*****

At the trial of Myra Hindley and Ian Brady in 1966, David Smith acted as chief prosecution witness. But his evidence did him no favours. Due in part to the insistence by Hindley and Brady that Smith took part in the murders, he was reviled and vilified by the press for years afterwards—even after Hindley finally admitted she had lied about his involvement. In this account, David Smith tells his own story.

Following Carol Ann Lee’s critically acclaimed biography of Hindley, David Smith agreed to work with the author. Originally published as ‘Witness’, Evil Relations includes interviews, archival research and excerpts from Smith’s own memoir. As with Lee’s other biographical works, this is a meticulously researched and highly detailed account which shows how Hindley and Brady, in particular, lured Smith into their world of deception and death with the intention of making him, at the very least, an accessory to murder. Although not specifically about the Moors Murderers, the book does explore with frightening detail the killing of Edward Evans, which led to Smith going to the police and the subsequent arrest and trial of the killers.

What is most frightening is how the press and public hounded David Smith and his then wife, Maureen, despite the obvious belief in his story by both the police and the courts. A fascinating, scary and, at times, upsetting book.