Overall I found the book to be extremely interesting and loaded with information. I previously had not heard about this case, even though I consume lots of true crime both in print and in podcasts. One of the things that stands out is that it really points out how witnesses testimony/memories can be very biased and based in what they firmly believe, be it the truth or not, and in the end lead to devastating outcomes. And there are times that these outcomes must be reversed in the name of justice. The road is often very long and difficult.
There were times, however, that I felt the book was a little difficult to follow, especially because chapters were broken down even further, and I would have to go back to reread something to make sense of what I was reading, so that made it take longer to read. There were other times where the author went off on a tangent that would confuse things.
With respect to the factual aspect of the material, it was definitely very thorough from the arrest right up to the overturning of the convictions.
Overall, I thought the book was a really good read and would recommend it to any other true crime consumer.

Beginning in 2001, University of Alaska, Fairbanks journalism professor, Brian O'Donoghue enlisted the aid of his students - over several years - to investigate a 1997 murder in which 4 men were convicted - he believed wrongly.

In 2013, the Innocence Project joined in and finally, the convictions were overturned and the men were freed.

It was an interesting idea to involve journalism students - who actually did excellent work in turning up sources and evidence. What was so disheartening was the time it took to unravel what actually happened. To some extent, it shows how difficult it can be to arrive at the truth, but also how when the pressure is on to solve the crime quickly, how easy it can be to railroad someone.

In this case three of the four were Athabascan Indians and the victim was white - which many think contributed to the immediate assumption of guilt and conviction despite lack of clear evidence. What was most troubling was the refusal of the prosecutor to seriously question the methods of achieving confessions, the problem with their star witness and most importantly the insistence that the confession of the actual killer (admitted not only to his lawyer, but also to a prison guard) should not be permitted to be heard. I hadn't realized until reading this that one of the exceptions to lawyer/client confidentiality occurs when an admission reveals that an innocent party has been convicted. And, of course, the admission to the prison guard was not confidential in any case. Yet she still argued for suppression.

The only criticism I have of the book was that there was too much detail. Many of the witnesses interviewed - at length - really had little to nothing to add to finding the truth. It did illustrate how difficult investigations of this sort are, but it was a slog at times to read all of it. Also, while the author was writing about his experience, some of the details of his life - like his trip to India, didn't add much to the story either.

Overall, I would recommend the book as a treatise in how the justice system often does not work without a lot of help from committed investigators.

This true crime account of the murder of a teenage Alaskan boy is a compelling read. Telling the facts of the murder,, quick arrests of four young men, their trials and sentencing. But not everyone thinks justice was served and perhaps the wrong men are behind bars. O’Donoghue recounts the lengthy investigation he is involved in which 18 years later brings new evidence, trials and revelations about The Fairbanks Four.

I requested this book from NetGalley because I lived in Alaska previously, including a couple summers in Fairbanks. I hadn't heard about this case and was interested since it's a place I know. What I loved about this: it was a true crime novel with a story that reminded me of Netflix's "Making a Murderer". This story of the Fairbanks Four made me angry, upset, sad - temporarily relieved at their release - and ultimately upset again that it ever happened in the first place. This is a story that should be told. Parts of the novel however were confusing. There is SO MUCH DETAIL and SO MANY CHARACTERS to keep track of. I also felt like at parts there were digs made about students (being late, having senioritis, the author not sure he could trust them) and digs about the university that didn't relate to the story (like going to conferences and not being reimbursed, not getting a video when the student paper sued the university). Some of that was distracting from the true story - I found myself waiting for it loop back in and figure out why it was relevant to include, but often it wasn't. There was a lot of detail about the investigative work and how involved the students were, often with leads going nowhere and all the work resulting in nothing, but it really highlighted all the effort they were putting into the case.

The title had caught my attention because I've visited Fairbanks, Alaska back in my childhood days. I had spent two weeks with my church youth group and will never forget the experience's. This novel was very interesting and quite gripping. You learn all about the broken-up justice system, one journalist, his students, and the Fairbanks community, all while digging into the story of the Fairbanks Four. The four young Alaskan Natives and Alaskan Indian descents were suspects and received lengthy prison terms. The journalist dives into what really happened and to find out the real truth. The students and their teacher uncovered lies and deceit. Which ended up showing how the four young men were put into jail, innocently at that. Very good story line and information.

