The Trial of Dr. Kate

By Michael E. Glasscock III

Austin, TX

• Language: English
• Publisher: Greenleaf Book Group
• Release date: Oct 8, 2013
• ISBN: 9781626340145

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This novel is dedicated to the memory of Bill Wilson (Bill W.) and Dr. Robert Smith (Dr. Bob), the founders of Alcoholics Anonymous.

A civilized society is one which tolerates eccentricity to the point of doubtful sanity.

—Robert Frost

Chapter 1

Nodding to her coworkers, Shenandoah Coleman wandered across the noisy, smoke-filled city room of the Memphis Express , oblivious to the clatter of typewriters ricocheting off the bare walls and linoleum floor. She stopped at the large open window overlooking the Mississippi River and glanced out at the rising water. She could see a tugboat maneuvering a barge alongside one of the docks between Mud Island and the mainland. The water, muddy from rains in Missouri and Illinois, swirled like chocolate milk behind the tug’s powerful propellers.

Turning toward the clickety-clack of the Associated Press Teletype, Shenandoah noticed an incoming message, tore it off, and took it to her desk.

Nashville, Tennessee, July 14, 1952—Dr. Katherine Marlow, age 32, of Round Rock, Tennessee, is scheduled to go on trial July 21 for the murder of one of her patients, a Mrs. Lillian Johnson, age 32, also of Round Rock.

   Dr. Marlow, indicted in March of this year, pleaded not guilty to the charge at her arraignment. Jake Watson, Dr. Marlow’s attorney, was unavailable for comment. The suspect currently resides as an inmate in the Parsons County Jail.—Associated Press

Shenandoah read the two paragraphs three times. She couldn’t believe that Kate Marlow was capable of murder. Shenandoah hadn’t seen either the accused or the victim in fourteen years—not since the year she’d graduated from high school, the same year that she’d moved to Nashville and taken a secretarial job at the National Life and Accident Insurance Company.

When Shenandoah left Round Rock, she planned never to return. As a young girl she had become fascinated by the exploits of Amelia Earhart and her Nashville heroine, Cornelia Fort. Once she arrived in Nashville, every extra penny had gone for flying lessons at a grass strip just outside the city. When the war broke out, she was among the 1,000 applicants who’d made it into the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) out of 25,000 who’d applied. She’d been stationed in Sweetwater, Texas, so after termination from the service near the end of the war she took a BA in English from the University of Texas in Austin. Upon graduation, she’d become a reporter for the Memphis Express newspaper.

Shenandoah felt ashamed of herself for not keeping up with Kate more regularly, but she was even more shocked that Dr. Marlow could be in such a mess. Shenandoah picked up the phone and dialed the operator. I’d like to place a call to the sheriff’s office in Round Rock, Tennessee, she said.

After several rings, a woman answered.

Sheriff Marlow, please.

Old Jeb’s been dead two year now.

Dead?

Heart attack.

Who’s sheriff?

Jasper Kingman. Want to talk to him?

No, thanks.

Replacing the receiver, she looked out over the city room and wondered what she should do. She dialed the operator again.

I’d like to place a person-to-person call to a Mr. Jake Watson in Round Rock, Tennessee.

Seconds later, the operator said, I can’t find a listing for a Jake Watson.

He’s an attorney, operator. Try the yellow pages.

Sure you have the correct name?

Yes.

I’m sorry, but there’s no listing for Jake Watson.

Shenandoah picked up a pencil and started doodling on the Teletype message. What should I do? Forget it? Go home? Lay open all the old wounds? I thought that misery was all behind me.

Shenandoah walked across the city room to the office of her boss, Ned Baker. A year from retirement, the editor was a holdover from the golden age of the press when city editors ran their papers with an iron fist. Balding and overweight, Ned chewed on a Havana from sunup to sundown. Every few minutes he spit brown-streaked saliva into the rusty fruit juice can he kept beside his desk.

Shenandoah tapped lightly on the doorframe as she entered Ned’s office.

Morning, Shenandoah. What’s my investigative reporter up to?

She handed Ned the news report. I know this doctor, she said. I’d like to cover the trial.

You’re from Round Rock?

I’m actually from a place called Beulah Land, about two miles outside of Round Rock.

Beulah Land—as in Heaven?

Hardly—just squalor. I’ve got a couple of vacation weeks coming. It’ll make a good human interest story.

Keep tabs on your expenses, and I’ll try to get the boss to reimburse you. Going to interview Buford Frampton for your book while you’re up there?

"He is Boss Crump’s man in East Tennessee." For the past six months, Shenandoah had been planning an exposé of the old-time party boss, E. H. Crump, who was said to vote names from the city’s cemeteries, and she had been gathering information on his political machine in Memphis.

The editor picked up his can, spit into it, then wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. He fixed his dark brown eyes on Shenandoah and said, "Remember Thomas Wolfe’s You Can’t Go Home Again? His protagonist, George Webber, alienated himself from the people of his hometown. To paraphrase, I’d say that it’s hard to go home again. Things are never as you remember them. The buildings don’t seem as big, the ponds and lakes look smaller, the roads appear narrower, and the people are often not what you remember. You’ll be amazed."

* * *

Shenandoah parked her new Chevrolet Bel Air at a meter in the Round Rock town square and slipped a nickel into the slot. A little over five-seven, Shenandoah had what the Bard referred to as a lean and hungry look. Bell’s palsy at age sixteen had left her with a slight droop of her mouth on the right side that gave her a Mona Lisa smile. Men found that minor flaw, her flaming red hair, her flawless cream complexion, and her green eyes enchanting. A fashion maven, she always looked as if she’d just stepped off a page in Vogue, and on this day she wore a free-flowing swing skirt with a floral pattern and wedge open-toed sandals.

She stood on the hot asphalt for a moment and glanced around the square. Waves of hot air radiated off the pavement, her blouse stuck to her back, and perspiration beaded across her forehead. The stately limestone courthouse looked just as it had on the day she’d left, but the buildings surrounding it appeared to be in worse shape. The whittlers, prune-faced old men, kept their vigil as ever on the courthouse steps, piles of cedar shavings hiding their rough brogans. Two Civil War cannons stood like sentinels on either side of the steps, each with a pyramid of cannon balls stacked beside it. A teenage boy, red-faced and gasping for breath, pedaled up the hill toward her on an old Schwinn Roadmaster.

