Ann Rule Deconstructed

Ann Rule in 1995 published Dead by Sunset. She claimed it was a true story that described my life, and relationships. Literally nothing in DBS was true. When there was a shred of truth, she then exaggerated it to an incredulous level. For years I struggled with how to deal with this. My poverty precluded any meaningful litigation. Besides, I was a convicted murderer and any jury instruction would have limited any recovery to nominal damages. What I have done is given you the actual events and personalities of the women who were in my life and the DBS book. Ann Rule Deconstructed will offend some readers. It will make others feel uncomfortable. In telling the whole truth the entire story was necessary. The reader must know and understand how complex my relationships were with the women in my life.

Ann Rule in 1995 published Dead by Sunset. She claimed it was a true story that described my life, and relationships. Literally nothing in DBS was true. When there was a shred of truth, she then exaggerated it to an incredulous level. For years I struggled with how to deal with this. My poverty precluded any meaningful litigation. Besides, I was a convicted murderer and any jury instruction would have limited any recovery to nominal damages. Ann Rule permanently harmed my family, especially my children, with Dead by Sunset. The injury she inflicted upon them was irreparable and harsh. She has also caused delay and harm to my criminal appeals, and her adverse influences continue today. I am absolutely innocent of Cheryl’s murder. See Addenda. Ann Rule Deconstructed (ARD) details the mistakes and falsehoods in Dead by Sunset. ARD provides the truth, which often is more interesting than the made-up story in Dead by Sunset. What I have done is given you the actual events and personalities of the women who were in my life and the DBS book. Ann Rule Deconstructed will offend some readers. It will make others feel uncomfortable. In telling the whole truth the entire story was necessary. The reader must know and understand how complex my relationships were with the women in my life.

Former Seattle businessman and University of Washington football star Brad Cunningham is an inmate at the Oregon State Penitentiary in Salem, Oregon, where he is serving a life sentence for the murder of his wife, Cheryl Keeton Cunningham, who in 1986 was found beaten to death in her car next to the Sunset Highway in Portland, Oregon. Seven years later, Cunningham was arrested and charged with the murder, and in 1994 he was convicted of the crime after a controversial trial in which he represented himself. Prior to his arrest, Cunningham was an entrepreneur and real estate developer with a net worth in the millions of dollars. He lived a racy lifestyle that included open sexual relationships with his many wives and girlfriends. To this day, Cunningham maintains his innocence. In fact, his guilty verdict was once overturned by the Court of Appeals but was later reinstated by the Oregon Supreme Court.