This story shows us a lot about the painstaking process of difficult cold case investigations. I love the idea of using students to assist, because talent rises to the surface. O'Donoghue shows how emotionally draining but also inspiring it can be to chase down leads, talk to coy witnesses, visit prisons, and keep their enthusiasm up when success looks unlikely, Although it lacked hooks in places where they could have been used effectively and I wished the students' personalities had been deeper, it offers a solid sense of journalistic investigation when the odds are stacked against you.

I received a free copy of, The Fairbanks Four, by Brian Patrick O'Donoghue, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Fifteen your old John Hartman was found murdered, in late 1997. Police waste not tile in arresting four men for the vicious crime. An Innocent project to up their cause, that they were innocent. This was a heavy read.

Another very sad story for the victims family as well as the injustice of the accused. A little hard to follow for me, not due to the writing, but the complications from the investigation from the beginning of the crime.

I quit reading at 33%. This book is a hot mess. The author does not do the Fairbanks Four any justice when writing this book.
It was so disorganized, so many different viewpoints, and never really explaining to the reader what happened, how it happened, or why the reader should care.
After reading a third of the book, I still have no idea if the Fairbanks Four had a fair trial, if they were involved, or even how the young man was murdered.
This author does not do this crime justice.

The Fairbanks Four - Brian Patrick O’Donoghue

Oh my, what a sad story. 😢
Thank you for the opportunity to read this book.

I love my true crime and unfortunately this one didnt hit the mark for me. I found it to be disjointed. I found it hard to follow . I did enjoy finding out about the crime itself but the writing style ruined it for me.

This is a bit of a mess. The Fairbanks Four by Brian Patrick O'Donoghue is a book which is such an important story but told in a distracting way. The narrative is about a murder in Fairbanks, Alaska in 1997. Four men are convicted of the crime but numerous issues are apparent. The author, O’Donoghue, is teaching a college class in Alaska and uses this case as an example to dig into for his students. The work O’Donoghue and his class did to help shed light and bring justice to the case is extremely laudable. The way it is told is not.

There are numerous issues with how O’Donoghue presents the case to the reader. The first is organization. Chapters are broken down into sub-chapters which come at you fast and chaotically. This also means there are so many characters that it is hard to follow what is happening from page to page. Another problematic aspect is O’Donoghue himself. His tone comes off as extremely biased and strangely hostile from the first few pages. While some of these characters deserve our ire, he also takes pot shots at people for things that have nothing to do with the case and further muddle the narrative.

O’Donoghue also seems to insert himself when it is not necessary and talk about his personal life when it is not needed. There was so much more needed to flesh out the story, the setting, and the people and yet we get way too much of back and forth between characters who we don't know all that well. It's also problematic that in this true crime book, the author tells us in the beginning that he took "liberties" in reconstructing important conversations. I am firm believer this shouldn't happen at all in non-fiction, but especially not for important conversations.

Unfortunately, the book does not do justice to the incredible work done to help the Fairbanks Four.

(This book was provided as an advance copy by Netgalley and Sourcebooks.)

The Fairbanks Four is a true story about 4 teenagers that were wrongfully convicted of a murder back in 1997. I am a HUGE true crime fan, so this story was very interesting to me. I had heard of the Fairbanks Four, but never knew all the details. I love that Brian included his students in all of the research and interviews that pieced together this story. One thing I didn’t love about this book was that it was a little all over the place. At times it was hard to follow. That didn’t deter me from reading it and I would definitely recommend it to other true crime lovers, but just something to keep in mind. Overall, great read, very detailed, and the work was cited well! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Huge thank you to @sourcebooks and @netgalley for the advanced reader copy!

I do love a good true crime book and this one follows suit. This was an interesting read and very matter of fact with the facts of the case. Which is one thing I enjoy about these types of books - I don't want opinions I want to develop my own after reading the facts of what happened.

Thank you @sourcebooks and @netgalley for this advanced copy!

