Angels of Death: A True Story of Murder and Innocence Lost

Gary C. King

Sep 2003 · Macmillan

About this ebook

The accused: Thirteen-year-old Derek King and his twelve-year-old brother, Alex, Sunday school students with choirboy looks. The victim: Their own father.

After midnight on November 26, 2001, someone bludgeoned Terry King to death while he slept, and set his Florida home afire. By the time the firefighters extinguished the blaze, King’s sons, Alex, twelve, and Derek, thirteen, were at the home of their forty-year-old friend, Ricky Chavis, a convicted child-molester. By the next afternoon, following confessions, both boys were charged as adults in their father’s slaying. Chavis was tried separately for the same crime—incredibly by the same attorney who would prosecute Alex and Derek, and argue two contradictory theories.

When Alex divulged his sexual relationship with Chavis, the trial took a sensational turn. So did Alex and Derek, who recanted their confession and blamed Chavis to no avail. A jury convicted the boys of second-degree murder, but the judge threw the verdict out. Chavis was acquitted. But the case wasn’t over. As more disturbing revelations came to light, as criminal motives became more complex, and as the line between guilt and innocence was crossed, a stunned nation watched in disbelief to learn the ultimate fate of the . . . Angels of Death.

Ratings and reviews

Anything about these boys i love reading, i have followed there case from the beginning and still to this day i follow up on it. I believe the boys was put in a situation that noone still to this day knows or understands and prolly never will, I really hope Alex and Derek live the life that always wanted that was stole from them at a young age. I beleive that Florida is still stripping the life away from Alex now that he's back in jail and serving 3 years for a misdemeanor.

About the author

For the last twenty years, Gary C. King has been one of America's foremost crime writers. Over 400 of his stories have appeared in crime magazines across the United States, Canada, and England, including True Detective, Official Detective, Inside Detective, Front Page Detective, and Master Detective. His books Web of Deceit, Driven to Kill (which was nominated for an Anthony Award in the Best True Crime Book category at Bouchercon 25) and Blood Lust: Portrait of a Serial Sex Killer were chosen as a featured selection of the True Crime Book Club. He is also the author of Blind Rage, Savage Vengeance, co-written with Don Lasseter, An Early Grave, The Texas 7, and Murder in Hollywood. A full-time writer, Mr. King is an active member of The Mystery Writers of America. He lives in Las Vegas, Nevada, with his wife and two daughters.