Bradshaw’s Drugstore, where Saturdays had once found Shenandoah sweeping the floor and stocking the storeroom, still stood at the bottom of the hill. It was from the door of the storeroom that she used to watch Katherine Marlow and her boyfriend, Army Johnson, share a chocolate sundae.

The lone Esso station remained on the far side of the courthouse. It was there, at sixteen, that she’d bought her first rubber. She’d sneaked into the men’s restroom when she’d decided it was time to lose her virginity. It was a fruitless goal because all the boys were afraid of her. The condom had remained in her wallet, wearing a ring in the leather, until she finally used it with a young second lieutenant in the winter of 1942, when she was taking the training required for the women pilots of the WASP.

The whittlers ignored her as she climbed the stairs and entered the cool interior of the old building. It had been years since Shenandoah had last been there, and she was amused to see that the smooth plaster walls still displayed large photographs of judges, county court clerks, and sheriffs. In the center of the lobby, a marble spiral staircase led to the upper floors that held the courtroom, the jail, and the sheriff’s office. She started up the first flight, knowing that the sheriff would not welcome her visit. Would Kate?

On the third floor, Shenandoah entered an open door and approached a secretary typing on an old Royal typewriter. A woman in her early sixties with gray hair pulled back into a tight bun at the nape of her neck, she wore thick spectacles on the tip of her long nose. When the woman didn’t acknowledge her presence, Shenandoah said, Hello.

Looking up, the woman asked, What?

I’d like to see Dr. Kate Marlow.

Sheriff’s got to okay it.

Jasper in?

His office, his secretary said, pointing to her right.

Shenandoah hesitated for a moment. Dealing with Jasper Kingman was not something she wanted to do. But if she wanted to see Kate Marlow, she had no choice. Just uttering Jasper’s name brought back distasteful, angry thoughts.

* * *

Like all the Coleman clan, Shenandoah went to school barefoot in the autumn and spring, and like her cousins, she always wore ratty, soiled, and wrinkled clothes. Shenandoah’s feet were always filthy and her toenails were always long, with Parsons County clay caked beneath them. Her red hair, which was her pride and joy, was the one thing that she insisted be clean at all times. She washed it daily in a galvanized gallon bucket that she kept in her small bedroom. The lard soap her mother made would not lather, so Shenandoah stole bars of city soap from the girls’ bathroom at school. She wore her hair in one long pigtail that hung down the middle of her back to her waist.

One morning, the school bus was late, and Shenandoah and her cousins stood and waited impatiently next to the lone pump where all the inhabitants of Beulah Land got their water. Some of the boys tossed rocks at passing cars, and the girls giggled when the drivers waved angry fists in response.

When the bus finally arrived some fifteen minutes late, the children scrambled up the steps and took their seats. Shenandoah shuddered when she saw Jasper Kingman sitting on the last bench on the right. The older boy was in the sixth grade and Shenandoah in the fifth. Jasper’s father worked for the city of Round Rock as a garbage collector and drove to work every day about the same time school started. Usually, Jasper rode with his dad. But unfortunately, he occasionally rode the school bus with Shenandoah.

The only seat available was right in front of Jasper. She asked the driver if she could stand, but he wouldn’t let her. Jasper grinned at her as she took her seat. She ignored him and stared straight ahead.

How’s it going, girl? You ain’t near as dirty this morning as you usually are. What happened? You steal some more soap? Jasper asked.

Shenandoah ignored him. She carried her books held together with an old belt her mother had found in the city dump. She unbuckled it and took out her arithmetic book.

Look at you. Studying like you was smart or something. Hell, everybody knows you Coleman folks is as dumb as you is dirty.

Shenandoah ground her teeth, her jaw muscles flexing rhythmically, but still she said nothing.

Then Jasper made a bad mistake that would change his life forever. He reached over the back of Shenandoah’s seat, grabbed her pigtail, and sliced it off with his pocket knife. Before she could move, he wrapped it around her neck and pulled her head back against the seat.

He laughed and said, I been meaning to do that for a long time, girl. I just don’t like pigtails. Particularly on a filthy Coleman.

Shenandoah could feel Jasper’s breath on her neck, and she knew his head was right behind hers. In a move as swift as lightning, she swung her arithmetic book over her head and slammed it into Jasper’s skull with all her might.

Hey, he yelled, letting go of the pigtail.

Shenandoah sprang out of her seat and grabbed Jasper by the shirt, pulling him into the aisle. He was so startled he didn’t even resist. She slammed her right knee into his groin, and when he leaned over gasping in pain, she hit him in the nose with her fist. Blood spurted onto her dress and onto Jasper’s shirt. Then she threw him against the back wall of the bus and pounded his head against it. His tongue hung limply out the corner of his mouth, and his eyes rolled back in their sockets.

Jasper was known as a trouble maker, and Mr. Albright, the driver, had followed the scene in his rearview mirror with some satisfaction. Nonetheless, he slammed on the brakes and ran down the aisle toward the scuffling children. He pulled Shenandoah away from Jasper as the boy fell to the floor, unconscious.

Shenandoah struggled with the bus driver, trying to get free. In her mind, she was just getting started.

Shenandoah, honey, stop it! Albright yelled. You won the damn fight. Back off.

He let go of her and she picked up her pigtail. Tears streamed down her smooth cheeks as she took her seat.

Jasper regained consciousness moments later. The whole confrontation had taken less than two minutes. He pulled his handkerchief out of his back pocket and held it under his nose. He didn’t say a word for the remainder of the trip and ignored the open-mouthed amazement of the other students on the bus.

* * *

Years later, in the courthouse, Shenandoah found Sherriff Jasper Kingman cleaning a .38 revolver. Six silver cartridges stood like toy soldiers on top of his desk.

