provided.

— W. Leon Smith