Super Short Summary

The Poison Tree by Alan Prendergast is a non-fiction crime biography that tells the story of Richard and Deborah Jahnke, two adolescents who, in 1982, conspired to kill their father after enduring a lifetime of verbal and physical abuse. Their plan culminated in November 1982, when Richard Jr. used their father's weapons arsenal to execute the plot, resulting in the siblings' immediate arrest and national media attention. The book contains graphic depictions of family violence.