Book Talk: Paul Levine, ‘State vs. Lassiter’

I’m a fan of Paul Levine and especially his protagonist Jake Lassiter. “State vs. Lassiter” is the tenth book in the series, the shortest (2013, 241 pages in paperback format), and — by far — the quickest read. If this is your first book in the Lassiter series, you should know that Jake is a defense attorney with great compassion for those who have been falsely accused and put on trial. So, the author creates a very interesting situation when he constructs a plot in which the Florida lawyer, himself, is arrested for a capital crime and headed for court.

The story opens with Jake awakening on the beach, having been kicked in the ribs by a member of the Beach Patrol. But, in short order, he finds himself in handcuffs and being led to a room at the Hotel Fontainebleau. There, “Pamela lay on the floor, her eyes open and protruding, her legs splayed from beneath her black sequined mini, the same dress she wore to dinner last night.” As Jake studied the man’s belt that was cinched around her neck, he realized that his belt was missing from the loops in his pants. The murder weapon was his belt, and — naturally — his fingerprints were all over it.

Detective George Barrios knows better than to arrest Jake before questioning him about his relationship with Pamela and the events of the previous evening. Had he put Jake under arrest, he would have had to read him his Miranda rights. Instead, they just chat, and Jake ignores the very first rule that defense attorneys tell their clients: Don’t ever talk to the cops. And not only does Jake converse with George, but Emilia Vasquez, prosecutor and Chief of Major Crimes, is present to listen in on the exchange.