Three Verdicts

Donald Findlay's first novel is a revealing and well-paced courtroom drama surrounding the murders of Glasgow hardmen Kevin Boyle and Mick Clark from rival families. The Crown has charged Clark's boss, Charles Gallagher and the defence is lead by James Muirhead, one of Scotland's leading criminal QCs. The case against Gallagher is strong but as it unfolds Muirhead begins to make progress and is able to destroy the testimony of two of the main Crown witnesses. Then Muirhead's life is threatened and he is told to lose the case. Another witness commits perjury and a senior police officer commits suicide. Muirhead is attacked and is left in no doubt that Gallagher must go down. The police join in the race to find who is threatening Muirhead before the case closes. A man with an Irish accent becomes a common factor in both murders and Gallagher's mother begins to sense that all is not what it seems. For Muirhead, the police and Charles Gallagher time is running out... This story portrays that unique clash of cultures, the criminal justice system and the criminal underworld.