Vincent Bugliosi
Vincent Bugliosi | |
---|---|
Edgar Allan Poe Award (1975, 1979, 2008) | |
Spouse | Gail Bugliosi |
Children | 2 |
Vincent T. Bugliosi Jr. (
In 1972, Bugliosi left the District Attorney's (DA) office and started a private practice, which included defense cases for criminal trials. He twice ran for the DA's office, but was not elected. He also began his writing career, exploring notable criminal cases.
Early life and education
Bugliosi was born on August 18, 1934, in Hibbing, Minnesota, to parents of Italian descent. When he was in high school, his family moved to Los Angeles. Bugliosi graduated from Hollywood High School.[1] He attended the University of Miami on a tennis scholarship and graduated in 1956. In 1964, he earned his law degree from the UCLA School of Law, where he was president of his graduating class.[2]
Career
Bugliosi began his law career in the
Manson prosecution
As a
Bugliosi successfully prosecuted Charles Manson, Tex Watson, Susan Atkins, Patricia Krenwinkel, and Leslie Van Houten for these murders, and each was convicted. He was credited especially with gaining conviction of Manson, who, although he had tied up the La Biancas, had not been physically present during the actual murders.[3]
Political candidate
In 1972, Bugliosi ran as a Democrat for Los Angeles County District Attorney against longtime incumbent Joseph Busch. Joseph Gellman was his legal counsel for this campaign. Bugliosi narrowly lost the campaign. Bugliosi ran again in 1976, after Busch died of a heart attack in 1975, but lost to interim District Attorney John Van de Kamp, who was incumbent.[2]
Private practice
After leaving the Los Angeles district attorney's office in 1972, Bugliosi turned to private practice. He represented three criminal defendants, achieving acquittals for each of them—the most famous of which was Stephanie Stearns (referred to as "Jennifer Jenkins" in his book), whom he defended for the murder of Eleanor "Muff" Graham on
O. J. Simpson case
This article needs additional citations for verification. (May 2013) |
Bugliosi wrote
Bill Clinton
Bugliosi criticized the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Clinton v. Jones. In his book, No Island of Sanity, he argues that the right of a president to be free of a private lawsuit while in office outweighed Paula Jones's interest in having her case brought to trial immediately.[6]
George W. Bush
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Bugliosi condemned the
RFK assassination
Bugliosi is on record for believing that Senator Robert F. Kennedy was the victim of a conspiracy. He said the following during a civil trial of the RFK assassination: "We are talking about a conspiracy to commit murder ... a conspiracy the prodigious dimensions of which would make Watergate look like a one-roach marijuana case. ... The signed statements given me perhaps can be explained away, but in the absence of a logical explanation, these statements, by simple arithmetic, add up to too many bullets and therefore, the probability of a second gun."[8] As a result of his research, Bugliosi came to refute conspiracy theories.
JFK assassination
In 1986, Bugliosi played the part of prosecutor in an unscripted 21-hour mock television trial of Lee Harvey Oswald. His legal opponent, representing Oswald, was the well-known criminal defense attorney Gerry Spence. London Weekend Television sponsored the mock trial, which followed Texas criminal trial procedure. It also included a former Texas judge and a jury of U.S. citizens from the Dallas area which reviewed hundreds of exhibits and listened to witnesses who testified about the assassination. The jury found Oswald guilty. Spence remarked, "No other lawyer in America could have done what Vince did in this case."[9]
The program required extensive preparation by Bugliosi and inspired him to later write a comprehensive book on the subject of the assassination. His 1,612-page book with a
The title of Reclaiming History derived from Bugliosi's belief that the history of the Kennedy assassination has been hijacked by conspiracy theories, the popularity of which, he asserted, has a pernicious and ongoing effect on American thought:
Unless this fraud is finally exposed, the word believe will be forgotten by future generations and John F. Kennedy will have unquestionably become the victim of a conspiracy. Belief will have become unchallenged fact, and the faith of the American people in their institutions further eroded. If that is allowed to happen, Lee Harvey Oswald, a man who hated his country and everything for which it stands, will have triumphed even beyond his intent on that fateful day in November.
— Vincent Bugliosi, Reclaiming History, p.1011.
