"Martyr or Murderer?" Available for Pre-Order Now

You can pre-order my book on the Söring case on Amazon, other platforms will follow soon.

I am delighted to announce that my book on the Söring case is now available for pre-order on Amazon.com. More outlets will follow soon, and I’m working on a German version.

This book, the result of five years of research, is the first definitive English-language account of the case, from its beginnings in a twisted love affair to Söring’s campaign for a “media pardon” after his release and deportation to Germany in 2019. I avoid gossip and speculation and concentrate on reliable sources: judicial opinions, trial testimony, and first-hand accounts by figures in the case. I provide the reader with generous excerpts from primary documents and historical sources, many of which are unavailable online.

I learned much more about the case writing this book, including Jens Söring’s primary motive for killing Derek and Nancy Haysom, which only became clear during my research in to Elizabeth Haysom’s trial. By cultivating sources within Söring’s camp, I gained a deep understanding of how Söring’s media campaign worked and what his supporters were expected — and willing — to do for him.

Martyr or Murderer? begins with obsessive love which takes a detour into madness and a horrifying act of violence which destroyed two families. We then see how an intelligent, articulate prisoner crafted an mirror-universe alternate reality in which he was not a guilty murderer, but rather a martyr to a cruel and arbitrary justice system. Söring ultimately convinced tens of thousands of supporters — including Martin Sheen and John Grisham — to step through the looking-glass and join him in his fantasy world.

Martyr or Murderer? will also be available in paperback for $18.99, and on other platforms as well. I am working on a German version, which will be released in December 2023. For now, however, I would be grateful if you could pre-order the book, if you feel so inclined. And feel free to spread the news far and wide!

Here is the back-cover blurb which will appear on the print version:

Who killed Derek and Nancy Haysom and why?

Was Jens Soering wrongfully convicted?

Why did so many famous people rally to his cause?

Martyr or Murderer? Jens Soering, the Media, and the Truth answers these questions and many more. It is the product of five years of research by Harvard-trained lawyer and bilingual German/English journalist Andrew Hammel, one of the world’s leading authorities on the Jens Söring case and featured interview guest in the new Netflix documentary series Till Murder do us Part: Soering v. Haysom. It is the only English-language book which provides both an overview of Söring’s legal case and his ongoing media offensive.

It is a story of twisted passion, deception, and betrayal. Derek and Nancy Haysom, a retired couple living in a prosperous suburb of Lynchburg, Virginia were found dead in their home in April 1985. Both had been stabbed to death and nearly decapitated. Suspicion focused on the couple’s daughter Elizabeth Haysom and her 18-year-old boyfriend, German national Jens Soering. Honors students at the University of Virginia, Jens and Elizabeth had begun an obsessive love affair which became their whole world. Jens and Elizabeth fled the U.S. in October 1985. After both were arrested in London in 1986, Jens confessed to murdering the Haysoms. Four years later, in 1990, he recanted his confessions and accused Elizabeth of the killings. His trial, one of the first to be televised in the U.S., was a worldwide sensation.

From his jail cell in Virginia, Söring began a campaign to convince the world of his innocence. He wove an alternate reality in which incompetent lawyers and detectives and biased judges conspired with Elizabeth Haysom to set him up. Celebrities and politicians who rallied to his cause included author John Grisham, actor Martin Sheen, former President of Germany Christian Wulff, and millionaire music producer Jason Flom. His case was featured in a 2016 documentary, Killing for Love.

This support paid off when Söring was released on parole in 2019 and deported to Germany, where he planned to tour the nation like a conquering hero, recounting a tale of intrigue and injustice. Yet Söring’s claims soon attracted scrutiny from skeptical journalists and the detectives to whom he had confessed decades earlier. Now, Söring finds himself in a battle to define his place in history – as either martyr or murderer.