LAKEWOOD RANCH, Fla., Nov. 28, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — Trial lawyer and author Tom Bleakley has released a legal thriller, Serenity, his second novel and fourth book. Obtaining FDA approval to market a drug is often knowing the right people and taking good care of them. As deaths have occurred due to a compounding center mishap in Massachusetts, the FDA and pharmaceutical approval process is under scrutiny and new abuses are being reported in that and other situations nearly weekly in every major newspaper in America.
Bleakley's book is a fictionalized version of a real case. He writes about an unfaithful husband headed toward an unwanted divorce who takes a drug noted for its effects of causing bizarre behavior and winds up killing his wife. The book asks, "Who is to blame?" Is it the killer or the avaricious drug company making huge profits and trying to hide news of the drug's terrible effects? A jury decides guilt or innocence – or does it?
"The events in the book are similar to experiences I've had as a trial lawyer during my nearly forty years of litigating major cases against the pharmaceutical industry," says Bleakley who has tried cases in 37 states. Bleakley was the first lawyer to try and prevail in the controversial drug DES litigation. He has spent his career trying criminal and civil cases involving complex medical and scientific issues.
Serenity is the story of a drug by that name developed and marketed by the Upright Corporation based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Before Serenity was approved for marketing by the Food and Drug Administration, animal and human testing indicated the potential for bizarre reactions, including acts of violence while in a state of amnesia. A prisoner given the drug in pre-marketing testing murdered a prison guard and two other prisoners committed suicide while on the drug. The company not only ignored these events, but manipulated the research results to make it appear that the drug was safe. A Detroit attorney, Bob Riley, became involved in both civil and criminal cases arising from the drug. The criminal case involves Jay Slater who kills his wife while taking Serenity. His defense is that the drug caused him to do so. Slater's trial comes to a unique conclusion and the novel comes to an unexpected ending.
Serenity was published by Pennsylvania publisher Word Association. The book, ISBN 9781595717986, is available for immediate delivery and may be purchased for $16.95 at www.TomBleakleyBooks.com, www.Amazon.com, and www.BarnesandNoble.com
Endorsements:
"An extraordinary legal thriller." Noted author and speaker, Dr. Wayne Dyer
"A super legal thriller – instantly enthralling." Dr. John Telford
About the Author:
Tom Bleakley is a trial lawyer with a special interest in science. He has tried criminal and numerous civil cases involving complex medical and scientific issues throughout the United States. Before he became a trial lawyer, he was a special representative for a major pharmaceutical corporation and the Director of Substance Abuse Services for the Michigan Department of Corrections. He divides his time between Lakewood Ranch, Florida and Elk Rapids, Michigan.
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