Writing career
After leaving the district attorney's office, Bugliosi wrote, jointly with
Bugliosi wrote several other books, mostly dealing with well-known crimes. His works include
Method of writing
Bugliosi did not own a computer and at one time did all his research through library
Personal life
Bugliosi was married, and he and his wife Gail had two children: a daughter, Wendy, and a son, Vince Jr. Although raised
Death
Bugliosi died of cancer at age 80, at a Los Angeles hospital on June 6, 2015.[13] He is interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California.[14]
Works
Books
- Edgar Award, 1975, Best Fact Crime book)
- Till Death Us Do Part: A True Murder Mystery (with Ken Hurwitz) (1978) (Edgar Award, 1979, Best Fact Crime book)
- Shadow of Cain (with Ken Hurwitz) (1981)
- Lullaby and Good Night (with William Stadiem) (1987)
- Cleopatra: Biography (1988)
- Dinner with the Timbo: Getting to Know a Great Man (with Timothy Bishop) (1990)
- And the Sea Will Tell (with Bruce Henderson) (1991)
- Drugs in America: The Case for Victory - A Citizen's Call to Action (1991)
- The Phoenix Solution: Getting Serious About Winning America's Drug War (1996)
- Outrage: The Five Reasons Why O. J. Simpson Got Away with Murder (1996)
- No Island of Sanity: Paula Jones v. Bill Clinton—The Supreme Court on Trial (1998)
- The Betrayal of America: How the Supreme Court Undermined the Constitution and Chose Our President (2001)
- Reclaiming History: The Assassination of President John F. Kennedy (2007) (Edgar Award, 2008, Best Fact Crime book)
- The Prosecution of George W. Bush for Murder (2008)
- Four Days in November: The Assassination of President John F. Kennedy (2007)
- Divinity of Doubt: The God Question (2011)
In film and television
Many of Bugliosi's books have been adapted to the screen, and he appeared as a character in several of them.
- Helter Skelter 1976 (portrayed by George DiCenzo)
- On Trial: Lee Harvey Oswald (1986 TV film appearing as himself)
- And the Sea Will Tell 1991 TV film (portrayed by Richard Crenna)
- Till Death Us Do Part 1992 TV film (portrayed by Arliss Howard)
- Helter Skelter 2004 (portrayed by Bruno Kirby)
He also appeared as himself in the 1973
Articles
- "No Justice, No Peace", Playboy, February, 1993.
- "None Dare Call It Treason", The Nation, February 5, 2001.
References
- ^ a b c Rebecca Trounson and Elaine Woo, "Famed Manson family prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi dies at 80," Los Angeles Times, June 9, 2015.
- ^ a b c David Stout, "Vincent T. Bugliosi, Manson Prosecutor and True-Crime Author, Dies at 80," The New York Times, June 9, 2015.
- ^ The Nation: Vince Bugliosi bio
- ISBN 978-0393040500.
- ^ Petievich, Gerald (July 6, 1996). "Simpson Prosecution Guilty of Incompetence?". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 9, 2015.
- ^ Bennet, James (March 11, 1998). "Testing of a President". The New York Times. Retrieved January 21, 2014.
- ^ Bugliosi, Vincent (February 5, 2001). "None dare call it treason". The Nation.
- ISBN 978-0-394-40273-4.
- ^ "The Prosecution of George W. Bush for Murder: About The Author". Archived from the original on August 28, 2008. Retrieved June 11, 2015.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-59315-481-3(2008) Acknowledgments
- ^ "Mystery Writers of America Announces the 2008 Edgar Award Winners" (Press release). May 1, 2008. Retrieved May 2, 2009.
- ^ June 14 2011 interview on the Dennis Prager Show
- ^ Noyes, Jack; Goff, Kelly (June 9, 2015). "Former LA Prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi Dies at 80". NBC4 Los Angeles – KNBC. Retrieved June 9, 2015.
- ISBN 0786479922
External links
- VIDEO: Bugliosi talks with Investigation Discovery about the Manson Family murders. July 2, 2008
- Vincent Bugliosi video interview with the American Book Tour on the Kennedy Assassination
- Vincent Bugliosi Interview on Democracy Now! regarding The Prosecution of George W. Bush for Murder
- Appearances on C-SPAN
- Vincent Bugliosi at IMDb