Brian Melville Kennedy was born in Renfrew, Ontario October 21, 1948. He has taken a serpentine path from northern Canada to his present home on the North Coast of Jamaica. Stops along the way include Grosse Pointe, Michigan; Barcelona, Spain; Lugano, Switzerland; Aurora, Ontario; East Lansing, Michigan; and twenty-six years in Bay City, Michigan.

He graduated Magna Cum Laude from Michigan State University before attending Wayne State University’s law School to obtain his Juris Doctor in 1974. While attending law school at night he was a stock broker during the day. He became the Chief Trial Lawyer and head of the Career Offender Program in the Bay County Prosecutor’s office. In the 4 years from 1974 until 1978 he tried in excess of a hundred jury trials including multiple murder trials. The murder trials all ended in conviction. In 1978 he was the Republican candidate for State Senate and was featured on ABC for mounting a surprising challenge to the Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee. The challenge, while surprising, was not successful. So, Kennedy began his private practice of law which spanned 1979 to 2001.

During that career Kennedy defended various persons accused of murder. None were convicted as charged and one was found Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity. The reputation built from criminal practice brought increasing numbers of civil clients. Kennedy has won multiple million dollar jury verdicts as well as settlements. He taught Evidence and Criminal Procedure at Delta College and was chosen as a lecturer by Michigan’s Institute of Continuing Legal Education.

In 2001 following his father’s death, Kennedy and his wife Shelley fulfilled a long held dream of living by the sea. Having purchased four acres of ocean front west of Ocho Rios, Jamaica many years earlier, they built their dream house, Stonefield Cove, and are in the process of living happily ever after with their two Ridgebacks, Mr. MacGregor and Mr. Fitzroy, their Weimaraner, Miss Fanny, a Mastiff named Jazzy and their ferocious tiger cat, Fang. Their daughter Shannon works for a university in Atlanta.

Kennedy gardens, golfs, plays polo (quite badly), swims and takes a regular hand of bridge. So why write a novel? “My opponents and judges after looking at my legal briefs have accused me of writing fiction for years. So, I thought I’d give it a go.”

Newly released book!

Improved Lies tells the story of defense lawyer, Kenneth Edwards, on his biggest ever criminal case and how he struggles for justice and truth. All the evidence points towards his client who is caught red-handed stooping next to his wife’s bloodied corpse. His client has good motive, and the weapon used to kill her is none other than his own golf club. Yet, both client and lawyer maintain his innocence despite there even being a confession the client has signed.

You can listen to excerpts online...
"Each Saturday for 16 weeks, The Times will run an excerpt from "Improved Lies," a novel by former Bay City attorney Brian M. Kennedy. The story involves a murder and controversial trial in the fictional city of Lake Pointe, Mich."
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