If readers are looking for a definitive answer about what happened the summer of 2020 in Omaha, this book will not give it. It contains the nuance of two imperfect lives, one unfortunate night, and its aftermath. It does provide a glimpse into Omaha politics and law.

As a citizen of Omaha who remembers the atmosphere of the protests and James Scurlock’s death, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on The Lost Sons of Omaha. I was part of the outrage when Jake Gardner wasn’t charged with James Scurlock’s death. I shared the posts of politician Ryan Wilkins, believing that what he wrote was true. I was a courthouse employee that had to leave early for safety on the day Jake Gardner was indicted. When Jake took his life, I believed a racist coward was gone. This book absolutely flipped my thoughts and feelings on the events.

Joe Saxton immersed himself in a deep dive of the entire case. While there were facts mentioned about the protests that were questionable (wood pallet barricades? Protesters with shields?) overall I found Saxton’s research to be very thorough and the interviews to be raw, emotional reporting. Saxton attempted to tell both sides of the story, but by the end of the book I found that he showed bias in favor of Jake Gardner and County Attorney Don Kleine. More of the book felt focused on the characterization of Jake Gardner rather than fair storytelling of both men involved.

Overall, my mind has changed about key players in the case and the reality is, social media was used as a disturbing weapon to spread false information. Rather than seeing Jake Gardner as a racist hell bent on shooting protesters, I see him as a PTSD brain damaged veteran who shouldn’t have had a gun to begin with, but I see his character destroyed by baseless statements on social media. If he wouldn’t have brought a gun to a protest, we wouldn’t be talking about this today. If anyone is to blame for the final outcome, County Attorney Don Kleine needs to take responsibility for his choice not to prosecute Jake Gardner. I truly think if he would have been prosecuted right away, he wouldn’t have taken his life.

The Lost Sons of Omaha is a cautionary tale of how social media and politics can destroy lives.

Conflicted by this book. I live in the Omaha area. I learned a lot but the author made many mistakes with the different parts of town.