“Stinging and insightful...Acknowledging the balance between her heart and her head, Ridha amply demonstrates what can happen when the balance is upset.”
Criminal That I Am
A Memoir
Description
“A gripping read, as fascinating as it is shocking” (New York Journal of Books) by a young lawyer who becomes romantically entangled with convicted drug felon Cameron Douglas—a page-turning journey through professional self-destruction and tabloid scandal to redemption.
Criminal That I Am is a defense attorney’s account of the criminal justice system as seen through the prism of a particular case: her own. Jennifer Ridha was enlisted to serve as counsel to Cameron Douglas, the troubled but earnest son of film actor Michael Douglas, in a federal drug trafficking case. As media scrutiny and the pressures of Cameron’s case mount and as Jennifer becomes increasingly transfixed by her charismatic but troubled client, he asks her to do the unthinkable: commit a crime. In a decision inexplicable even to herself, guided only by her indignation and infatuation, she agrees. When her transgression is discovered, her criminal case begins, and her life as she knows it is over.
Criminal That I Am, “an unflinching account...a juicy narrative that serves as a vehicle for reflecting on criminal behavior and the human inclination to transgress.” (Publishers Weekly), details Jennifer’s redemptive journey, beginning with her decision to commit a crime on behalf of a man she loved to the calamitous yet ultimately transformative consequences that came after. Recounted with brutal introspection and self-deprecating humor, this strange and twisted love story contemplates what we make of crime and punishment...and what it makes of us.
Reviews
“An unflinching account...Positioned as both insider and outsider, lawyer and criminal, Ridha creates a juicy narrative that serves as a vehicle for reflecting on criminal behavior and the human inclination to transgress.”
“Ridha’s remorse and guilty feelings are palpable...A cautionary (albeit sometimes lighthearted) tale.”
“Jennifer Ridha’s story rivets, jars, compels, and challenges. Her search for justice leads her to a merciful crime of the most human variety within a morally bankrupt criminal system. Although her journey is a tough one, Criminal That I Am contains many moments enlivened by Ridha’s wry wit and powerful sense of irony. Her spirit, fortitude, and candor will stay with you long after the last page is turned.”
