Compelling Evidence (1992)
Ben Potter is found dead, his wife, Talia, is indicted and arrested. She turns to brilliant criminal defense lawyer, Paul Madriani, her former lover, to defend her against the mounting evidence in a case that for her could result in the gas chamber.
Prime Witness (1993)
In five days, the town of Davenport is rocked by four brutal murders - two couples - their bodies found tied and staked out on the banks of Putah Creek. Then two more bodies are found, Paul Madriani thinks there is more to this case than meets eye.
Undue Influence (1994)
Recently widowed attorney Paul Madriani becomes caught in another family tragedy when he defends his sister-in-law, Laurel, of murdering her ex-husband's new wife. The evidence mounts but she refuses to reveal where she was on the night. Paul begins to wonder if he is defending a guilty woman.
The Judge (1995)
When Judge Acosta is caught with a hooker, few are sympathetic. It seems to be a setup, though, and when the girl is brutally killed and Acosta charged, defence lawyer Madriani begins the most complex murder trial of his career, uncovering ugly lies, deceit and corruption.
The Attorney (1999)
Lawyer Paul has plans - a new practice in San Diego, and if things work out, a future with Susan. But when Paul meets an old client, whose granddaughter has been abducted, he is drawn into a case which destroys everything he believes in.
The Jury (2001)
Attorney Paul Madriani has ample reason to suspect he's representing a guilty man. Dr David Crone is charged with the murder of his colleague: Kalista Jordan whose body washed up on a beach in San Diego Bay. When a key witness for the prosecution dies unexpexctedly it seems the case may be closed.
The Arraignment (2002)
When a lawyer friend, Nick Rush, is killed along with a client in a hail of gunfire outside the federal courthouse, attorney Paul Madriani is determined to find out the truth behind the double murder. Tortured by the possibility that he himself had been marked for death, only to have a friend die in his place, Madriani casts a suspicious eye in all directions - at Rush's business associates, his clients, even the beautiful widow and her mysterious new companion. As he investigates, Madriani rides the crest of a dangerous wave of international drug deals and people who murder for money. In a quest that takes him from California to Mexico, he discovers that, while the motive to kill may be driven by events taking place thousands of miles away, the killer lies much closer at hand...
Double Tap (2005)
Paul Madriani's defense of a soldier on trial for murder-and the explosive government secrets it could reveal-propel Steve Martini's latest thriller.
Now Madriani is faced with daunting ballistics evidence: a so-called "double tap"-two bullet wounds tightly grouped in the victim's head, shots that could have been made only by a crack marksman. Paul's client, Emiliano Ruiz, is an enigma-a career soldier who refuses to discuss his past though it is clear that he is a battle-tested pro. Ruiz is accused of killing a beautiful businesswoman and guru of a high-tech software empire catering to the military. A key to the case: the murder weapon is one used solely in special operations, where the "double tap" has become the signature of the most skilled assassins.
Ruiz is sitting on secrets-there's a seven-year gap on his military r?um? for which Madriani can find no details. And, more troubling, he discovers that the victim and her company were involved in a controversial government computer program designed to combat terrorists. Madriani finds himself in a deadly legal quagmire-with a client who is unwilling to cooperate and prosecutors who stonewall his every question about the victim's shadowy business and his client's past. Finding justice, and the unvarnished truth, has never been so elusive-or so dangerous.