Claiming Innocence is like no other book you've ever read. Filled with vivid, memorable characters, it teems with high adventure in times of brutality and duress, offset by strong bonds of love and loyalty. Mark becomes highly adaptable, driven by revenge through times of extreme violence, life on the run, even taking refuge with a tribe of cannibals. Ultimately a feel-good read, this is a page-turner, written with precision, sensitivity, and care. About the Author JoAnne Harris Michels is the mother of eight children and twenty-seven grandchildren, and was named California Mother of the Year in 2015. She is involved in humanitarian projects at home and abroad, including Ayuda, which provides dental care in developing countries; The Globe Theater in London; and the Michels School for Special Needs Children in Kenya. She lectures locally for OUR (Operation Underground Railroad), which fights to combat human trafficking, specifically child sexual slavery. She lives with her husband Jerry (her consigliere) in Los Angeles, California, and is currently in the process of publishing her second book, "Sutras."

Forbidden relationships are the most tempting. And the most dangerous. It was a crime of passion—or so the police say. Valerie Solara has been charged with poisoning her best friend. The prosecution claims she's always been secretly attracted to Amanda's husband…and with Amanda gone, she planned to make her move. Attorney Izzy McNeil left the legal world a year ago, but a friend's request pulls her into the murder trial. Izzy knows how passion can turn your life upside down. She thought she had it once with her ex-fiancé, Sam. Now she wonders if that's all she has in common with her criminally gorgeous younger boyfriend, Theo. It's Izzy's job to present the facts that will exonerate her client—whether or not she's innocent. But when she suspects Valerie is hiding something, she begins investigating—and uncovers a web of secret passions and dark motives, where seemingly innocent relationships can prove poisonous…

It was a crime of passion or so the police say. Valerie Solara has been charged with poisoning her best friend. The prosecution claims she's always been secretly attracted to Amanda's husband...and with Amanda gone, she planned to make her move. Attorney Izzy McNeil left the legal world a year ago, but a friend's request pulls her into the murder trial. Izzy knows how passion can turn your life upside down. She thought she had it once with her ex–fiance, Sam. Now she wonders if that's all she has in common with her criminally gorgeous younger boyfriend, Theo. It's Izzy's job to present the facts that will exonerate her client whether or not she's innocent. But when she suspects Valerie is hiding something, she begins investigating and uncovers a web of secret passions and dark motives, where seemingly innocent relationships can prove poisonous

A surly billionaire who had a soft spot for one woman. A gorgeous lady whose bright smile reminded him of sunshine. Years of bright burning embers that erupted into the flames of pure passion. In the lavish realm of a grumpy billionaire, Ryan held his most forbidden desire buried deep: an enduring crush on his closest friend, Poppy. The girl with a smile like sunshine that illuminated his world. Their bond was unbreakable, yet he always held her at arm’s length, viewing her as beyond his reach. He dreaded that crossing into romance might endanger the most precious friendship he cherished. If only Ryan didn’t find Poppy so captivating and flawless. She was beautiful and had curves that would make the devil fall to his knees. He defied his one rule and leaned in for a kiss... and she met him halfway. In an instant, their entire existence shifted irrevocably. Poppy wanted him to kiss her. She clutched his shirt and drew him in, desperately kissing him back. She seemed to need his touch. All his years of silent pining led to a tidal wave of ferocious hunger crashing down on her shores. They were soon carried away with their wild passion. And it didn’t stop at a one night stand. They both needed each other like they needed the next breath. At least, he thought they did. As they navigated this delicate new dynamic between them, a surge of possessiveness threatened to upend everything. The fear of losing her friendship loomed large... but he found himself unable to resist claiming her with a primal desire. Could he muster the courage to lay bare his true emotions and persuade her to take a leap with him, despite the forbidden nature of their bond? Or would uncertainty tether them both down, leaving them merely as friends, always yearning for something more? From Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestselling author Vivian Wood comes a new billionaire best friend’s little sister romance. Fans of King of Wrath by Ana Huang, The Fine Print by Lauren Asher, and My Dark Romeo by Parker S. Huntington and LJ Shen will love this book. keywords: wealthy, lavish, billionaire, empire, obscenely good looks, jealous, kiss, ruthless pursuit, good girl, mine, I’m falling for her, night of passion, rich, sexy, off limits, forbidden, best friend, carrying a torch, long-burning secret love

"When Aleksandra Dimitriou is revealed as the secret daughter of Akathinia's former king, she's torn from her comfortable existence and thrust into the royal world...under the protection of Aristos Nicolades. Aristos has orders not to touch the innocent princess, but the beautiful Aleksandra calls to the rebellious urges that the self-made Greek tycoon thought he overcame long ago. As the head of their desire rises, the rules begin to evaporate. It's soon clear that the person Aristos should be protecting Aleksandra from is himself!"--Page 4 of cover.

