Women on opposite sides of the law take the stage in a free virtual lecture from the Putnam County District LIbrary at 6:30 p.m., Thursday, Nov. 12.
Two authors talk about their books in the program. They include D.M. Testa on her book "Defending the Dillinger Gang: Jessie Levy and Bess Robbins in the Courtroom," and Shayne Davison, and her book "Queen of the Burglars: The Scandalous Life of Sophie Lyons."
Here's some details:
Denise (Marquart) Testa, a 1975 Cory-Rawson graduate, is the presenter. She will talk about her recently-released 226-page book “Defending the Dillinger Gang.”
The author grew up on a farm north of Jenera. She told the Icon that she heard several Dillinger stories from her parents and grandparents while growing up, which sparked her interest in the subject.
Later she did research for another author on Dillinger, and from that background plus her family stories, decided to write her own Dillinger book.
The book traces the careers of Jessie Levy and Bess Robbins, two women attorneys who represented Dillinger’s gang members in their Lima trial.
Testa said that in the early 1930s, women practicing criminal law were often held in the same low regard as the clients they served.
“When a corrupt prosecutor was determined to send as many of the Dillinger gang to death row as he could, female attorneys, Jessie Levy and Bess Robbins, rose to the challenge,” she said.
The two women represented six of the gang members, a number far greater than any of their male counterparts. Their story of deals gone bad, wrongful convictions, and success against the odds has all but vanished from history.
The recent discovery of interviews, personal correspondence, and court transcripts—a treasure trove untouched for over 80 years—forms the basis for this book, which traces the careers of Jessie Levy, Bess Robbins, and the John Dillinger gang, in detail for the first time.
Testa now lives in western New York state and visits her family farm in Jenera on a regular basis. When not writing books she works in veterinary medicine.
Shayne Davidson got hooked on genealogy and crime history while tracing the ne'er-do-wells in her grandfather's family tree. A blogger at CapturedAndExposed.com, she is the author of Queen of the Burglars: The Scandalous Life of Sophie Lyons.
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