How to Get Away With Murder in America by Evan Wright

How to Get Away With Murder in America Reviews

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  Thrillers R Us

  
  
  Indirectly mourning the possible end of his own young life, Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr.'s followed up his highly praised contributions on Dr. Dre's soundtrack single DEEP COVER and 1992's THE CHRONIC with his very own debut album featuring the song MURDER WAS THE CASE. While the track wasn't an overwhelming success on the Billboard US Hot 100 airplay charts for Snoop Dogg, his first record landed squarely at number one on the US Billboard 200. Indeed murdering the competition, the album sold almost a million copies in the first week and close to twenty million worldwide to date. Murder was also the case that that Evan Wright presents in HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER IN AMERICA, though here it does not deal with street life, wasted youth and everyday reality in Long Beach, Califas. Instead, drug lords, dirty politicos, obsessed cops, crooked prosecutors, judges, and the quiet man who became the CIA's master killer in the covert world shake-up post 9/11 take the limelight.
  
  As effortlessly stamped into the American public opinion with 1983's SCARFACE, HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER IN AMERICA (HTGAWMIA) lives in that Miami in the midst of a veritable gold rush, a city driven by the drug trade and its political class eminently corruptible. Local mayors, police officials, countless judges, county supervisors, and political hopefuls--all on the arm, sniffing for easy drug money while looking the other way. A time when the Reagan administration flouted the surreal narrative that Castro and other commies were responsible for America's drug woes, in part to justify to the American public the White House's wars in Central America. Nonetheless, South Florida was a smuggler's paradise and then a battlefront in Nancy Reagan's '80s War on drugs, some players bringing in between 100 and 480 kilos of cocaine every month. As the groovy 70s made way for the cash-grab 80s, a squabble of the kind that've been known to result in bloodshed amongst the criminal element caused the stepson of the legendary mobster Meyer Lansky to eat lead. The button man--Enrique "Ricky" Prado--the preferred killer of a Tony Montana clone Cuban drug kingpin throwing his weight around South Florida. HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER IN AMERICA is the amazing story of Ricky Prado and his rise from the criminal underworld to hunting Bin Laden and into the top echelons of the national security establishment.
  
  Among juicing bodybuilders, money launderers, influence peddlers, Medellin cartel cocaine wholesalers, bloodhound Cops, degenerate gamblers, and vengeful mafiosos, it takes something special to stand out. Cuban born and Mafia trained, Ricky Prado somehow ended up in the United States, making friends with the unofficial mayor of Hialeah and Miami crime boss Albert San Pedro, taking care of things since back in their High School days. This can-do attitude and ability to seamlessly fuse into the CIA's Central America operations landed the tried and true hitman Prado as a paramilitary officer in the Special Activities Division in 1982, the CIA's most secretive section. An intelligent opportunist, Ricky, an all-American hero, was thus involved with Oliver North and the Contras, doing jobs for the US government in the Nicaraguan guerilla war, America's dirty work that you will never hear about and that differed little from what he was alleged to have done for his long-time gangster friend in Miami. One good turn deserves another, priming this "hot head always fascinated with weapons" for pole position in a changing CIA in the 90s and the flood of money, murder, and mayhem that would follow 9/11. Simply, perfect for an intelligent, high-functioning sociopath who arranged his life to pursue the things that give him satisfaction.
  
  Taking pages out of the Rudy Giuliani Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) playbook of organized crime prosecution, local Florida detectives ran face first into the CIA brick wall of denial and pushback. Fighting murder investigators tooth and nail, the word coming back was that people like Prado can't be indicted, that he is bad news and dangerous, liable to get those making inquiries likely to get killed. Differing vastly from the Iran Contra days, when billions of dollars in government contracts were at stake via covert programs that changed the character of American government and the Democracy itself after 2001, making it easier for the government to kill people without accountability, the CIA and later Blackwater protect their own. Running the "targeted assassination unit" for both CIA and Blackwater, Prado is the devil that got inside. A new type of mole, an agent with allegiances to the American criminal underworld, repping the US in embassies, commanded ops, oversaw Navy SEALs, FBI agents attached to the CTC, became friends with high ranking DEA officials, and hobnobbed with politicos, eventually garnering the George W. Bush Medal of Excellence in Counterterrorism among others. With all else failing, perhaps the FBI can make headway with the murder cases and close them, send people to prison and let justice be done. For America, hope in justice is a necessary kind of faith. Without it, what's left?
  
