Bringing Ben Home

Praise for Bringing Ben Home:

“Barbara Bradley Hagerty has written a true-crime story that reads like a legal thriller and, at the same time, recounts the systemic failures of the judicial system. It is eye-opening, discouraging, and inspiring.” —Christian Science Monitor, Best Books of 2024

“Engaging … in the vein of a legal thriller … but what makes Hagerty’s book important is its wider focus, setting [Ben] Spencer’s tragedy in the context of rampant wrongful arrests and convictions across the country.” —Dallas Morning News

“Hagerty takes readers through Ben [Spencer’s] story, from the rushed investigation to the uphill battle to prove his innocence. When describing each piece of the process, such as the use of jailhouse informants, Hagerty draws on examples from other exonerees’ cases …including interviews with many people involved in Ben’s case and excerpts of his letters from prison. Bringing Ben Home shines a wrenching, difficult spotlight on the U.S. legal system’s potential for extraordinary failure…This could be a great read for YAs interested in law and justice.” —Booklist

“A thought-provoking cultural discussion of wrongful convictions based on race. … The author’s narrative persuasively demonstrates how deeply embedded racism is in the fabric of the American criminal justice system … A stirring account of a legal travesty that effectively reveals a rotten core within the justice system.” —Kirkus Review

“A compelling, important, and deeply unsettling account [that] …makes clear the extent to which the legal cards can be too easily stacked against poor people and members of minority groups.” —Christian Science Monitor

“Ben Spencer’s story is beautifully told by a gifted and determined journalist: There is great suffering, injustice, corruption, waste, and, in the end, redemption. Barbara Bradley Hagerty’s vivid account of his nightmare is simply unforgettable.” —John Grisham, author of The Exchange

“Bringing Ben Home explores the ways our legal system punishes the innocent and ignores its mistakes. This book is a revelation to anyone interested in justice, truth, and humanity.”—Sister Helen Prejean, author of Dead Man Walking

“Barbara Bradley Hagerty’s painstaking reportage shines through with clarity, and that clarity beckons the reader to reevaluate justice, innocence, and equity in America.” —Caleb Gayle, author of We Refuse to Forget

“In the tale of Ben Spencer’s fight for freedom, we get righteous anger, unlikely grace, and Hollywood twists. But we also get that rarest bird in the annals of mass incarceration: hope. I was blown away.”—Maurice Chammah, author of Let the Lord Sort Them

“As someone who spent three decades as a trial court prosecutor, I was horrified by the casual callousness that led to many of the wrongful convictions detailed in this important, beautiful, and infuriating work.” —Glenn Kirschner, MSNBC legal analyst

“As a member of the San Antonio Four who served 13 years in a Texas prison for a crime that never occurred, this book dredged up a lot of feelings and memories – frustration, helplessness, and finally hope when someone on the outside believes you.” —Anna Vasquez, director of outreach, Innocence Project of Texas

“A spellbinding story of resilience and faith. It’s a fascinating account of a broken justice system and what people are doing to help mend it.”—James Martin, S.J., author of Jesus: A Pilgrimage

“Bringing Ben Home achieves a rare feat: simultaneously infuriating, fascinating, and inspiring. The author’s personal commitment to her subject and his family filled me with awe. This is a luminous book.” —Allison Leotta, author of The Last Good Girl

“Barbara Bradley Hagerty brings her keen eye to the phenomenon of wrongful convictions in this beautifully written and accessible exploration of an injustice in Texas. As she makes clear, when an innocent person is convicted, the harm transcends that individual’s suffering and affects all of us.” —Daniel Medwed, author of Barred: Why the Innocent Can’t Get Out of Prison

“There are valuable lessons here about the reasons for wrongful convictions and the immense difficulty of obtaining justice. With drama, insight, and conviction, Barbara Bradley Hagerty describes how a remarkable team proved Ben Spencer’s innocence and won his freedom.” — Stephen Bright, Yale Law School, veteran death penalty attorney