Presumed Innocent

“You must always point, Rusty, I was told by John White. That was the day I started in the office. The sheriff took my fingerprints, the chief judge swore me in, and John White brought me up to watch the first jury trial I’d ever seen.”

Scott Turow begins the novel by focusing on the performance aspect of practicing law, introducing immediately the theme of Performance’s Role in Courtroom Strategy by titling it “Opening Statement.” In the opening sentences of the prologue, Rusty raises the image of himself as a prosecutor, addressing the jury during the opening statement. This immediately establishes Rusty’s credibility as a lawyer as well and shows how far he’s come from that first day in the prosecutor’s office.

“I grew up about three blocks from here, in an apartment over my father’s bakery. I recall them as dark years. During the day my mother and I, when I was not in school, helped my father in the shop. At night we stayed in one locked room while my father drank. There were no other children. The neighborhood today is not much different, still full of people like my father: Serbians, as he was; Ukrainians, Italians, Poles—ethnic types who keep their peace and their own dim outlook.”

Rusty’s upbringing plays an important part in the narrative, developing the theme of The Effect of Parenting on Adult Children. In particular, his father plays a pivotal role in Rusty’s life, even after his death. Rusty also emphasizes his working-class background, highlighting the difference between Rusty and many of the other lawyers he works with, as well as his ability to operate in different settings and different enclaves throughout the city.

“He makes a face—unwisely, for Dry can certainly see it—before he walks off with Paul, disappearing into the gothic dark of the church. The mayor, Augustine Bolcarro, has the character of a tyrant.”

Rusty observes Raymond’s reaction to being summoned for a private meeting by the mayor, Bolcarro. Although Rusty claims not to be as political as some other characters, this scene illustrates that Rusty understands and can operate in a political