The fourteen years since their high school graduation had barely changed Jasper Kingman. His thin sandy hair was receding and his blue eyes had lost some of their fire, but otherwise he looked just as he had when Shenandoah had last seen him. His belly remained as flat as the desktop.

Spying Shenandoah, the sheriff scrambled to his feet and, blushing, said, Afternoon, ma’am. Can I help you?

A smile broke across Shenandoah’s face, and Jasper Kingman stared at her. Wait a minute. You look damn familiar. What’s your name?

Shenandoah extended her hand. Shenandoah Coleman. I haven’t forgotten you, Jasper.

The sheriff ignored Shenandoah’s gesture and rammed the cleaning rod down the muzzle of the pistol. Got one of your kin back there—been here a while, he said, a crooked smile growing on his lips.

Uncle Junior?

Yep. Thought we’d seen the last of your sorry ass. What’re you doing dressed up like a big-city whore?

You’ve never been to a big city, Jasper. How would you know what a big-city whore looked like, anyway?

I’ve been to Nashville and Knoxville, smart-ass.

"Neither of which is a big city. I’m a reporter for the Memphis Express, up to cover Dr. Kate’s trial."

I’ll be damned—an educated Coleman. How’d that happen, Shenandoah?

Anyone can get an education if you serve your country. You in the military?

The sheriff flushed. Damned blood pressure was too high. Draft board said they needed me here, ’cause I was a deputy.

Shenandoah nodded. Figures.

What you want, Shenandoah?

To see Dr. Kate.

Jasper tilted his head back and laughed, his breath coming in short snorts. Placing the pistol and cleaning rod on his desk, the sheriff pulled a pack of Lucky Strike cigarettes out of his shirt pocket. Slipping one into his mouth, he lit it with a worn Zippo. Inhaling deeply, he looked Shenandoah in the eye and said, What if the lady won’t see you? She ain’t in the best of moods.

I’ll chance it.

What if I won’t let you?

I’ll see Jake Watson and get a court order. It’s up to you, Jasper.

Jasper stared at Shenandoah. He sucked on the cigarette until the tip glowed, then leaned forward and pushed a button on the intercom box. Margaret, tell Masterson to come here.

The deputy materialized out of thin air, as if he had been loitering within earshot. Shenandoah didn’t know the man. He appeared to be in his mid-forties, and his brown hair was graying at the temples. A bushy gray mustache hung low over his thin lips, and his rotund features gave him a jolly appearance in spite of the frown on his face.

Oscar, meet a sober Coleman. Most likely the only one you’ll ever see. Her name’s Shenandoah. Take the smart-ass back to see the doc.

Deputy Masterson motioned for Shenandoah to follow him, and the two of them left the sheriff’s office, passed through the reception area, and crossed the hallway to enter the jail. The deputy unlocked a steel door, led Shenandoah to a second locked door, and opened it. Ushering her into a small room, he said, Push that button on the wall when you’re ready to leave.

A metal table with four mismatched chairs sat in the middle of the room. One harsh overhead fluorescent light fixture gave the bare, dark green walls an orange cast.

Settling into one of the chairs, Shenandoah tapped the top of the table with her thumb and tried to ignore the burning in the pit of her stomach. Will Kate remember me? Will she still be attractive?

That last thought evaporated the moment the door opened and Dr. Katherine Marlow entered the stark room. Taller than Shenandoah remembered, Dr. Kate moved with the grace of a ballerina. Even though she wore a county-supplied dress of gray cotton and brown penny loafers, she seemed regal, as one might imagine a young Queen Bess. She wore no cosmetics, not even lipstick on her full and sensual lips. Short-cropped hair the color of corn silk framed her face like waves on a golden beach. Her eyes were a deep royal blue. Her hands were delicate with long fingers, and her nails were unpolished and trimmed short.

Dr. Kate stared at Shenandoah as the reporter scrambled out of her chair. Then a smile caused her smooth cheeks to form the soft dimples Shenandoah remembered so well, and she said, Shenandoah Coleman? I haven’t heard from you in ages.

Wasn’t sure you’d remember what I look like.

What’re you doing here? My God, I haven’t seen you in a coon’s age.

"I came to cover the trial for the Memphis Express."

"I forgot you’re a reporter. I haven’t seen you since graduation, and I don’t think I’ve even had a Christmas card in three or four years. How are you?"

"I’m more interested in how you are."

Mad as hell that I’m in this lousy jail. I’m so frustrated I could scream.

They sat facing each other across the steel table. Kate’s hands were crossed and rested one on the other in front of her. Shenandoah thought for a moment that she detected a fine tremor in those slender hands.

Why aren’t you free on bail?

I’m accused of a capital crime. The prosecutor and judge think I’m a risk. Which is ridiculous. I’m not going to skip town. I’m going to fight this thing and clear my name. I don’t run away from battles.

How long have you been here?

Since the first of April.

Can’t your attorney do anything?

He’s tried. Jake’s a good country lawyer and a family friend, but I’m not sure he’s up to this.

Why don’t you hire a hotshot out of Nashville?

Are you kidding? I don’t have that kind of money.

You’re a doctor. Surely you can afford a good attorney.

Kate shook her head. I’m a country doctor in one of the poorest counties in the state. These people don’t have any money. I still get paid with eggs and hams, for God’s sake. If the tobacco crop’s good, maybe they’ll come up with some cash in the fall.

I’ll lend you the money, Shenandoah said.

Don’t be silly. You’re a reporter. You can’t have that much money. Besides, I couldn’t impose on you. This is my problem and I’ll deal with it.

Who’s the prosecutor?

Baxter Hargrove is the assistant attorney general. And he’s lower than a snake’s belly. The attorney general is in Carthage. I don’t know his name.

Why do they think you were guilty of this murder?

Lillian Johnson died of an overdose of a barbiturate. The syringe they found belonged to me and had my fingerprints on it.

Shenandoah thought Kate’s normally pale, transparent skin looked ghostlike.

Seems awfully circumstantial. That all they’ve got?

Diverting her gaze, Kate said, I can’t even remember being there. I woke up sometime that afternoon in my car on the side of the road. I was up north near Static. My nurse told me later that I’d made a house call to Lillie’s that morning.

