''The Last Precinct'' is a

crime novel Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a professional detective, of a crime, ...

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

n author

Patricia Cornwell Patricia Cornwell (born Patricia Carroll Daniels; June 9, 1956) is an American crime writer. She is known for her best-selling novels featuring medical examiner Kay Scarpetta, of which the first was inspired by a series of sensational murders in ...

, the eleventh in her Dr.

Kay Scarpetta Kay Scarpetta is a fictional character inspired by former Virginia Chief Medical Examiner Marcella Farinelli Fierro MD (retired). She is the protagonist in a series of crime novels written by Patricia Cornwell noted for its use of recent forensi ...

series.

Plot summary

Following the death of Diane Bray and an apparent attack on Kay Scarpetta by Jean-Baptiste Chandonne in her own house at the end of

Black Notice ''Black Notice'' is a crime novel by American writer Patricia Cornwell. It is the tenth book of the Dr. Kay Scarpetta series. Plot summary Dr. Kay Scarpetta is still shocked by the tragic loss of Benton Wesley. She is trying to carry on, but ...

, The Last Precinct concentrates on discovering the full story behind Chandonne's killings. Kay Scarpetta is also under suspicion for the killing of Bray, due to their known rivalry and public confrontations. Torn between a desire to clear her name and the instinct of a wounded animal to turn against even its would-be rescuers, Kay sifts through the forensic evidence that seems to link Chandonne to past events in her life, up to and including the murder of her lover, Benton Wesley. A major new character is Jaime Berger, from the District Attorney's Office in New York, who believes Chandonne killed a woman in New York two years' before his arrival in Virginia. Kay must examine her own fears, misconceptions, and anything-but-altruistic motives to accept working with another competent woman.

Characters in "The Last Precinct"

- Chief Medical Examiner. * Anna Zenner - Psychiatrist. * Jaime Berger - Prosecutor. * Lucy Farinelli - Kay's niece and co-founder of the Last Precinct. * Pete Marino - Captain in the Richmond Police Department.

Major themes

* The police investigation into Kay's secrets * Kay's own investigation into the so-called Werewolf murderer, Jean-Baptiste Chandonne

Litigation surrounding ''The Last Precinct''

Dr. Leslie Sachs, author of ''The Virginia Ghost Murders'' (1998), claimed to see similarities between his novel and Cornwell's novel ''The Last Precinct''. In 2000 he sent letters to Cornwell's publisher, started a page on the World Wide Web, and placed stickers on his novel in order to claim that Cornwell was committing

plagiarism Plagiarism is the fraudulent representation of another person's language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions as one's own original work.From the 1995 '' Random House Compact Unabridged Dictionary'': use or close imitation of the language and thought ...

. Cornwell successfully obtained a preliminary

injunction An injunction is a legal and equitable remedy in the form of a special court order that compels a party to do or refrain from specific acts. ("The court of appeals ... has exclusive jurisdiction to enjoin, set aside, suspend (in whole or in pa ...

against Sachs. The court ruled that his claims were baseless, and he was prevented from placing the stickers on his book. The court also shut his website down for false advertising and required booksellers to remove the stickers that were already on books.Cyberlaw Chapter 10. Privacy Rights and Security Issues
/ref> Sachs left the country so that he could escape the injunction. He continues to charge that Cornwell plagiarized his work and used her influence to subvert justice.

References

External links

Author's Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Last Precinct, The 2000 American novels Novels by Patricia Cornwell American crime novels Novels set in Richmond, Virginia G. P. Putnam's Sons books