I introduced you to the book’s primary characters and some of the locations in the posts, Name Substitutions and Deep Springs: Real vs. Fictional. In total, though, there are over 200 people, places, businesses, roads, and institutions named in the story, and (with very few exceptions) they aren’t listed by their real names. I couldn’t possibly list all of them here, but I have included a complete list in both the print and ebook versions of the story. Here, though, are a few more of the people, places, and things that show up frequently in this tale. Let me emphasize again that these are not their real names.
Law Enforcement:
Deputy Willard Knox (took a few statements and created affidavits, which is about all the sheriff’s office did)
Deputy Craig Conner (rounded out the rest of the investigation with one interview and an affidavit)
The Prosecution:
Assistant District Attorney Elmer Ross (lead prosecutor in 2006)
District Attorney: Seymour Cooper (Ross’ boss)
The Defense:
Roland Mathis (Steve’s first attorney, didn’t represent him at trial)
Bevin Jenkins (Steve’s attorney for the first trial)
Cleveland Sanford (Steve’s attorney for the second trial)
The 555th District Court:
Judge Preston Hawes (presided over both of Steve’s trials)
A Few of the Witnesses:
Rhonda Bresnick (testified about a ride home on the night of the rodeo)
Tiffany Sperger (testified against Steve’s daughter, Marri, not directly against Steve)
Josh Chilmark (confidant of Hanna’s, testified about what she told him)
Judy Higham (friend of Hanna’s, testified against her)
Blake Goudy (testified about what Sara told him after he spoke to students at her school)
Ada Dixon (Hanna’s counselor, who conducted therapy sessions with her)
Two of the Jurors:
Ronelle Wilcox (a juror who may have lied in order to get on Steve’s second jury)
Emma Barrens (the juror who later revealed that the second jury made a deal to swap votes)
A Few Others:
Angie Womack (a friend of Hanna’s whose interview contradicted Hanna’s story)
Karla Spivey (an acquaintance of Hanna’s who encouraged her to speak to Jeffrey Goudy)
Eddie Higham (a registered sex offender who dated Hanna’s mother during the time period of the alleged abuse)
Clyde Sledge (the editor of the local newspaper, the Deep Springs Gazette)
Those are the names you’re likely to encounter often in the book. As I said above, there hundreds more, but many of those people appear only once or twice to illustrate or support a particular aspect of the story. I’ll also be using these names throughout the blog while adding supplemental information (most of which will either be in the book or will expand on it).
I have a six-page double-columned list of everyone and everything that was renamed when writing the book, including notes about their function and their relationship to others in the story. If any of you are writers, do you have a favorite method of cataloguing and keeping track of the characters in your stories?
Michael Sirois
Standard Disclaimer: Please post a comment below if you would like to. All comments are personally moderated by a grouchy old guy, though, so posts by self-promotional schemers, spammers, and lunatic ranters won’t make it through. Everyone else, whether your thoughts about this story are positive or negative, please feel free to speak your mind, but don’t ask me to reveal the identities of any of these individuals. Thanks.