MAAP Qs 1-5
What inferences can be made about the police investigation?
They focused more on closing the case than on being accurate.
What are some reasons Meyers was an unreliable witness?
He kept changing his story to make himself seem important
Why did investigators pressure Myers to add details?
They wanted a faster arrest and felt they needed stronger claims to build a convincing narrative around their chosen suspect
What does Walter most want from Stevenson during their first meeting?
Someone who believes him and listens to his story without assuming he is guilty
What personal detail about Myers affected how police viewed him?
He had severe burn injuries that caused lasting trauma, affecting both his physical state and the mental stress he carried
What earlier event caused racial bias against Walter and influenced his arrest?
Walter’s affair with Karen Kelly
How does the author emphasize the injustice of Walter’s arrest?
By contrasting his alibi with weak accusations
What made Myers’s early statements unreliable?
He kept changing his story, adding new details and removing others, causing investigators to doubt his honesty and stability
How does Stevenson compare Walter’s case to To Kill a Mockingbird?
Walter was accused like Tom Robinson, facing a racially charged allegation involving a white woman in a community shaped by historical prejudice
Before the witness came forward, what was the only early “evidence” against Walter?
He was in an interracial affair, which fueled racist assumptions that made him an easy target for the accusation
What “big idea” is developed in Chapters 1 and 2 through Walter’s arrest despite evidence suggesting he is innocent?
Prejudice and pressure can harm innocent people.
How does Stevenson build suspense in the narrative?
By showing each accusation growing less believable
Why did suspicion fall on Miles Jackson and then Rick Blair?
They had both been or were owners of the cleaners that was the site of the murder, so they knew the victim
Why did Walter’s relationship with Karen Kelly cause backlash?
It was an interracial affair, which deeply upset members of the community due to long-standing prejudices and expectations about race
What part of Myers’s story seemed doubtful?
That Walter forced him into his own truck at gunpoint, even though this claim did not match what others observed or reported
Based on the text, what is MOST ironic about Walter being accused?
He avoided conflict and violence
He then wrote an enthusiastic article for Strand Magazine, being the place in which most of his Sherlock Holmes stories had first appeared, and later wrote a book on the subject titled The Coming of the Fairies.
Which option eliminates the wordiness of this sentence?
A. NO CHANGE
B. in which the magazine where
C. in which
D. being where
C
What danger did Walter learn about as a child?
That lynching tied to interracial rumors could happen without warning, leaving families fearful even when nothing had occurred
Why did people believe the murderer must have been an outsider?
The crime was unusually shocking, leading the community to think no local person could commit such a disturbing act
How did Bill Hooks enter the investigation?
He struck a deal that would reduce the trouble he was in, leading him to claim he had seen Walter’s truck outside of the laundromat
What tone does Stevenson use when describing the community’s panic after Ronda Morrison’s murder?
Tense and unsettled
She worked for thirty years as a teacher and librarian in the field of education in Baltimore public schools.
Which of the following words or phrases from the preceding sentence is LEAST necessary and could therefore be deleted?
F. thirty
G. and librarian
H. in the field of education
J. Baltimore public
H
What part of Walter’s background earned respect from some white residents?
His successful business, which he built through hard work and reliability, allowing him to earn steady jobs across the county
Why did Ralph Myers become a person of interest?
His involvement in the Pittman case drew police attention, causing investigators to question whether he had other knowledge or connections
What established Walter’s alibi that morning?
A family fish fry, where multiple relatives and neighbors confirmed he stayed the whole time