Were you sick—the flu or something?

I have these spells now and then.

Do you pass out often?

Occasionally. I guess you know that your uncle Junior is in jail.

Yes. Don’t change the subject. Were you and Lillie on good terms?

We were always best friends, but she was upset with me.

How’s that? You were her doctor.

"I’m the only—was the only doctor here."

What was wrong with her? Can you talk about it?

It’s common knowledge. She suffered from MS, and a few months ago she developed terminal colon cancer. She was very sick and in constant pain. It drove poor Army crazy.

Shenandoah had forgotten that Army and Lillian had married right after they had all graduated from high school. Both had been classmates of Dr. Kate’s. Shenandoah took Kate’s hand in hers and said, I’d like to help, Kate.

Squeezing Shenandoah’s hand, Kate said, I’d like to have someone on my side besides Jake and my sister.

Shenandoah asked, How is Rebecca?

She’s an attorney now in Knoxville. She’s going to help Jake with my defense.

Remember when we met that first day of school? Shenandoah asked.

Like it was yesterday. You and the other kids from Beulah Land looked so poor and unkempt that I couldn’t believe it. I think your dress was made from a Martha White flour sack. Your face was smudged with dirt and your fingernails ragged. I felt so sorry for you—but look at you now. My God, girl, you look like a New York fashion model.

Shenandoah laughed. Jasper said I looked like a big-city whore. I remember how you looked that first day, Kate. You were a skinny waif of a girl with scrawny legs and healing scabs on your knees. But you were in a nice, freshly ironed dress and wore shoes, and we were all barefoot.

Kate smiled and said, I remember the first recess when you and Jasper Kingman faced off. He was in the third grade and towered over you. I ran over there and heard him yell something about the Coleman folks being poor white trash. You were ready to hit him, so I grabbed your hand and pulled you away. I said Miss Rutherford had sent me to get you.

Most people shunned the Coleman clan. Looking back, we were our own worst enemy, Shenandoah said.

Can’t help what you’re born into. At least you broke free. Most of your people didn’t get past the sixth grade. I never understood why you were so different.

When my father wasn’t working at the sawmill, he did odd jobs. He helped a man named Persifor Washington pull pumps and pipe out of the ground. The man’s wife, Frances, introduced me to books. Is your father still with us, by the way? Shenandoah asked.

Dad passed away right before I graduated from medical school, Kate said. She looked away for a moment and then turned back to Shenandoah. Why haven’t you come home? You still have relatives here.

None I’m particularly proud of or have any fondness for.

That’s too bad. All I have is Rebecca.

Okay if I visit you? I want to help, Shenandoah said.

That’s sweet of you, Shenandoah. Come every day.

You were my best friend all the way through school. When you’re poor white trash and people treat you like dirt on their shoes, it has an effect on you. You treated me just like your other friends. It meant a lot to me.

I always liked you. I didn’t care that you were a Coleman.

You’d have to be a Coleman to know what it’s like. Just having you treat me nice made up for all the bad things the other kids said about me. Now it seems as if things are reversed. I’m worried about you.

I feel like the whole county’s against me. A look of surprise crossed her face. I can’t believe I said that—it sounds so paranoid.

You’re not paranoid. You’re in a tight spot, and I want to help, Shenandoah said. What can I do?

If I’m going to win an acquittal, it’s going to come down to who they believe more—me or my accusers.

Tell me what to do, Shenandoah said.

You’re a reporter. Try to find some good character witnesses. See what they think about this silliness. Do people really think I could harm my best friend?

I’ll do my best. I want to talk to Jake Watson about your situation. Is that okay with you?

Of course. Tell him I said it’s okay. He’ll trust you.

I don’t know Mr. Watson. None of my kin ever needed a lawyer because they were always guilty as sin.

Kate laughed. Jake and my father were roommates at Vanderbilt. His office is next to the City Café.

Standing, they stared at each other for a moment, and then Kate put her arms around Shenandoah, gave her a bear hug, and kissed her cheek. Thanks for coming, Shenandoah. You’ll never know how much this means to me.

Shenandoah pushed the button on the wall, and within seconds the deputy materialized. Motioning Shenandoah out, Masterson said, I’ll come back for you in a minute, Doc.

A feeling of despair settled over Shenandoah as she descended the stairs. Why didn’t I keep in better touch with Kate? Kate has always been an incredible woman, my best friend and supporter. We sent Christmas cards back and forth for a few years after graduation, and then I just stopped. No wonder I felt ashamed when I read that Teletype.

Shenandoah crossed the street to the attorney’s office. She opened the massive oak door and entered a large, sparsely furnished room that contained two overstuffed chairs, a low coffee table, and an old-fashioned rolltop desk. A faded diploma stated that Mr. Watson had graduated from Vanderbilt University Law School in 1912.

Sitting in one of the overstuffed chairs, Shenandoah picked up a June 1950 issue of National Geographic and engrossed herself in an article about pygmies in equatorial Africa. Ten minutes later, the door swung open and Mr. Watson walked in. He appeared to be in his early to mid-sixties and wore a white short-sleeved shirt and tie. A big straw fedora topped his head, and he held a load of books in one hand and a Dixie cup full of black coffee in the other. He kicked the door closed with a thud and then set the books and coffee on the desk. Placing the hat on a coat rack, he turned to Shenandoah. What can I do for you, young lady?

Standing, Shenandoah said, Hope you don’t mind that I dropped in on you. I tried to call before I left Memphis, but I couldn’t get your number.

Don’t have a phone—useless piece of equipment. Never needed one of the damn things.

Don’t you have to talk to other lawyers and judges from time to time?

Jake Watson took a sip of coffee and said, Have you ever considered how annoying phones are? I could be talking to President Truman, and if the damn thing rang, I’d have to answer it. Could be my housekeeper, for God’s sake. When someone calls me, Dorothy at the café comes and gets me.

If I wanted to talk to you, I’d call the café?

That’s how you’d do it, Jake said. Have a seat. What can I do for you?

