''Defending the Devil: My Story as Ted Bundy's Last Lawyer'' is a 1994 nonfiction book written by American lawyer

Polly Nelson Polly Jean Nelson (born 1952) is an American attorney and author. She is best known as a member of serial killer Ted Bundy's last defense team from 1986 until his execution in 1989.Nelson 1994, p. 9 Education and early career Nelson grew up in c ...

, who was a member of

serial killer A serial killer is typically a person who murders three or more persons,A * * * * with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant period of time between them. While most authorities set a threshold of three ...

Ted Bundy Theodore Robert Bundy (Name change, born Cowell; November 24, 1946 – January 24, 1989) was an American serial killer who kidnapped, raped and murdered numerous young women and girls during the 1970s and possibly earlier. After more th ...

's legal defense team from 1986 to his execution in 1989. It was published by

William Morrow & Company William Morrow and Company is an American publishing company founded by William Morrow in 1926. The company was acquired by Scott Foresman in 1967, sold to Hearst Corporation in 1981, and sold to News Corporation (now News Corp) in 1999. The ...

Description

Nelson was Bundy's final lawyer before his execution in 1989. The book describes her attempts to spare Bundy the death penalty, and gives her impressions of him as a person, calling him, "the very definition of heartless evil".

Court case

Nelson sued novelist

John Grisham John Ray Grisham Jr. (; born February 8, 1955 in Jonesboro, Arkansas) is an American novelist, lawyer and former member of the 7th district of the Mississippi House of Representatives, known for his popular legal thrillers. According to the Ame ...

in 1995, alleging his book '' The Chamber'' had striking similarities to her work. After Grisham prevailed in a lower court ruling in 1996, the case was dismissed on appeal in 1997.

References

1994 non-fiction books Non-fiction books about Ted Bundy William Morrow and Company books {{crime-book-stub