  A good pre-curser to Toby Harnden's FIRST CASUALTY, HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER IN AMERICA showcases how the CIA was turned into a responsibility-free zone, letting the low-accountable killing apparatus grind on, lending deniable, covert, and private killers to any president willing to give the 'go-ahead'. HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER IN AMERICA could've easily gone way beyond its 150 or so pages if it'd dealt more with Cofer Black, his role in the CIA/CTC and his influence over George W. Bush and changing national policies handling targeted assassinations and the powers of the CIA, leading to a 20 year path of revenge on those responsible (or complicit) for the ghastly 9/11 terrorist attacks. Cruising among the CTC, the JTTF and spouting jargon like woofer, failing up, guilty knowledge, 1001 Violation, Baker Act, and dining with devils, HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER IN AMERICA proffers that normal statues of limitation don't apply to RICO and that every fortune is made illegitimately. Casually name dropping Frank Sinatra, James Caan, Robert Duvall, Janet Reno, Mitt Romney, Robert Shapiro, Ollie North, Bob Graham, and even Barack Obama, HTGAWMIA insists that lots of prominent figures are somehow linked to the mob/cocaine trafficking or curious incidents of prosecutorial discretion (that ordinary folks never see the benefit of, given the high level of crimes in question). As such, HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER IN AMERICA is a must-read for every American, not necessarily for assistance with Scot-free homicide, but rather as an account of what is being done with the vast trove of tax dollars, all in the name of Democracy, national security, and with the tacit agreement of the voting public. Murder IS the case that HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER IN AMERICA gives.
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  Paul

  Evan Wright automatically gets the benefit of the doubt from me because of his excellent GENERATION KILL. That being said, I was a bit disappointed with this book, even though it touches on an extraordinary change in the Executive Office mindset regarding government-sanctioned assassinations. I had a hard time keeping all the names straight as to who did what, which may out me more as a lazy reader than Wright being an overly-technical writer. Unfortunately, I was never drawn into the mind of the title subject, Ricky Prado. It may be that as a function of straight-forward journalism, Wright was limited as to how far he could go, given that all the evidence that hasn't been redacted is circumstantial. Undoubtedly, open record requests have been made and repeatedly rejected under the umbrella of National Security. Those requests likely will not be considered until after the 2012 general election. Speaking of which, it was interesting to learn that Romney's top foreign policy adviser is a former executive at Blackwater, which ties him to Prado. In summary, this book was an ambitious, thought-provoking bit of journalism which, hopefully, could soon become the topic of Congressional hearings.
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  Byron

  Author Evan Wright was working on a book with one of the main guys from Cocaine Cowboys, who hipped him to this other guy, who worked as muscle for the top Cuban mob boss down in Miami. He killed at least one guy that we know of, and who knows, he may have killed a shedload of people. Of course he went on to a very successful and lucrative career with the US military, the CIA, and the private military Bush Mengele and now Obama uses to illegally torture people. How come he wasn't thrown in prison and left there to rot way TF back in the '70s? How to Get Away With Murder in America breaks down how this mob boss he was affiliated had all kinds of politicians and law enforcement in his pocket. It can only speculate about how he got involved with the CIA, and what all he did while he was there. (Sounds like this dude was a sort of Corrupt Spy Zelig, involved with seemingly everything wrong the CIA is alleged to have done for the past three decades or so.) The part where the author tries to tie it all in with 9/11, Blackwater, the War on Terra and what have you, felt like he was reaching, but it was still kinda interesting to think about. For two bucks and some change, I got way more out of this than some books I've paid 10x as much for.
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  Steven Howes

  This book is somewhat hard to follow given all the people and twists and turns involved. However it is very disturbing. It makes one wonder how an enforcer for a Florida drug lord can make it top the top levels of the CIA and be in charge of some of our governments most clandestine operations. There are some well-known government officials and public figures mentioned in this book. You will be surprised at some of the nefarious activities your government is involved in.
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  Liam

  a short but sweet and chilling masterpiece
  
  James Ellroy once wrote, "Confluence. It's who you know and who you blow and how they're all connected."
  
