The true story of the trial of a woman accused of a murder in Grey County in 1988 allows readers to follow along with the case presented to the jury, and make their own judgement.
Author Brian Barrie wrote Four Bullets, Four Witnesses, Four Liars, The True Story of a Murder and the Trial That Followed, which centres on the legal aid defense of a woman who admitted to shooting and killing a man in an old remote cabin on East Linton Road.
"That's where the police found Mr. Strutton lying on the bed. His hands hitched into his belt, fully clothed, on his back, but three bullet wounds in his temple, left temple, and one in the heart," Barrie revealed. "And it was pretty clear to the police that he was dead. And then it became the who done it."
The book uncovers sadness and desperation just a few kilometres away from Owen Sound.
"A woman who was in her early 30s was charged with murder, and it was an unusual case, because all of the potential people that could have been involved gave statements, but she gave the only statement that said, I did it, and I shot this man who was an abusive man by the name Jimmy Strutton. I shot him four times," explained Barrie.
Barrie said the legal aid department had their hands full trying to defend Mae McEachern.
"It was nearly impossible, we thought, because everybody pointed the finger at her, and she pointed the finger at herself," he continued. "So it was a strange case, until you got into it and found out that the four witnesses turned out to be four liars, including her, and so the jury had to figure out what really went on, and that's what the story is about."
Barrie added that McEachern was an overweight woman with cognitive difficulties, who lived with Strutton.
"So she was made fun of as a child, and when she grew up, I think she realized that she would never have children of her own, so she looked to the only families that she could, she could have by taking in some runaways, and they became the witnesses," Barrie noted.
He called the Crown Attorney prosecuting the case nasty and arrogant. Barrie said the Crown converted other witnesses against McEachern, even though that they had given statements that were contradictory, pointing at each other.
"So it (the case) kind of acted as exposing the best of people and sometimes the worst of people," Barrie said. "And also the justice system and how it can work against those that aren't able to afford high priced lawyers, and at that time, we were legal aid lawyers."
Barrie's story puts readers in the shoes of his four witnesses, who are the aforementioned four liars.
"It deals with people that are underprivileged," he disclosed. "And Mr. Strutton, who was the person who was killed, was a very abusive man, but he had mental health issues. And there was alcoholism. The 15-year-old, Paige, ran away from home because of alcohol. So there were all these various competing themes."
Four Bullets, Four Witnesses, Four Liars, The True Story of a Murder and the Trial That Followed is one of four books in the running for the Grey County Reads contest. People are encouraged to read the stories, and vote for their favourite.
One community library will win $200 worth of books and three random voters will win books as well. Entrants must vote by September 29, 2024 at 11:59 pm EST to be eligible for prizing.