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The Serial Killer's Apprentice

And 12 Other True Stories of Cleveland's Most Intriguing Unsolved Crimes

by James Renner

• Format: Softcover, 240 pages, 5.5 x 8.5 inches
• Illustrations: 71 black-and-white photographs
• ISBN: 978-1-59851-046-1
• Price: $14.95

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Description

Here are thirteen true stories about the most notorious unsolved crimes in the last half century of Northeast Ohio. Investigative reporter James Renner recaps the cold cases and attempts to crack open dark secrets that have baffled Clevelanders for years, including:

• Abduction—In 2003, sixteen-year-old Georgina DeJesus disappeared on a West Side street corner, almost exactly one year after teenager Amanda Berry vanished just blocks away

• Stolen Identity—Joseph Newton Chandler of Eastlake was not who he claimed to be. Some think he was the Zodiac killer; others say he was D.B. Cooper, or even Jim Morrison.

• Suicide or murder?—Joseph Kupchik hid gambling problems from friends and family until he was found at the bottom of a nine-story parking deck in downtown Cleveland—with multiple stab wounds.

• Heist—In 1969, Lakewood bank employee Ted Conrad nabbed $215,000 from the vault one day after his twentieth birthday. The FBI still shows up at his high school reunions.

• Controversy—Jeffrey Krotine was thrice tried for the grisly 2003 murder of his wife and ultimately acquitted, to the frustration of Cuyahoga County prosecutors, detectives, and even jurors.

These stories venture into dark alleys and seedy strip clubs, as well as comfortable suburbs and cozy small towns, where some of the region's most horrendous crimes have occurred. Renner's unblinking eye for detail and unwavering search for the truth make this book a gripping read.

Reviews

• “ . . . takes the imagination to a dark and chilling place. This, Renner's second book, shows off his talents in the [crime reporting] genre: an investigator's persistence, a strong sense of mystery-suspense storytelling and a direct and restrained style that can both pull back to describe a crime scene and turn sympathetitc to illuminate victims' vibrant but lost lives . . . Renner's writing is gripping, well researched and hard to put down.” — Cleveland Magazine
• “James Renner is genuine. He cares about these victims. They have become a part of him. He's not writing from a distance with apathetic cynicism. He's right in the heart of the cases, digging and searching for answers. When it comes to true crime, this is the kind of writer we need.” — crimeshadows.com
• “Renner's book is chilling because it reminds us that the bad guys often get away. Instead of the neat closure that we find at the end of every CSI and Monk episode, we have nothing but a pile of frustrating questions. Boxes stuffed with evidence and empty prison cells. In his 13 unlucky chapters we meet grieving friends and family desperate for closure. We are presented with enough accused that some of them must be innocent while all suffer the stigma of guilt. And we are introduced to the hardworking men and women that devote a lot of time to unraveling these mysteries with often frustrating results . . . If you want the pleasure of chasing a bad guy and nabbing him, this isn't your tale. This book is for the true-crime aficionado that understands the frustration of a cold case. It is for the amateur sleuth that wants to paw through Renner's facts hoping to find a missed clue. It is for those of us that find the ice-cold splash of reality intellectually more refreshing than the perfect neatness of fiction . . .This is a book you buy for the stories more than the storytelling. It is written with minimal flourish, as if they are long newspaper features rather than short stories. I think this style worked well for the subject matter, as Renner seems to take great pains in staying out of our way as we draw our own conclusions.” — crimecritics.com
• “This is a great book for true crime aficionados who don't necessarily require a tidy ending. Reporter Renner investigates Cleveland's most unsettling and mysterious cold cases, including the case of two young women who vanished on the same street a year apart. Renner has a great, documentary-like feel to his storytelling --- you experience the cases first-hand as he sorts through the clues, theories, conjecture and intrigue.” — truecrimediary.com
• “James Renner's "The Serial Killer's Apprentice" is not for the faint of heart. This well-written book delves into 13 true and as yet unsolved Northeast Ohio cases — many involving grisly murders . . . Renner tracks down leads as he reviews the cases and confronts suspects. Although new techniques, such as analyzing DNA may someday be used to discover what really happened, Renner's book makes clear that today the truth stubbornly remains elusive.” — Morning Journal
• “This is a most fascinating book. I know journalists are constantly told to stay objective, but it's obvious that these cases have touched Mr. Renner on a personal level . . . There are stories of a suicide that may have been murder, a bank heist in 1969 in which the offender seemingly vanished off the face of the earth. There are stories of missing persons, people who got away with murder, and people wrongly convicted of murder. . . I highly recommend this book to any true crime fan. It is one of the best I have read in a long time.” — CrimeNe.ws
• “Renner has once again put pen to paper to bring cold cases to the lime light . . . His book will leave you pondering 'who did it?' and tempted to do a little investigative work yourself. Renner does an excellent job of bring new life to cases many seemed to have given up on, and his clear passion for solving the Amy Mihaljevic murder case seems equally met with his passion for the 12 newly highlighted cases.” — lostinlimaohio.com
• “Renner doesn't just tell these stories. He gets involved in them, often taking a stab at trying to solve them as he did in the Amy Mihaljevic case . . . Most of the mysteries are as enticing as any you are likely to see on any network crime show. The only difference is that in these real crime stories, the guilty remain at large” — News Journal
• “Well written and well researched” — WTAM AM Radio

About James Renner

James Renner is a staff writer for the alternative weekly newspaper Cleveland Scene. His film adaptation of a Stephen King story was an official selection at the 2005 Montreal World Film Festival. A graduate of Kent State University, Renner lives in Akron, Ohio. He is also author of Amy: My Search for Her Killer. More About James Renner

Other books by James Renner:

• Amy: My Search for Her Killer
• It Came from Ohio!

If you like The Serial Killer's Apprentice, then you should try:

• They Died Crawling by John Bellamy
• The Maniac in the Bushes by John Bellamy
• The Corpse in the Cellar by John Bellamy