Catch the Devil

Paul Skalnik had a way of getting people to do whatever he wanted. For his entire life, he preyed on the vulnerable—convincing nine different women to marry him and swindling dozens of others out of cash. He pretended to be a fighter pilot, a decorated war veteran, a wealthy oilman, a criminal defense attorney, a terminal cancer patient, and more. Whatever lie he needed to tell to push his agenda forward, he would tell it without a trace of guilt.

This was not a case of a diabolical mastermind outsmarting the police and staying one step ahead, though; Skalnik was constantly arrested and jailed. However, while incarcerated, he discovered another angle he could use to benefit himself. Prior to DNA testing, one of the most powerful tools used by prosecutors was the "jailhouse confession," in which prisoners would testify that a fellow inmate had admitted to a crime. Skalnik was a tremendously compelling witness for all the reasons that made him an effective conman. Each time he was arrested, he would find a detective or prosecutor and explain how he could be "useful" to them in exchange for a reduced sentence.

This worked thirty or more times—a figure Skalnik would brag about whenever he found himself back in jail, offering his services to law enforcement. One such case was the capital murder trial for the killing of Shelly Boggio. That case, along with the aftermath of a wrongful conviction, serves as the central focus of Pamela Colloff's investigative work, Catch the Devil. Colloff reconstructs the events of the night of Boggio's death in vivid detail. Physical evidence was limited, and the primary suspect—a man named Jack Pearcy—gave several conflicting statements to police. Eventually, Peary pointed the finger at his friend and roommate, James Dailey. There was little physical proof to secure a conviction... but then in walked Paul Skalnik.

Hearing about Skalnik's transgressions, one can't help but think of Frank Abagnale Jr., whose antics were portrayed in Catch Me If You Can. Unlike the Hollywood version of Abagnale, the real-life crook spent most of his teen years in jail for some of the same crimes Skalnik committed. But where Abagnale stopped at thievery, Skalnik went much deeper and darker into truly heinous territory. Yet members of the legal community shrugged off their association with him, insisting they believed Skalnik had reliable information—or sheepishly rationalizing, "You have to make a deal with some sinners if you're going to catch the devil."

Catch the Devil is high-quality investigative journalism that delves deep into both Skalnik's checkered life and the flaw-ridden Boggio trial. Skalnik's utter lack of morals and manipulation of the system will infuriate readers, as will the systemic failures of the U.S. legal system laid bare throughout the text. It is well worth the read.