"My name’s Shenandoah Coleman. I’m a longtime friend of Kate Marlow, classmates all through school. I’m a reporter now with the Memphis Express, and I’ve come to cover Kate’s trial. I just left her at the jail. She said it would be okay for you to talk to me about her case. She said you’d trust me."

Jake Watson laughed. Yes, I’ll trust you. I know who you are.

It’s a damn shame the woman can’t get bail, Shenandoah said.

She’s accused of a capital offense, and the judge wouldn’t allow bail.

Couldn’t you convince them that she would stay here to clear her name? Besides, I’m sure her patients need her.

I tried everything. The prosecutor was more persuasive. Who’s your father?

Archibald Coleman.

I knew him, and of course I know his brothers. Junior’s in jail as we speak.

That’s what I heard. But I’m more interested in Kate. What happened?

Jake took another sip of coffee and studied Shenandoah’s face. So, what do you know?

Kate told me Lillian Johnson died of an overdose of a barbiturate. Kate was supposed to make a house call to Lillian’s, but she can’t remember her activities that day—says she passed out. Kate’s fingerprints were on the syringe. That’s the extent of my knowledge.

That’s basically all anyone knows.

Why would Kate pass out and have no recollection of her activities that day? Had she been ill?

Jake shrugged.

"I’m no lawyer, but all of this seems circumstantial to me. It’s hardly enough to charge someone with murder, let alone deny her

Reviews for The Trial of Dr. Kate

[liscarey · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It's the summer of 1952, and Lillian Johnson, just 32, is found dead in her home. She's been suffering from multiple sclerosis and colon cancer, but neither of those caused her death. She died of an injection of Seconol--and it's not clear that she administered it herself.

The prime suspect, indeed the only one, is her friend and physician, Dr. Kate Marlow. And Kate can't prove she didn't, can't even be sure what she did that morning, because she's been experiencing alcoholic blackouts, and doesn't remember that morning before she found herself parked on the road to Static.

Old friend Shenandoah Coleman is a reporter in Memphis now, but comes back to Round Rock to cover the trial--and to reconnect with friends and family she's avoided because of the burden of the Coleman reputation.

Shenandoah has to confront her own past and come to terms with where she came from. Kate has to come to terms with her alcoholism and its effects.

The whole town, in their different ways, are struggling with race and class and social change.

Round Rock is both changed and unchanged since Shenandoah left fourteen years ago. Dr. Kate is much like her father, Dr. Walt, the same dedication to her patients, the same resistance to banks, taxes, and bureaucracy of all kinds, and the same drinking to cope with the stress and demands of being the only doctor in town. But Kate is a woman in the very conventional 1950s, in a southern small town. She's loved, but also hated.

Shenandoah has run all her life from the bad reputation of the drunken, violent Colemans, but on this return home, she starts to see some of her relatives in a different light--and meets some previously unknown relatives, too.

Meanwhile, the trial exposes both the strengths and the strains of the Round Rock community.

This is a lovely, thoughtful, and loving look at the beginnings of a painful transitional time in American life.

Recommended.

I received a free electronic galley from the publisher via NetGalley.

[elizajane_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book is a sequel to "Little Joe" but not a direct sequel; it is set in the same town about ten years later. A few of the characters from "Joe" either make cameo appearances or are mentioned and supposedly Kate is mentioned briefly in "Joe", though I don't recall the occasion. I don't think it would matter which of these you read first as they are companion books rather than true sequels, though chronologically this also comes second. I enjoyed "Little Joe" much more than "Dr. Kate" but I still found this a light, entertaining read with characters I loved. The 1950s segregated Tennessee southern fiction story involving a murder mystery was a mixture of genres I adore to read so I fell right into the feel of the book. I fell in love with Round Rock in book 1 and enjoyed the visiting the familiar landmarks, even if the characters were different. There are two mysteries going on actually, one of course, is the trial, who killed Lillian? but secondly Shenandoah, the main character of this volume is being harassed by a Ford truck while on the roads. Who is trying to kill her? I found the answer to the truck mystery rapped up too matter of fact in an unbelievable way, but then was also disappointed because the end of the entire book ended up too realistically for me. I'm a sucker for books that don't have happy endings; but I'll say the outcome of this one did surprise me. Overall, a good book, I enjoyed it. Not up to par with Little Joe, but I see how the events of these first two books will provide a background for the next book which will be about one of the Coleman's, Jamie, Kate's dad. I'm really looking forward to the Coleman book!

[bookmuse56 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The Trial of Dr. Kate neatly mixes intrigue, betrayal, secrets and southern sensibilities effectively showing the tensions and alliances living in a rural eastern Tennessee Appalachian town in the early 1950s. Journalist Shenandoah Coleman has returned to her hometown to cover the trial of her old childhood friend, Dr. Kate Marlow and to write a political expose on Tennessee politicians. Shenandoah quickly finds out that many do not want her to forget she comes from the round side of the tracks and that Colemans do not amount to much. Dr. Kate is accused of murdering one of her patients, whose husband just happens to be an ex-boyfriend. The stories of these two strong-willed women are revealed as Shenandoah strives to save her friend from a guilty verdict and the mystery of who is literally trying to drive her off a cliff. Glasscock keeps it moving with enough conflicts and secrets to make the story interesting while not distracting from the main theme. This story makes for a perfect escape read along with a glass of sweet tea.

