Bonnie J. Thompson is no stranger to the world of criminal law and courtroom drama. Her father, Roger W. Thompson, and her grandfather, Donald L. Thompson, were both noted trial lawyers. Her grandfather was an Assistant State’s Attorney of Cook County, Chicago, in the 1930’s.
In 1966, Roger Thompson was appointed Public Defender of Logan County, Illinois. Shortly thereafter, he tried his first murder case defending a man named Cesarz, who had callously murdered a woman desk clerk during an attempted robbery at the Lincoln Holiday Inn. Bonnie remembers, “My father found it very difficult to represent Cesarz because he showed no remorse for what he’d done. Dad went through an array of emotions…it affected him deeply. The evidence was enormously in favor of the prosecution, so when Dad lost the case it was no surprise. He was really very relieved when the trial ended.”
After six years as public defender, Roger Thompson was elected State’s Attorney of Logan County and served two terms. Little did the Thompson family know those years would prove to be the most challenging, rewarding, and disturbing of Roger’s legal career.
The Logan County Courthouse provided Bonnie with an important education, for it was there she learned the value of truth and justice and to hold steadfast to her convictions. Although Bonnie often considered pursuing a degree in law, she found herself more interested in music, writing, and investigation. In her spare time, she sometimes performs as a professional singer/songwriter/guitarist, and she particularly enjoys singing jazz and blues standards.
Bonnie’s previous works include a screenplay, Process of Elimination, and True Facts & Findings, which is a critical review of a book written by a former Lincoln Police Detective William A. Krueger called, A Force for Evil—Assassination in a Small Town. True Facts & Findings can be purchased through this website as an e-Book/PDF download.