About This Episode
Michael Connelly, the bestselling crime fiction author, created Murder Book in January 2019 to bring real homicide investigations to listeners worldwide. The podcast strips away fictional drama and instead presents actual cases through wiretaps, witness testimony, court recordings, and detective recollections—transforming Connelly's years of crime reporting into a uniquely authentic true crime series.
Connelly enlisted a formidable team: producer Terrill Lankford and three retired LAPD detectives who spent decades hunting killers. Rick Jackson, Tim Marcia, and Mitzi Roberts became the podcast's backbone, offering firsthand accounts of investigations that challenged even the most seasoned investigators.
Season 1: The Tell-Tale Bullet
The first season, released in 2020, chronicles the 1987 murder of Jade Maurice Clark outside a Hollywood nightclub. The case began as a carjacking gone wrong—Clark was shot during the incident—but quickly became one of LAPD's most frustrating cold cases. Detective Rick Jackson initially identified suspect Pierre Romain but lacked sufficient for conviction. The stalled for three decades.