Diminished Capacity
I couldn’t help myself.”
Hot blood. Uncontrollable impulse. Temporary insanity. Different names for the same idea: Sometimes, you just lose it.Who can honestly say they’ve never done something they later regretted? Certainly not Dave Brunelle, homicide prosecutor and all too fallible human being. But not all bad decisions are made equal. When Brunelle finds himself standing over the remains of a murdered homeless man, his head stomped into a train rail, he vows to hold the killer responsible.
But the killer claims mental illness, arguing the legal doctrine of “diminished capacity” to assert he had no legal intent to kill the victim. And Brunelle’s own mental capacity will be tested by an old flame and the ghosts of his own bad decisions. Can Brunelle keep his head together long enough to convince the jury that sometimes, no matter why the killer did it, murder is still murder?
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Stephen Penner
Stephen Penner is an author, artist, and attorney from Seattle, Washington.
Born and raised near Detroit, Michigan, Stephen was writing murder mysteries and fantasy adventures while still in elementary school. In college, he studied languages and spent a year living in Europe. He attended law school at the University of Michigan and moved to Seattle after earning his law degree.
Stephen began his legal career as a criminal defense attorney in downtown Seattle, appearing in federal, state, and municipal courts throughout the State of Washington. After several years of defense work, Stephen 'switched sides' and became a prosecutor. He has been prosecuting cases for over 25 years, working his way up from misdemeanor offenses, to felonies, and finally to homicides. He has conducted over 100 criminal trials and now trains other prosecutors.
As an author, Stephen pens several series of legal thrillers. The Rain City Legal Thrillers deliver the adventures of attorney Daniel Raine and his unlikely partner Rebecca Sommers. The David Brunelle Legal Thrillers feature Seattle homicide D.A. David Brunelle and a recurring cast of cops, defense attorneys, and forensic experts. And the Talon Winter Legal Thrillers showcase tough-as-nails Tacoma criminal defense attorney Talon Winter and her closest allies. Stephen is also the author of the Maggie Devereaux Paranormal Mysteries, recounting the exploits of an American graduate student in the magical Highlands of Scotland, and several other stand-alone works.
In his spare time, Stephen enjoys painting, drawing, and spending time with his family.
David Brunelle Legal Thriller Series
David Brunelle Legal Thriller Series consists of eighteen primary books, and includes two additional books that complement the series but are not considered mandatory reads. The current recommended reading order for the series is provided below.