The Fairbanks Four: Murder, Injustice, and the Birth of a Movement by Brian Patrick O'Donoghue hit close to home for me. Literally, as I was not only the same age as John Hartman, but I lived on the same street the murder took place on. It was rather eye-opening and disturbing to read about all the gruesome details of this case that happened so close to me, but that I seemingly blocked out. I remember being a completely freaked out 14 year old, saddened and angry about the whole situation. Shocked. Scared. Yet, as an adult, the details surrounding the case were blurry at best. Reading this book brought me straight back to my freshman year and the horror that settled in my gut that winter. Fairbanks, although large in size, was still a small "everyone knows everyone" community, yet i was still surprised to hear name after name that I recognized. People that I went to school with, knew from my connections to the community. This story runs much deeper than I ever knew.
All these years later, I'm still disgusted by how this case was (mis)handled. All the injustices that were handed out without a second thought. I'm horrified that 5 boys lost their lives that night.

Although it wasn't an easy read, and I think this brought up some trauma that I clearly never dealt with, I'm glad it was written. No one wants to relive these details, but the story should still be told. Over and over if need be. For justice for John Hartman. For justice for George Frese, Marvin Roberts, Eugene Vent, and Kevin Pease. For closure for all involved.

Thanks to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS (non-fiction) for an advanced readers copy of The Fairbanks Four in exchange for an honest review.

Structural issues seem to be the theme of both nonfiction books I have read so far this year. This book purports to tell the story of 4 young Alaska native men unjustly convicted in 1997 of the murder of a 15 year old White boy. The author played a pivotal role in the ultimately successful vacation of these convictions. He first learned of the case while working as a reporter at the local paper. When he becomes a journalism professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks teaching Investigative Journalism, he chose this case to have his students investigate. This makes for a fascinating set up. Unfortunately, the author plays a little fast and loose not only with the timeline but also with the introduction and brief appearances of so many people from students to relatives of the Fairbanks Four to potential other suspects in the crime. I wish that someone else had told these men's stories.

Great read if you're into true crime! Enjoyed it. Thank you #netgalley and #Sourcebooks
Would highly recommend!

“On the night of October 11th, 1997, Hartman was found unresponsive, lying unconscious across a curb at the intersection of 9th Avenue and Barnette Street. He had been brutally beaten, stomped on, and kicked. He died two days later at Fairbanks Memorial Hospital.”

George Frese, Kevin Pease, Marvin Roberts, and Eugene Vent  (Athabascan) are known as the Fairbanks Four who were found guilty (despite having a strong case) and convicted in February 1999. Sentences ranged from 33 to 79 years.

On December 17th, 2015 all four convictions were ‘vacated’. These young men had spent 18 years in prison - all wrongfully imprisoned.

HOW DID THAT HAPPEN?!

Journalism professor, Brian O’Donoghue, and his students spent years investigating the Fairbanks Four case. Their findings were published in the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, a local paper, and became a major turning point in the case.

O’Donoghue’s book walks readers through the setting (the Native wedding, the issuing of the Permanent Dividend Fund cheques, the background of the four in question) and then examines the way the Fairbanks Police Department and the State of Alaska handled the cases, the retrial and the life after exoneration.

I was shocked to discover how unreliable the Alaskan justice system was, the extent of racism in the community and courtroom, and the incompetence of most people in handling this tragedy. The Alaska Natives and indigenous Americans were not granted a fair trial. The echo will be felt forever in this isolated, tight community.

Although it was a choppy read at times, O’Donoghue achieved his purpose in highlighting the broken justice system, the effort required to bring this trial to justice and keep the hope alive for the victim and the accused and their families.

“Freedom right now is worth more than money.”

I was gifted this copy by Sourcebooks and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

An intense and well researched look at the judicial system and its shortcomings. Innocent men were put away and only years later was their innocence proven. A great true crime story.

The Fairbank four, spent 18 years in prison for a murder they did not commit. The Fairbanks Four were arrested within a couple of days on suspicion of the murder, and it did not take long before 2 of his high school classmates George Frese and Eugene Vent confessed and implicated two other boys. Based on eyewitness testimony and a boot print on Hartman’s face that matched the tread on the boots worn by Frese the four were convicted of murder. This book looks at how their incarceration exposed the deep racial divides within the local community in Alaska and how Frese and Vent recanted their confessions. Fourteen years later the Fairbank four walked free after the innocence project revealed a confession by an entirely different group of young men. Thanks to NetGalley and to the publishers of this book for giving me a free advance copy of the book to preview and I am leaving this review voluntarily