Investigative journalist and true crime podcaster James Renner comes to Riverstone with his gripping narrative LITTLE, CRAZY CHILDREN
Investigative journalist and true crime podcaster James Renner will discuss his his deeply personal true-crime narrative Little, Crazy Children: A True Crime Tragedy with Pittsburgh's own master of suspense, Kathleen George.
Set in the idyllic, upscale community Cleveland suburb of Shaker Heights, Little, Crazy Children examines the 1990 investigation into the murder of 16-year-old Lisa Pruett, who was found stabbed to death behind her boyfriend’s family’s mansion the day she got her drivers’ license. Tragically, the case remains unsolved.
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The murder cast a palpable gloom over the community and sparked accusations, theories, and rumors among Lisa’s friends and peers. Together they wove a damning narrative that circled back to a likely suspect: “weird” high school outcast Kevin Young. Without a shred of evidence, the teen was arrested, charged, and tried for the crime. His eventual acquittal didn’t squelch the anger and outrage among those who believed that Kevin had gotten away with murder. Renner's revelations and perspective offer a unique in-depth take that boldly proposes another suspect more likely to have committed the murder.
With a fresh perspective and painstaking research culled from police files, court records, transcripts, uncollected evidence, and new interviews, Renner reconstructs the events leading up to and following that heartbreaking night. Who had the capacity for such unchecked violence? What monsters still lurk in the dark? After more than thirty years, questions like these continue to fester among the community of Shaker Heights, Ohio, still deeply scarred by wounds that remain hidden, unspoken, and unhealed.
James Renner is an investigative journalist, podcaster, and critically acclaimed author of both nonfiction and fiction books, including True Crime Addict and The Man from Primrose Lane. Previously the host of Lake Erie’s Coldest Cases on ID Discovery, he currently hosts the podcasts “The Philosophy of Crime” and “True Crime This Week.” He is the founder and director of The Porchlight Project, a nonprofit that provides genetic genealogy for cold cases in Ohio. He lives in Akron with his wife and children.
Kathleen George was born in Johnstown Pennsylvania. She is the author of an acclaimed series of procedural thrillers set in Pittsburgh, including the Edgar nominated,The Odds. Her standalone novels include The Johnstown Girls, The Blues Walked In, and Mirth. Kathy is the editor of Pittsburgh Noir, a collection of short fiction. Her work has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize and listed among the Distinguished in Best American Short Stories