Defending Jacob

Andy returns to the event from one year prior, opening on the Rifkins sitting shiva. Ben’s death has shaken the town of Newton: Former urbanites have settled in the Boston suburb because of its safety, which has now been revealed as a fiction. Andy’s wife, Laurie Barber, exchanges condolences with other mothers, while Andy wanders, less at ease with crowds and aware that many wish to question him on the investigation. Getting his coat, Andy encounters Ben’s father, Dan Rifkin, who asks about the murderer’s motive and wonders what separates a murderer from a regular man. Andy tells him that killers are not philosophers and are mostly “full of shit” (15), making themselves the victims. He encourages Dan to get help. That night, Laurie tells Andy it is too soon for the kids to return to school; she is worried about Jacob’s safety. They have a lighthearted argument and go to sleep.

Andy goes to wake Jacob for school and hugs him while he sleeps. Jacob mutters “no, no” (22). Andy comforts him, taking pleasure in his role as a father. When Jacob wakes up, his parents ask him about his feelings. He does not divulge much, telling them he “doesn’t know” (25) how he feels and doesn’t want to talk. In the parking lot, the family encounters a group of moms. Andy expresses pride in Laurie’s esteemed role in the group; she is “everyone’s confidante” (27). Nonetheless, he feels excluded because he believes the mothers, including Toby Lanzman, think he’s boring. The group discusses how little influence parents actually have over their children and their fates. Andy leaves to help a young girl, Sarah, get a vulgar sweatshirt through the school’s heightened security, telling the cop no harm will come of it. He knows he has annoyed the supervising cop, so he stands by him for a while to show him “whose team [he is] on” (33).

Andy has the feeling there is something wrong with the case. There have been no leads in five days. He reviews the details: Ben was found dead in Cold Spring Park by a jogger, Paula Giannetto; Ben was facedown, so Paula turned him right side up, discovering three symmetrical stab wounds in his chest; the only clue is a fingerprint stamped in blood on Ben’s sweatshirt tag. 

Paul Duffy, a state trooper and Andy’s good friend, arrives with a possible lead: a pedophile, Leonard Patz, lives near the park. Andy instructs Duffy to pick him up. Next, Lynn Canavan, the district attorney, asks Andy to recuse himself (possibly at Logiudice’s request). She asks Andy why he hasn’t interviewed Ben’s schoolmates. He insists that the parents have made it difficult. He requests that Lynn back him and states that the interviews will start the next day.