Clanton, Mississippi, a usually peaceful area. That is, until 10 year old Tonya Hailey was beaten and raped by some to KKK followers, James Louis "Pete" Willard and Billy Ray Cobb. After police finding her body hanging from a cross in the middle of a corn field and rushed to her hospital, the case gets soon taken to court. But wait, the possibility of the rapists getting to be set free is higher than them being convicted? Now put yourself in Carl Lee Hailey's shoes (father of Tonya). He is a Vietnam verteran who just wants her daughter to be happy and healthy and she gets treated like this because she's black? And that the defendants might be set free? He had to take things into his own hands.
While transporting James Louis and Billy Ray to jail, Carl Lee appears from the crowd with a rifle shooting and killing the rapists and wounding the officer, which led to the amputation of his leg. Carl Lee is then transported to jail on the charge of capital murder. What will happen in court? Read the book to find out.
This book was just as inspiring as it was horrifying. The KKK was insane and had no right to do that to a girl just for being black. It's not her fault. I think John Grisham wrote this book to show how stupid and insane the white people of America were. He made people realize the message of everyone being equal.