Murder for Hire: My Life as the Country's Most Successful Undercover Agent

After joining the Phoenix Police Department in 1978, Jack Ballentine quickly rose to the top as one of the nation's most successful undercover operatives. His specialty: posing as a hit man. Ballentine led a schizophrenic life, changing assumed identities at the drop of a hat as he developed a network in the criminal underworld and was "hired" to kill business partners, spouses, or, in one case, a couple's son. In twenty-four cases, he produced a 100 percent conviction rate on murder conspiracy charges. Murder For Hire details his most shocking assignments while also showing how he balanced his touch-and-tumble assignments with the demands of his personal life as he built a family with his new stepson. Ballentine's story is a gritty and revealing look at how law enforcement delves into the heart of the criminal world.