A new book by renowned human rights activist and journalist Eva Merkacheva, author of the bestsellers 'High-Profile Cases,' 'City of the Doomed,' and 'Who Lives Well in Rus',' explores fascinating criminal cases—from those that made headlines across Russia to those that were (until recently) classified. It includes trials from the tsarist era, including those of sorcerers and poisoners. Unique court materials related to Leo Tolstoy—a magistrate, a juror, and... a man accused of murder—are published for the first time. You will learn about the trials of Lieutenant Schmidt's executioner and the high-profile case of Termen, the inventor of the theremin. You will read about justice in Leningrad during and after the siege, as well as about high-profile post-war trials.
The author has painstakingly compiled materials on the murders of Soviet citizens during peacetime that shook the entire country—such as the Raskin case, the terrorist attack at the Kotlyakovskoye Cemetery, and the mysterious death of the Dyatlov Pass expedition. The book includes the high-profile cases of Joseph Brodsky for parasitism and the Ovechkin family for hijacking an airplane in the 1980s.
The book is written in the genre of court essays and contains unique archival materials, including illustrative ones, many of which have never been published before.