{"product_id":"the-book-thief-the-true-crimes-of-daniel-spiegelman","title":"The Book Thief: The True Crimes of Daniel Spiegelman","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn the spring of 1994  Daniel Spiegelman shinnied up an abandoned book lift in Columbia Universitys Butler Library  dismantled a wall  stole books  reassembled the wall  and snuck back down the shaft. Over a three-month period he did this more than a dozen times. He eventually escaped to Europe with roughly $1.8 million in rare books  letters and manuscripts. When he was caught in the Netherlands  he tried to avoid extradition to the U.S. by telling the Dutch authorities he was a financier of the Oklahoma City bombingknowing they wouldnt extradite someone facing the death penalty. Eventually  the FBI got him back to New York  where he finally stood trial for his crimes. Including a retelling of the crimes  dialogue from the court transcripts  and explanations of the legal consequences and intricacies  McDade recounts all the sordid elements of this true crime caper in vivid detail.  In the spring of 1994  Daniel Spiegelman shinnied up an abandoned book lift in Columbia Universitys Butler Library  dismantled a wall  stole books  reassembled the wall  and snuck back down the shaft. Over a three-month period he did this more than a dozen times. He eventually escaped to Europe with roughly $1.8 million in rare books  letters and manuscripts. When he was caught in the Netherlands  he tried to avoid extradition to the U.S. by telling the Dutch authorities he was a financier of the Oklahoma City bombing knowing they wouldnt extradite someone facing the death penalty. Eventually  the FBI got him back to New York  where he finally stood trial for his crimes.  Four years  four attorneys  one determined librarian  numerous court appearances  and one guilty plea after the initial crime took place  a federal judge in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York meted out a sentence that ran counter to the plea agreement  nearly doubling the ordinary sentence for a crime of that magnitude. In so doing  he created a new justification for departure from Federal Sentencing Guidelines. Basing his decision on the potential harm inflicted on society as a whole by the theft of rare and unique elements of our cultural heritage  Judge Kaplan redefined the value of such rare items and justified his sentencing by determining the value to be beyond the monetary realm. McDade recounts all the sordid elements of this true-crime caper in vivid detail  presenting readers with a retelling of the crimes  dialogue from the court transcripts  and explanations of the legal consequences and intricacies. In addition to the significant  overall legal themes  The Book Thief describes two prison escape attempts  one suicide attempt  a jailed defense lawyer  and the aftermath of this unique and interesting case.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44986483540021,"sku":"ByrdShop_0275993310","price":225.8,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9780275993313_0050ace3-4567-4f5a-97ce-52a6b1a52a1f.jpg?v=1772676631","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/the-book-thief-the-true-crimes-of-daniel-spiegelman","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}