Sensational crimes have become a national pastime. We're obsessed with O.J. Simpson, Scott Peterson, Robert Blake and the like. Why? Because unlike the private realms of psychiatrist's offices, lawyer's offices, or bedrooms, in a public trial we are allowed to see what's really going on beneath appearances. Secrets spill out about the criminals: secrets like adultery, violence, gambling. Secrets spill out about suspects and friends and family on the periphery of these cases. Think about the Gary Condit and all of his secrets that were exposed during the Chandra Levy investigation. And as these secrets come to the surface, on a very deep level, we recognize what we see. These sensational trials mirror the darkest corners of our interior lives.

In Secrets Can Be Murder, TV news journalist Jane Velez-Mitchell delves into the secrets that led to the sensational crimes by which we've all been fascinated. Through these cases, Velez-Mitchell details how our culture encourages double lives by demanding rigid conformity to pre-fabricated social structures that don't really fit anybody and how America's addiction to "family values" is creating a "pressure cooker family" that's ready to explode.

Jane Velez-Mitchell offers her unique view from inside some of America's most volatile courtrooms. With private photos provided by victim's families and friends, and official court documents, search warrants, and transcripts, Secrets Can Be Murdermoves beyond convenient explanations and easy labels like psychopath and sociopath to find the truth within these terrible crimes.

Recent discoveries and new debates surrounding the cases discussed in the hardcover edition - along with shocking new hidden secrets - are only included in the paperback edition.