THE PELICAN BRIEF

by John Grisham

In a night of October two Judges, called Jensen and Rosenberg, are killed. There's the indication that both were killed by the same murderer. The whole city is in a tumult: Everybody wants to find the guilty person; On the one hand the "White House" (including FBI and CIA) to make impression on the citizen before the elections start, on the other hand some individual persons. One of them is Thomas Callahan, a law professor at the University, who was a big supporter of Rosenberg and his theories. After talking a long time about this murder his girlfriend Darby Shaw, by the way one of Callahan's students, makes enquiries and writes the "Pelican Brief": In the "Pelican Brief" Darby Shaw (i.a.) describes who could have killed the two judges and why they were murdered, who was the customer and who could be the next on their "list". She accuses the "White House", that means the president and his assistant, Coal. Callahan likes her theory and shows a copy of the "Pelican Brief" to a good friend of his, Gavin Verheek who works as a special counsel for the FBI. Somehow the "Pelican Brief" gets into the "White House" and 48 hours later Callahan is dead, killed through a car explosion [FILM!]

Darby Shaw realizes that the "Pelican Brief" is "directly on point" and that she's in danger because now they're after her. She needs help and so she contacts Gavin Verheek. However, just before they want to meet each other, Verheek is killed and Darby is very lucky to get away alive. Now there's only one person left who could help her: His name is Gray Grantham and he's journalist at the "Washington Post". Darby knows Gray Grantham because Callahan had always admired him for his way of working. He is Darby's last chance and so she gets in contact with Grantham. Gray Grantham who also has a "trace" believes her and together they try to duplicate the "Pelican Brief" as often as possible and to send it to many important people as possible.