[gpangel_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The Trial of Dr. Kate by Michael E. Glassock is an October 2013 Greenleaf Book Group Press publication. I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.Shenandoah returns to the small town of her upbringing because she reads about one of her only friends about to stand trial for murder. Being a reporter in Memphis, she travels home to cover the trial. It is 1952 in Tennessee, and a woman doctor is very rare. To make things complicated, it is rumored that Dr. Kate was having an affair with her best friend's (and also her patient) husband Army. There is also the fact that Kate is a functioning alcoholic and doesn't recall her actions on the day in question. Meanwhile, people have not taken well to Shenandoah's return home. She is the only one in her family that is sober and has made something of herself. Someone is angry enough with her to try to run her off the road, and slash her tires.Kate meets a guy, starts to have tender feelings for him, investigates the suspicious death of Kate's patient, a woman that was terminally ill, and discovers the many secrets of small town life.In a small southern town in 1952, the attitudes toward women, race, and class are shocking and offensive by today's standards. The illegal running of alcohol was a full fledged career. But, there was also a feeling of nostalgia. The soda fountain serving a chocolate malt, going for a hamburger was a hot date, the ability to work on your own car, and so many other things signaling a slow pace of life. The mystery of Dr. Kate - if she committed an act of kindness by performing an assisted suicide for her best friend who was dying of MS and advanced colon cancer or did she murder her in cold blood so she could have her husband? Did Dr. Kate do anything at all to her patient? There were others that could have had a motive for wanting the victim out of the way.I enjoyed reading about the characters in this book. Things were more pleasant in the fifties in some ways, but the narrow mindedness and racism, sexism, the archaic medical procedures, the laws, and the travel barriers made the idealist time period seems overly harsh in many ways.The rush to judgment against a doctor because of her sex and vicious small town gossip was an example of the times. Each character in the book has their good and bad points. Kate was a savior to many who couldn't get to a city hospital fast enough, to those who didn't have money to pay her, making house calls, and so much more, but she was also grieving the death of her father and battling an addiction on her own and trying to keep it quiet.Shenandoah will be haunted by her return home and the trial of her friend, Kate for the rest of her life.There were many hot issues on the table here. Women having careers was frowns upon under ordinary circumstances, but having a career as a doctor was unheard of. The suffering of a terminal patient tempting those in the medical profession to show them mercy was also a theme. This was something no one in 1952 spoke of. Old wounds were healed and some good does come from the events that are told in the novel. But, the lessons are hard ones and it will be years before some sense of closure will take place. For Shenandoah that time will hold a bittersweet place in her heart even into her old age.Overall this was an interesting historical fiction/mystery. I give this one a B.

[kara.shamy · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I came across this novel by chance, and I it turned out to be a real find. Here are some reasons I enjoyed The Trial of Dr. Kate that may appeal to other readers like yourselves:

A) It has an absorbing plot involving a mystery and as the courtroom drama concerning the matter builds, the reader's suspense is heightened by the fact the accused doesn't truly know her level of culpability for the death in question.

B) The primary character is a tragic hero who does great things as a matter of course but is critically flawed in one way sufficient to undermine all her good works. The book also features other strong female characters, most notably a young woman investigating the matter whose mind and independent investigation provide the perspective and shape of the narrative respectively.

C) Like other works by author Michael E. Glasscock III (I've read another book in the same series as the basis for this opinion), this novel features -- in a co-starring role, as it were -- a richly drawn setting that embeds the reader's imagination in the story.

D) There is an exciting and surprising conclusion, in my opinion.

E) Issues of substance abuse are treated respectfully and not as mere weaknesses in character; in this case, a very strong woman struggles mightily with alcoholism. It's clearly not a simple matter of willpower or desire. The narrative shows insight and sympathy for people with similar struggles.

Please be advised I read a free online edition of the novel at NetGalley by permission of the book's publisher, Green Leaf Book Group.

[sean191 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I received this as a freebie extra when I got an ARC of the first book in the series (Little Joe). There's actually only a page or so in this book of very slight reference that provides any benefit to having read the first book.If it were reversed, that would be a good thing. I enjoyed Little Joe, but I didn't enjoy this book. Looking back though, I realized there was a bit lacking in Little Joe as well, but not as great as in this installment. The real problem, I felt, was the characters under-reacting to situations. They're all pulling reverse-Shatners here.... someone dies and it's mentioned for a sentence or two. Someone is beamed up by a UFO, it gets five words max (that didn't happen). It just made it seem like the story was being acted out by a really bad high school drama group and it tarnished my enjoyment of the first book a little because it made it more obvious what my problem was with it (that I couldn't quite put my finger on at the time).I believe it's a trilogy - I'm not sure if I'd give the third book a chance or not. They're all enjoyable to an extent, but there's so many books to read and certainly not enough time to get to them all...

[mrscoleman17 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I actually was not very impressed by this book. In the description it says that this a book about Dr. Kate and her trial and the reporter who will basically stop at nothing to prove Dr. Kate's innocence. However, I didn't find that to be true. Shenandoah, the reporter, could have done much more than she did. There were some instances where her past got in the way, but not really. I feel as if this book lacked a climax and many of the events seem to just be thrown in and had no real impact on the plot. None of the characters really stood out to me and they were all kind of lacking/missing something. It also seems like the story itself was rushed. I think there was much more that could have been added to this story to add some depth and excitement. I have not ready any of the other books in the Round Rock series but this one just did nothing for me.

[tulikangaroo · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Awkwardly paced, painful dialogue, and the most instantaneous and unrealistic deaths put to paper. I read another review that said something about the first book being targeted to a younger audience? If this is supposed to be a young adult novel, that _might_ explain some of the problems... but not quite. *Spoiler alert*Some things that stuck in my craw: Shenandoah admits to knowing nothing about cars (despite being an accomplished pilot), yet every car and car part that appears is identified by make, model, and model year. The residents of this backwater country refer to themselves as backward and racist - making them the most self-aware group of illiterate, intolerant rednecks ever. Despite being almost killed multiple times, she finally gets around to alerting someone in authority three-quarters of the way through the book... personally, if someone were actively attempting to run me off the road in a distinctive vehicle, I would NOT be doing something about it 'tomorrow'. Pretty ridiculous in many ways.

[khiemstra631 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Michael Glasscock has a good plot in his novel The Trial of Dr. Kate. A small-town doctor from Eastern Tennessee stands accused of murdering one of her patients. Hometown newspaper reporter Shenandoah Coleman returns from Memphis to cover the trial and to help dig up witnesses for the defense. In the process, she falls in love with local hot rodder and ridge runner Bobby Johnson. The book is not really a mystery but not quite a romance either. The major problem with it is the stilted dialog that sounds very stiff and unnatural. More editing would have definitely helped. Characters flit from one topic to another without ever concluding their initial thoughts. If the dialog had been better written, at least two more stars would have been in order. As it is, reading the book is torturous in sections. Not really recommended.

