A. X. Foster was a prosecutor in Maryland for 20 years and then opened up his own law firm where he represented criminal defendants for an additional 15 years.
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As a prosecutor, he tried approximately 100 jury trials, including homicides, sexual assaults, domestic violence and animal cruelty cases. His work promoting increased protection for animals led to the legislature enacting the first felony animal abuse law in Maryland history. He also won the first conviction under the new law in 2000.
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Foster graduated from Bennington College in Vermont with a double major in Literature and Theatre Arts. He then spent two years as a copywriter at the Madison Avenue advertising agency Ogilvy & Mather.
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Foster then traveled in Europe while based in Amsterdam, where he performed for two years at the English Speaking Theatre of Amsterdam.
After returning to New York, he became a member of the acting unions Actors’ Equity, the Screen Actors’ Guild, and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists. In the 1980s, Foster performed in various TV soap operas, including “Ryan’s Hope,” “Search For Tomorrow,” “The Guiding Light,” “Another World,” and “As The World Turns.”
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Disenchanted with the world of professional acting, Foster entered law school to become an entertainment lawyer, but took a different path once he studied criminal law.
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At Emory University School of Law in Atlanta, Foster won the school-wide Moot Court tournament and also received the prize for best legal writing, the Best Brief Award, and the prize for best speaker, the Best Oralist Award. He was then named to represent Emory in the National Moot Court tournament where he competed against other law schools from across the country.
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Upon graduation from law school, Foster first worked for the Department of Justice in Wilmington, Delaware and then took a position as an Assistant State’s Attorney in Maryland.
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GAVEL TO GAVEL, Foster’s first legal thriller, is based on Foster’s experiences as a prosecutor. A life-long fan of murder mysteries and legal thrillers, with Agatha Christie, John Grisham and James Patterson as influences, Foster began writing the novel in 2020, when COVID greatly curtailed activity in the local courthouse.
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In GAVEL TO GAVEL, a wealthy businessman is murdered by his wife. The only eyewitness is their nine-year-old disabled daughter. Her testimony is the key to the case. Top prosecutor Mac MacIntyre is calm, confident and relies on his courtroom cunning to maneuver through a maze of office politics, the bright glare of the media spotlight and his own thorny ethical dilemmas. The story follows Mac as he navigates from the crime scene investigation to the selection of the jury, to fierce cross-examination, to a surprising jury verdict.
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GAVEL TO GAVEL was published by Paper Raven Books in 2023 and has garnered many positive reviews. His next book in THE SENECA COUNTY COURTHOUSE SERIES is titled DOUBLE BLIND, and features another murder trial with elements of police and judicial corruption.
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