A Soul on Trial: A Marine Corps Mystery at the Turn of the Twentieth Century

Marine Lieutenant James N. Sutton died on the grounds of the Naval Academy on October 13, 1907, and the Marine Corps would never be the same. This is the true story of an Oregon mother's crusade to save her son's soul from the stigma of suicide and to confront venerated military institutions in her search for answers about her son's death. From the corridors of power to common city streets, Americans were fascinated by accusations of drinking, gun play, romantic rivalry, cover-ups, wounded honor, and ultimately murder in Annapolis. A Soul on Trial is a riveting tale of the power of the press a century ago, and of the lives of young officers whose private battles were often as difficult as their professional ones.

Robin R. Cutler has spent most of the past two decades as a public historian both at the National Endowment for the Humanities and as president of two nonprofit organizations. She holds a doctorate in history from Columbia University and taught history for eleven years in universities in New York City. Cutler was the project director and coproducer of ROANOAK, an Emmy-nominated dramatic miniseries for PBS, and the producer/writer of the award-winning PBS documentary Indian America: A Gift from the Past. Ten years ago she discovered the extraordinary primary sources that make it possible to explore the century-old case of Jimmie Sutton's death for the first time. She lives in New York City. You can visit her website at http://www.RobinRCutler.com/