James Blatt is one of America’s most astute criminal defense attorneys. He dresses like a zillion bucks and wears the disarming smile of a ruthless professional. In 2005, Jack Hollywood had told him about all the information Michael had gathered during his research for the film and book, and when they met, Blatt questioned the author about it. By the end of the meeting, the defense attorney appeared quite impressed with what he had heard. Late that summer, he asked Michael to testify in Hollywood’s death penalty case. Blatt wanted to build a record of all informational exchanges between Michael and Senior Deputy District Attorney Ron Zonen. He wanted to recuse the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s office for prosecutorial misconduct, for turning over to Michael confidential case files. Over the next several months, Michael would testify twice. Ron Zonen would eventually get kicked off the case, and both sides would appeal the issue all the way to the California Supreme Court…
To this day, Jesse James Hollywood continues to battle for his life, and Ryan Hoyt already sits on California’s death row. Hollywood’s remaining co-defendants include Jesse Rugge, sentenced to life with the possibility of parole; William Skidmore, who’s serving out the remainder of his nine-year sentence; and Graham Pressley, who served his time with the California Youth Authority, and has recently been released. Stolen Boy is a book you will not want to keep to yourself. This page is designed to stimulate discussion of Jesse Hollywood’s story, extending beyond any conversation generated by Stolen Boy. We hope it will broaden your understanding of the tragically bizarre circumstances experienced by those involved.
To be continued….