[muddyboy · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is the story about a small town girl from the wrong side of the tracks and a notorious family who goes away and makes something out of her life. She comes back after many years as a reporter working for a big city paper doing research for a story on Tennessee politics. What she finds when she gets home is that the local doctor (Dr. Kate) who she went to school with when they were young is in jail for killing a wheelchair bound woman. Our heroine takes up the cause and attempts to help the good doctor with her case. I liked the book chiefly because I was surprised about how things worked out. Also, romance comes into her life so there is that aspect also. Good mystery with a touch of love.

[mermaidatheart · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

The writing style reminded me of the Nancy Drew books--succinct and explanatory. The emotional life of the characters was extremely one dimensional; they flitted from thought to thought like moths--no sense of logical direction or progression. Good for moths, bad for books. It felt like the author was trying to make the area and its "quaintness" a character in its own right, but it didn't work. It was also like, how many Southern colloquialisms and cliches can we get into one book? I was born and raised in the South--not in a small town, but nevertheless, I've heard and known them all. The way they were inserted in this book was very unnatural; it almost made me think the writer was not Southern, but had just seen Gone with the Wind and Fried Green Tomatoes a few times and thought it was cute. Also, the plot was boring, even the "twist" at the end felt forced. However it's not the worst early review book I've ever read (at least I finished it), so I'll give it two stars.

[lauigl · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I received this book free as part of the Early Reviewers program. I really didn't know what to expect when I received this book, but I have to say that I enjoyed it. I felt that it was a very well executed novel. The characters were interesting. I liked many of their witty sayings throughout the book. I also liked the flashbacks that described the relationship between the characters and Dr. Kate. I was kept in suspense until the very end of the book - not knowing who was responsible for Kate's friend Lillian Johnson's death. The ending was satisfying. There was some profanity, as well as a small bit of crass language that I don't personally care to see in books. (This is my personal preference and did not affect my rating. I did not feel it was overly excessive.) However, taking into consideration the locality and social classes of the individuals responsible for using it, I presume the author feels it was justifiable. There was one small part about a witch doctor of some sort that creeped me out a little (I don't like references to witches or anything like that either). Overall, I thought this was a very decent book written by a talented author. I would most certainly consider reading another one of his books.

[lehack · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Shenandoah Coleman is a news reporter who goes back to her hometown to cover the trail of a local doctor accused of murdering a patient. Shenandoah meets resistance from townspeople who already have decided her guilt. Shenandoah was born and raised in Beulah Land, the wrong side of the tracks. Local prejudices are hard to overcome even though she escaped from the town and put herself through college. The author did a lot of research into accurately portraying the time period and the feel of small town, rural America. The book includes book group questions. Excellent book for lively discussion in a book group.

[erinclark_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

"The Trial of Dr. Kate" is a mystery who-done-it set in the early 1950's which takes place in the small Tennessee town of Round Rock. Dr. Kate, as she is known to the locals she treats has been accused of killing her dear friend who was suffering from MS as well as advanced colon cancer. The trouble is Kate has no recollection of that day and cannot defend herself or prove she did not do it. Enter Shenandoah Coleman, the girl who escaped this backwards and racist town twelve years ago. Once considered white trash along with her clan, she has returned an educated investigative reporter determined to uncover the truth of what really happened that fateful day. I always enjoy a good story about the south and this held my attention even though some of the language and attitudes of the characters was very racist and disturbing. I was surprised by the end, which I enjoy because it doesn't happen very often. Recommended for a light fun read.

[angel2649 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I found this book quite interesting with all the recollections of the people about Dr. Katel Marlowe on trial for the murder of her best friend from childhood. The evidence: a used syringe with her and the murdered woman's fingerprints on it and the fact that she cannot remember what she had done that day. Dr. Kate cares for all the patients in a small town with only minimal help from others. As her father did, Kate begins to drink too much and suffer blackouts. The day of the murder is just gone.Shenandoah Coleman who grew up dirt poor in this tiny town, but managed to escape with help from her teachers. Not only did she earn a college degree, but she piloted planes in the WWII. After the war, she went to work for a Memphis newspaper, but asks to be sent to cover the trial of her childhood friend. I also liked that at the end, the author told the reader what happened to these people for the rest of their lives.

[bookaholicgirl · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In the summer of 1952, reporter Shenandoah Coleman returns home to Tennessee to cover the murder trial of her childhood friend, Dr. Kate Marlow. During her time there, she learns much about the town and it's people she didn't know and much about herself as well.I found this book very enjoyable and found the characters interesting and compelling. I would compare this book to a cozy mystery. While it may not be considered great literature, it is very well written and makes the time and setting come alive for the reader. I highly recommend this book.

[milibrarian · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Shenandoah Coleman learns from the AP wire that her childhood friend Dr. Kate Marlow has been accused of murdering one of her patients. Set against the backdrop of rural Tennessee in 1952, Shenandoah attempts to prove her friend's innocence and come to terms with her own heritage.This disappointing novel does too much telling rather than showing. Dr. Kate's character, as well as many of the other's, is never fully developed; we only see her though the eyes of other other characters, some of whom are simply stereotypes. Even the courtroom scenes and eventual verdict lack emotion. A sub-plot involving political corruption is is never developed or tied in with the rest of the story. The characters do not change, and the reader has a hard time caring about these wooden personalities who act abruptly. An awkward epilogue attempts to tie up the loose ends.

[dawn1361 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I received "The Trial of Dr Kate" as part of the Early Reviewers program. Upon removing it from the mailing envelope, I was struck by a cover that hinted of more of a romance book than a mystery. Yes, there was the obligatory relationship fire, which remained appropriate for the time period as well, but the book did stay more on the mystery side thankfully. The novel does a brief head nod to the Jim Crow south and families defined by their poverty for generations - both topics too complex for a light hearted read - but necessary to acknowledge for the time period's authenticity. At times the character's reactions seemed too tidy, such as Shendoah's response upon finding out why another driver had been terrorizing her. Forgiveness bubbled too unrealisticlly quick. "The Trial of Dr. Kate" is the second book in the Round Rock series by Michael E Glasscock III and stands on its own. I would recommend it as a quick light read between more thought provoking works.

