Before Adam Walsh there were no faces on milk cartons, no Amber Alerts, no National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, no federal databases of crimes against children, no pedophile registry. His 1981 abduction and murder - unsolved for over a quarter of a century - changed America. One July day in 1981, Reve Walsh allowed her six-year-old son Adam to try out a video game near a store’s entrance while she shopped for lamps. When she returned a few minutes later, Adam was gone. The shock of Adam’s murder, and of the inability of the police and the FBI to find his killer altered American innocence. Gone forever were the days when parents would allow their kids out of the house with the casual instruction, Be home by dark!

The Walshes created America’s Most Wanted and became advocates for missing and exploited children. And while our lives have been significantly altered by Adam Walsh’s case, few know that after more than twenty-seven years of relentless investigation, decorated Miami Beach homicide detective Joe Matthews finally identified Adam’s killer. Bringing Adam Home is the definitive account of this horrifying crime. As harrowing as In Cold Blood, yet ultimately uplifting, Bringing Adam Home is the riveting story of a triumph of justice and the enduring power of love.