Unequal Verdicts: The Central Park Jogger Trials

On April 19, 1989, a young, white, female investment banker --her name has been withheld throughout the case-- jogging in Manhattan's Central Park was raped and severely beaten by a group of African American and Hispanic teenagers. Shortly before the assault, this gang also attacked others who were using the park for so-called ``wilding.'' In his absorbing book, Sullivan, news editor for the Courtroom Television Network, skillfully sorts through diverse details of the investigations and trials. Relying also on transcripts and interviews with lawyers and jurors, he demonstrates how prosecutors developed their case from circumstantial evidence, how numerous errors were made by defense attorneys and why one of the more implicated defendants received a relatively light sentence. Less satisfying is the fact that the author fails to discuss the role of the press and issues of gender, race and class raised by the case. are virtually ignored. Film rights optioned to Edgar Scherick Productions for HBO; Literary Guild alternate. (Nov.)