Dear Reader, Love Pamela Samuels Young

Dear Reader…

I write Mysteries that Matter. It’s always my goal to educate as well as entertain readers. If you haven’t learned something new after reading one of my books, I’ve failed.

When I wrote my first book, “Every Reasonable Doubt,” over ten years ago, my goal was to present an interesting legal drama. But soon, I started taking on social issues, such as sexual harassment in the workplace (“In Firm Pursuit”), gender discrimination (“Attorney-Client Privilege”), the HIV epidemic among women (“Murder on the Down Low”) and paternity issues (“Lawful Deception”).

In “Abuse of Discretion,” I tackle teen sexting. I credit a law school classmate for giving me the idea for the book. My friend was lamenting the fact that he had yet another teenage client facing life-altering consequences as a result of sexting. He’s a criminal defense attorney and explained that children as young as 13 and 14 were being prosecuted for distributing child pornography after taking naked selfies and sending them to a classmate. I was floored when he told me that these children faced the possibility of having to register as sex offenders for the rest of their lives if convicted. I immediately knew this was a topic I wanted to explore in a legal thriller. “Abuse of Discretion” was the result.

The book is a true courtroom drama. Graylin Alexander is a model fourteen year old. When his adolescent curiosity gets the best of him, Graylin finds himself embroiled in a sexting scandal that threatens to ruin his life. Jenny Ungerman, the attorney hired to defend Graylin, is smart, confident and committed. She isn’t thrilled, however, when ex-prosecutor Angela Evans joins Graylin’s defense team. The two women instantly butt heads. Can they put aside their differences long enough to ensure Graylin gets justice?

I spent 26 years as an employment attorney in the corporate world. Criminal law always intrigued me, but I didn’t have the hutzpah to pursue it as a career. So I get my criminal law fix from reading and writing legal thrillers and vegging out on true crime TV shows.

I’m always searching for topics that allow me to enlighten readers. Before writing “Abuse of Discretion” I knew absolutely nothing about the juvenile justice system. I had no idea that the police could show up at a school and question a minor without the parents’ permission. I had no idea that the attorney-client-privilege relationship is between the child and the attorney, not the child, the parent and the attorney. As such, even though the parent pays the legal bill, the attorney is required to follow the instructions of the child and can withhold information from the parent if so instructed by the child. This was shocking to me and I knew it would be shocking to many of my readers.

My primary goal in writing “Abuse of Discretion” was to educate parents and grandparents about the teen sexting epidemic and the very serious consequences our children face. Based on the early reviews, I’ve achieved that goal. What I really want is for parents to sit down and talk to their teens about sexting. Education and frank conversation are key to saving our children from devastating legal consequences.

About the Author

Pamela Samuels Young has always abided by the philosophy that you create the change you want to see. She set giant-sized goals and used her talent, tenacity and positive outlook to accomplish them. Pamela consequently achieved success in both the corporate arena and literary world simultaneously.

An author, attorney and motivational speaker, Pamela spent fifteen years as Managing Counsel for Toyota, specializing in labor and employment law. While still practicing law, Pamela began moonlighting as a mystery writer because of the absence of women and people of color depicted in the legal thrillers she read. She is now an award-winning author of multiple legal thrillers, including Anybody’s Daughter, which won the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Fiction, and her new release, Abuse of Discretion, a shocking look at the juvenile justice system in the context of a troubling teen sexting case.

Prior to her legal career, spent several years as a television news writer and associate producer. She received a bachelor’s degree in journalism from USC and earned a master’s degree in broadcasting from Northwestern University and a law degree from UC Berkeley School of Law. She is a frequent speaker on the topics of teen sexting, child sex trafficking, self-empowerment and fiction writing.

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About the Book:

Title: ABUSE OF DISCRETION
Author: Pamela Samuels Young
Publisher: Goldman House Publishing
Pages: 352
Genre: Mystery

BOOK BLURB: 

A Kid’s Curiosity … A Parent’s Nightmare

The award-winning author of "Anybody’s Daughter" is back with an addictive courtroom drama that gives readers a shocking look inside the juvenile criminal justice system.

Graylin Alexander is a model fourteen-year-old. When his adolescent curiosity gets the best of him, Graylin finds himself embroiled in a sexting scandal that threatens to ruin his life. Jenny Ungerman, the attorney hired to defend Graylin, is smart, confident and committed. She isn’t thrilled, however, when ex-prosecutor Angela Evans joins Graylin’s defense team. The two women instantly butt heads. Can they put aside their differences long enough to ensure Graylin gets justice?

Unbeknownst to Angela, her boyfriend Dre is wrestling with his own drama. Someone from his past wants him dead. For Dre, his response is simple—kill or be killed.

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