[.ca] The Onion Field (ISBN 0385341598)

Well-written true story:
As an ex-LA cop, Wambaugh in this book documents his facts well. However, this is the only true-crime book in his repertoire where he keeps in mind that a crime has been committed. The reason why? The victims were cops. Notwithstanding this detail, which takes nothing from the horrid crime and the pain to the victims' families, Wambaugh never downplays the brutality of the case (in respect to his fellow officers) while the criminals in this case he duly brings to justice, if it can be called justice. Two instances in the book represent Wambaugh's attention to detail, yet they give nothing to the character of either the cops/victims or the criminals. The fact that the detail appears also in the film (which Wambaugh scripted) demonstrates the immaturity of the man. One of the criminals has sex with his partner's girlfriend just before the other's arrival, and our culprit sniffs the air to gauge his probability of detection. Of the two police together, they wrestle down a gorilla of a man brought in for booking, and afterwards show a little of that macho party spirit, that in the end they had been victorious -- the perp was also gay. If you can avoid Wambaugh's actual personality, the book is a compelling work of presenting a horrible crime and its aftermath. If you can stomach any of his other "true-crime" books, give serious reflection to his Wambaugh's handling of things in this one.

Wambaugh's Best.:
The Onion Field is a top shelf book. It's the in-depth analysis of the true story of a 1963 event in Los Angeles. Two cops pull over two crooks in an otherwise routine traffic stop. But the desperate crooks get the drop on the cops, get their guns, kidnap them, drive them out to an onion field in the countryside, and murder one of them. One of the cops escapes death, but is haunted by guilt over the death of his partner and his inability to help. The murderers are captured, tried, convicted, and then retried over and over again on appeal. The surviving cop is further savaged when the LAPD uses the case in training as an example of all the wrong things a cop can do when stopping and approaching cars. Haunted by horrific memories, saddened by the loss of his partner, wracked by guilt, ostracized by his own, and repeatedly tormented by defense attorneys in one retrial after another, the cop suffers emotional meltdown. Wambaugh, takes us meticulously through the crime, second by second, and then tells the surviving cop's powerful and moving story: the destruction of a forgotten victim. This is as good as it gets. --Christopher Bonn Jonnes, author of Wake Up Dead.

eerie real life drama:
This is an eeerie real life account of what happened back in 1963. the details of the investigation both shock and frustrated me as I could not believe our justice system essentially allowed these two criminals so muck leeway. The surviving cop's life became a testament to why stricted laws needed to be put in place and why therapy is something that allows a cleansing of the soul for those who need it.

I can't believe I waited so long to read this book.:
I lived in Los Angeles in 1963 and I've seen the movie several times, but not until I picked up a used copy of the book out of the Good Will this last week did I read the written account. As usual, the book is ten times better than the movie. It's gripping and very hard to put down. The sadness of what happens to the surviving police detective is so frustrating and seems, today, so unnecessary. Of course, we forget that seeking help from therapists and even talking about your innermost fears(called "burdening others" with your problems), etc. were not the vogue in 1963. If they had been, this story might have ended differently. I was particularly interested in the author's references to local landmarks which made the story come alive for me. What makes it eerier is that the area of the onion field where the murder took place is not all that far from the city but even so, it's strictly away from city life, kind of up in the hills, pitch dark at night and isolated with nothing but a big lonely highway running through surrounding fields growing a variety of crops. Oddly enough, regarding the two sleazoid criminals, at times they seemed more intelligent than some of the defense attorneys. Fantastic story! I predict it will stay with you for days after reading it.

Great!:
Master Storyteller Joseph Wambaugh shifts from fiction to non-fiction for this riveting account of the execution of a Los Angeles police officer and its aftermath. This excellent book was brought to the screen in a fairly accurate rendition starring James Woods and Ted Danson at the beginnings of their respective careers. Of the book I must say that my realization of the identity of the gardener late in the narrative was one of the most moving and dramatic experiences of my reading life. Wambaugh is a genius!