[candyh_64 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a well-crafted book by Michael Glasscock III. This is the story of Dr. Kate Marlow and Shenandoah Coleman, best friends from childhood. This story also deals with issues of the late 40's and 50's in the South. I'm pleased to have been chosen by LibraryThing to read this excellent book. And I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys well-written stories of this era.

[teritree001971 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Although it is the second book in a series, it is a stand alone story in which the focus is Dr Kate and Shenandoah Coleman. If you've read LITTLE JOE, you will likely remember both the Coleman's and the doctor from the first story.This one picks up after both women have finished college. Shenandoah is a reporter living in the city, while Dr Kate is working as a doctor in Round Rock. The two lead drastically different lives and while they were friends when younger, they have grown apart. When Shenandoah learns of Dr Kate's pending trial, she decides to return to Round Rock and cover the trial, while getting information for the book she is writing. Along the way, she comes to see things in life aren't always what they seem and people sometimes have reasons for being the way they are in this life. Dr Kate, even though she is in jail, helps us to see that sometimes circumstances, we know nothing of make them the way they are. With encouragement from Kate, Shenandoah goes to see her uncle and aunts. She returns to her childhood neighborhood to find very little, if anything has changed. In time she comes to realise that her family was poor, but they loved her and even though she left them without a second thought, they continue to remember her and to love her. Shenandoah learns we never really know anything about the people and places around us. People are not always what they present to the outside world.

[fuzzy_patters · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

This novel is so vapid that I read 2/3 of it and couldn't finish it.

[ehousewright-1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

This is not the type of fiction I usually read, but learning about the ‘50s in the South seemed like an interesting idea. I can’t quite put my finger on what disappointed me-- it’s a book set in the ‘50s but characters seem to have the sensibilities of today, which made them hard to believe in. I think the idea of a series of novels set in the same general area with some shared characters is a good one, but don’t have a desire to read further.

[judiex · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

In March 1952, Trudy Underwood found the body of her sister, Lillian Johnson, slumped in her wheelchair at her home in Round Rock, Tennessee. Though only in her thirties, she suffered from multiple sclerosis and terminal colon cancer. The cause of death, however, was an overdose of Seconal injected into her arm. A syringe with her fingerprints and that of her doctor, Kate Marlow, was on the floor by her chair. There were no prints on the plunger. There were no witnesses although Dr. Kate was scheduled to see her that morning and a witness did say her saw her car there. Dr. Kate, the much loved and only doctor in Round Rock, however, had no recollection of being there nor of anything she did that day because she was experiencing an alcoholic blackout. The book opened a few days before her trial for murder began.Shenandoah Coleman, a reporter with a Memphis newspaper, grew up in Round Rock. She was the first member of her family to finish school and go to college. Her family was very poor and were frequently on the wrong side of the law. She was bullied and ignored by many of her peers except for Kate Marlow. When Shenandoah heard about the trial, she asked for permission to cover it. She also wanted to gather information about a political strongman for a book she wanted to write.Shenandoah speaks with a lot of people who tell her of Dr. Kate’s dedication and abilities. Kate’s lawyer was supposed to be very good but had never tried a criminal case. I can’t believe that a week before the trial he hadn’t been seeking character witnesses to testify on Kate’s behalf. The main witness against Dr. Kate was Trudy, who may have had ulterior motives.Author Michael E. Glasscock III presents some information about subjects such as MS, colon cancer diagnosis, alcoholism, poverty, medical care, and life in a small, southern town. Page one includes a lot of cliches, e.g.,“The water, muddy from rains.., swirled like chocolate milk behind the tug’s powerful motors.” “Turning toward the clickety-clack of the Associated Press Teletype....” I assume the author was trying to write in the style of the early fifties though he wasn’t consistent.The stereotypes of a small town in the south in the early 1950s are rampant: The role of women. Racism against blacks. The bully sheriff. There are a few anachronisms: Gas stations didn’t sell sandwiches. Women didn’t wear bikinis in that area that early. Her connection with her family was too brief and lacked follow through..The entire “romance” segment happened too fast. The trial sections were too shallow. The plot line about person following her and trying to force her off the road may have added another dimension to the story but I don’t think it helped and I was unsatisfied with its resolution. Likewise, the courtroom death.THE TRIAL OF DR. KATE might have worked better as a short story with a single focus.I received an Early Reviewers copy of this book from LibraryThing.

[kendallone · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway.

I enjoyed reading this book. The story was interesting and I loved some of the characters. However the ending was very abrupt and I really didn't understand the reasoning for some of what happened. It is like the author reached the number of pages requested and quit.

[diaryofanairess · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I actually was not very impressed by this book. In the description it says that this a book about Dr. Kate and her trial and the reporter who will basically stop at nothing to prove Dr. Kate's innocence. However, I didn't find that to be true. Shenandoah, the reporter, could have done much more than she did. There were some instances where her past got in the way, but not really. I feel as if this book lacked a climax and many of the events seem to just be thrown in and had no real impact on the plot. None of the characters really stood out to me and they were all kind of lacking/missing something. It also seems like the story itself was rushed. I think there was much more that could have been added to this story to add some depth and excitement. I have not ready any of the other books in the Round Rock series but this one just did nothing for me.

[pennybrainerd · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I found this book quite interesting with all the recollections of the people about Dr. Katel Marlowe on trial for the murder of her best friend from childhood. The evidence: a used syringe with her and the murdered woman's fingerprints on it and the fact that she cannot remember what she had done that day. Dr. Kate cares for all the patients in a small town with only minimal help from others. As her father did, Kate begins to drink too much and suffer blackouts. The day of the murder is just gone.Shenandoah Coleman who grew up dirt poor in this tiny town, but managed to escape with help from her teachers. Not only did she earn a college degree, but she piloted planes in the WWII. After the war, she went to work for a Memphis newspaper, but asks to be sent to cover the trial of her childhood friend. I also liked that at the end, the author told the reader what happened to these people for the rest of their lives.