With the rise in divorce and child custody battles, child abuse charges have become a weapon of choice, often times false, and it is these accusations that are tearing apart lives, affecting all involved. The Child Welfare system supposedly designed to help children is actually helping children to destroy their lives. This book affords those falsely accused and their defence attorneys, who often find themselves in a 3-ring circus...juvenile, family and/or criminal courts, a vehicle for countering and defeating abuse allegations. The book is a life jacket for the falsely accused parent and inexperienced attorney. Dean Tong is an internationally known forensic consultant on related child abuse, domestic violence and child custody cases.

The moment my best friend's little sister walked into my bar, I should have thrown her out. The moment she convinced me to take her innocence, I knew I was a dead man. The way her perfect body tempted me, It was only a matter of time before I claimed her. Then her brother shows up back in town needing a job, My only option? Fire her and tell her exactly what this was. A mistake. The last thing I expected, To find her beaten in a hospital bed... Carrying my unborn baby. I don't care what it takes, She's mine. Our unborn baby is mine. Forever. Read as part of this series or as a stand-alone book. No Cliffhangers and a HEA!

Proposes groundbreaking, fundamental reform for the adversarial legal system to keep innocent people from going to prison We rely on the adversarial legal system to hold offenders accountable, ensure everyone is playing by the same rules, and keep our streets safe. Unfortunately, a grave condition lingers under the surface: at all times the imprisonment of possibly tens of thousands of innocent people. The Plea of Innocence offers a fundamental reform of the adversarial system: plausibly innocent people may now plead innocent and require the government to search for exonerating facts; in return, they will be required to waive their right to remain silent, speak to government agents, and participate in a search for truth. While almost all the participants within the system hope that only guilty people will be convicted, the unfortunate reality is that innocent people are convicted and imprisoned at an alarming rate. With the privatization of defense institutions, accused innocent people are themselves responsible for finding the facts that could exonerate them. Though the poor are represented by public defenders—in fact, almost no one who is charged with a crime has enough money to pay for a complete defense—it is still accused people, not public officials, who bear the entire burden of proving their innocence. Tim Bakken believes that reform of the three-hundred-year-old adversarial system is long overdue, and that the government should be responsible for searching for truth—exonerating facts for innocent people—rather than being satisfied with due process. While it is improbable that all the facts in any case will ever be known, the essential point is that the acquisition of facts will almost always benefit an innocent person who has been accused of a crime. Featuring compelling evidence and concrete steps for reform, The Plea of Innocence is at once sensible and revolutionary, a must-read for anyone invested in restoring truth to the justice system.

Beyond Exonerating the Innocent: Author on WAMU Radio Convicted Yet Innocent: The Legal Times Review Choice Outstanding Academic Title for 2008 DNA testing and advances in forensic science have shaken the foundations of the U.S. criminal justice system. One of the most visible results is the exoneration of inmates who were wrongly convicted and incarcerated, many of them sentenced to death for crimes they did not commit. This has caused a quandary for many states: how can claims of innocence be properly investigated and how can innocent inmates be reliably distinguished from the guilty? In answer, some states have created “innocence commissions” to establish policies and provide legal assistance to the improperly imprisoned. The Innocence Commission describes the creation and first years of the Innocence Commission for Virginia (ICVA), the second innocence commission in the nation and the first to conduct a systematic inquiry into all cases of wrongful conviction. Written by Jon B. Gould, the Chair of the ICVA, who is a professor of justice studies and an attorney, the author focuses on twelve wrongful conviction cases to show how and why wrongful convictions occur, what steps legal and state advocates took to investigate the convictions, how these prisoners were ultimately freed, and what lessons can be learned from their experiences. Gould recounts how a small band of attorneys and other advocates — in Virginia and around the country — have fought wrongful convictions in court, advanced the subject of wrongful convictions in the media, and sought to remedy the issue of wrongful convictions in the political arena. He makes a strong case for the need for Innocence Commissions in every state, showing that not only do Innocence Commissions help to identify weaknesses in the criminal justice system and offer workable improvements, but also protect society by helping to ensure that actual perpetrators are expeditiously identified, arrested, and brought to trial. Everyone has an interest in preventing wrongful convictions, from police officers and prosecutors, who seek the latest and best investigative techniques, to taxpayers, who want an efficient criminal justice system, to suspects who are erroneously pursued and sometimes convicted. Free of legal jargon and written for a general audience, The Innocence Commission is instructive, informative, and highly compelling reading.