  I don't want to spoil much of this non-fiction short piece about the ways in which American justice mutates and contorts itself to cover its ass and in the name of its ruling political class's pet causes, but keep that quote in mind as you read this story of dopedealers and assassins. Evan Wright is a master reporter.
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  Museveni

  Moral of the story: everyone's sleazy in Miami
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  Rick

  There are a lot of bad people doing a lot of bad things in Miami. In the government. In the middle east. In central america. In the Caribbean. And, depressingly, they all seem to be intertwined. Man. This made me feel grimey. Crazy story, though. Worth a read. Basically a murderous thug associated with drug cartels in Miami somehow ended up high up in the bush administration CIA. Seriously. It's totally depressing.
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  Priscilla

  What a shocking story of a corrupt, drug infested Miami in the 70's. A Cuban gangster, and his alleged hit-man, who wound up working in the CIA, then moved to Blackwater. Wright brilliantly has backtracked, and has produced a hard-hitting story with compelling evidence. Hard-hitting and impossible to put down once you start.
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  SA

  Dear Evan,
  
  Please don't get a contract hit put on you, even in the pursuit of tightly plotted, horrifyingly fascinating journalism. I have no idea how you meet these people and get them to tell you their secrets, but please keep it from resulting in your untimely death.
  
  Constantly hoping for your continued aliveness,
  A Fan
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  Peter Knox

  I really didn't like this book and thought that I would (which makes for 2 stars at best). It was slow, overly detailed, boring, and could never make me care for the characters, the plot, or the resolution of the case covered. But the writing was straight reportage, no flair, and comprehensive. It just didn't affect me as a reader.
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  Jim Crocker

  Another eye-opener by a fantastic author. Evan Wright lifts all the veils on this one. He says it's all true and I believe him. So there! His earlier book about the Iraq invasion -- and he was there -- is another jaw dropper.
  
  Yes, Virginia, there is a Boogie Man.
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  Harry Rubenstein

  A mindblowing and outstanding piece of long form journalism. The story is so cinematic and so unbelievable that even after I finished and digested what I had just read, I still couldn't believe it. Frankly I'm surprised that this story didn't get more attention.
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  Rich

  The first book I have read on my completely on my phone, should tell you something. More worrisome than the individual in this book to me is the way our government seems to treat assassination so lightly. It rarely seems to go the way we expect.
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  Kurt

  I love this type of stuff. Evan Wright does a fine job laying out the mystery of the CIA big-shot who also happens to be a South Florida drug-gang enforcer with some heavy indictments to his name. Short and sweet, this offering from Byliners is a fast, cheap thrill.
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  Angie

  Solidly researched and well-written piece. Connecting the dots and "behind the scenes" cases of Enrique Prado and Albert San Pedro, demonstrating how truly jacked up our government is when it thinks no one is looking. Kindle single, well worth the $1.99.
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  Josh

  We are just civilians. these people operate on a whole different level.
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  Michael Flanagan

  A great piece of investigative writing. Evan Wright delivers us with yet another thought provoking and jaw dropping read.
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  Daz

  A great book , a nice companion piece to American Desperado.. Review is not too deep but I would recommend this book to any true crime fan.
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  Paul

  Interesting and shows how America can be easily corrupted.
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  Greg Otto

  One of the best pieces of journalism I've ever read. Astounding story of deception, murder, and corruption, made all the more frightening by the fact that's it's real. An absolute must-read.
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  Patricia Bryant

  An eye opening account of America's covert wars at home and abroad, and the government's ambivalence regarding the agents & methods involved.
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  keri.

  nightmare fuel etc etc, but I'm super glad I read it.
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  Victor

  The story itself is great. But the writing could be much improved.