On October 6, 1990 a ten-year-old Lake Charles, Louisiana girl disappeared from a Beaumont, Texas antique mall and flea market after she stepped away from her parents' vending booth to buy peanuts. Hours later, her body was found in a shallow creek bed eighty miles away. She had been raped and strangled.

Sergeant Bill Davis of the Beaumont, Texas Police Department was one of the investigators in Texas and Louisiana who worked tirelessly to find Falyssa Van Winkle's killer. The story of Falyssa, the crime, the investigation, and the trial that condemned to death an Orange County, Texas resident and family acquaintance, James Rexford "Rex" Powell, inspired Davis to write So Innocent, Yet So Dead.

A decorated 28-year police veteran, Davis was an investigator of the departments Child Abuse and Sex Crimes Unit for over 19 years. His investigations of more than 7,000 crimes, he says, "has provided me with more than enough material for what I hope can become a series of books" exploring the nature of sex crimes, focusing on education and prevention.

Davis, 49, has turned his dedication to protecting children into a second career, appearing at numerous speaking engagements across the country and producing a line of videotapes, t-shirts, and other specialty items in support of children's rights. He has promotional appearances scheduled well into 2000.

In writing So Innocent, Yet So Dead, Davis worked from photos and investigative reports, court transcripts, his own observations and interviews, and those of Falyssa's family. The result is a story that sees through the eyes of an innocent child into the mind of her killer, and, finally, into a search for justice that is nearly blinded by politics and circumstance--but delivered through a series of what Davis describes as spritual interventions in the midst of tragedy.

Falyssa's killer, "Rex" Powell, remains on death row in Texas. It is anticipated he will be put to death by lethal injection some time in 2001.

Davis donates a portion of book profits to non-profit organizations benefitting children, based on the requests of individuals and organizations who invite him to speak.

To arrange a seminar or book-signing appearance, call Sgt. Bill Davis at (409) 860-9900 or E-mail him.