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When a private story goes public

Posted on March 9, 2013 | 1 comment

This past week, my co-author Stacey M. Kananen‘s life has been splashed all over the airwaves and internet (admittedly, I’ve been doing some of that splashing). See, Stacey was horribly abused as a child and then, as an adult, accused of murdering both of her parents. When she was found not guilty, she asked me to co-author her life story so she can tell what happened from her perspective.

Tampa Bay Times, Douglas R. Clifford photographer

Up until then, the only story that the public knew was what the media and the prosecuting attorney were telling them, and they were making her sound like a murderer who got away with heinous crimes.

On March 3 (and subsequent rerun dates), a portion of that story was told on the Investigation Discovery series, Catch My Killer (episode title: The Dearly Departed–watch: Catch My Killer promo video).

While the show was mostly accurate (only a couple wince-inducing inaccuracies and one flat-out lie from a “witness,” but that’s to be expected when someone who wasn’t there is telling a story), they could only tell so much of the story in the allotted time frame of sixty minutes. Her trial was only mentioned in the final couple minutes, and a lot of important details were left out. But, again, they only had one hour to tell a very complex story.

But that’s where the book comes in. Fear of Our Father tells the whole story, from her childhood to the aftermath of her trial. It clears up any questions left dangling by the TV show’s brevity. It explains why she’s so passionate about starting up her own advocacy program. Yes, there are many programs out there, most started up by people who’ve lived through similar abuse like Jaycee Dugard and Elizabeth Smart. They all have their own take on what could work, and so does Stacey.

What impresses me most about Stacey is that she has come to terms with the fact that her incredibly private story is now out there for all the world to see and comment on. While her trial aired on In Session, viewers posted horrible things about her and her family, many forgetting that they were watching the suffering of real people, not characters in a movie. This book is Stacey M. Kananen taking charge of her life, for the very first time.

The Tampa Bay Times printed a very good article last week, and I’m very happy for Stacey that she is finally getting to tell her story. Here’s hoping that this is just the beginning of a successful new journey for her.

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Posted in Catch My Killer, Child abuse, Domestic Violence, Fear of Our Father, In Session, Investigation Discovery, Stacey M. Kananen, True Crime

Tagged advocacy, Catch My Killer, Child abuse, In Session, Investigation Discovery, Murder, Sexual abuse, Stacey M. Kananen

The Big Announcement …

Posted on February 25, 2011 | 5 comments

I’ve been dropping hints and teasers for the past couple months about a “secret” project I’m working on. I haven’t been intentionally teasing, I’ve just been so excited that I can’t not talk about it! Keeping quiet has been driving me a little batty, but I understand that everything has its own divine timing and the time had not come, “… the Walrus said, to talk of many things …” Well, the time has finally come.

My friend Stacey and I are working on a project that uses our biggest strengths to their greatest advantage. See, I’m a writer who loves to figure out what makes things tick, and she’s a person who ticks. Stacey Kananen’s family endured decades of horrible abuse by her father, who “vanished” in 1988 when he was shot and buried under the garage floor by her mother, Marilyn, and her brother, Rickie. Fifteen years later, Rickie murdered Marilyn and falsely accused Stacey of helping him. He avoided the death penalty by accepting a plea bargain from an overzealous detective who was convinced of her guilt.

Stacey, as is typical in abusive households, was taught to never reveal the family’s secrets, but she was forced into the spotlight when the story became national news. She spent three years under house arrest at her girlfriend’s family’s nudist resort until her trial, which—to her horror—was televised on CNN’s In Session, in 2010. The circumstantial evidence against her was powerful, and the trial was touch and go until Stacey’s defense attorney—in a flawless, Matlock moment—unearthed a last-minute piece of evidence, overlooked by the detective, that proved Rickie’s story against her was fabricated and that she has been railroaded.

I have five years of experience as a writer/producer for MSNBC.com and I am also Stacey’s neighbor and friend. Stacey and I met in 2004, a month after Marilyn’s body was found buried in her back yard. I watched this story unfold and attended the trial. Now that her privacy has been ripped from her, Stacey has decided to share her story and dedicate her life to advocacy for abused children. If her family had received the help they so desperately needed, her brother would not be in prison and her mother would be alive. The system is obviously broken, and needs new, fresh voices of experience to add their input. Stacey has asked me to help her with this monumental and important task, and I intend to do just that.

The project is finally at a tipping point. We’ve done enough research and have put in enough hours to know that this is something we really intend to do. It’s not just a “wouldn’t it be nice if…” scenario anymore. We’re still at the early stages: the book we’re working on has yet to find a publisher and Stacey has yet to find the right organization with whom to throw in her hat (maybe she’ll start her own!). But in any case, we now feel like we can talk about it to people other than each other and our families.

To that end, I did my first radio interview Tuesday to get the ball rolling and I received a wonderful response. People are fascinated, concerned and very supportive. I can’t wait to see where this path takes us! If you want to follow along, I’ll be posting status updates on Facebook and Twitter, and putting longer updates here on my blog. While you’re at it, why not send Stacey a friend request on Facebook and lend your energetic support to someone who is seriously stepping outside of her comfort zone.