Steven B. Epstein is a native of Long Island who graduated twice from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill—first with a bachelor’s degree in political science (1987) and then with a law degree (1990). His career began as a law clerk to a federal judge and included a stint as a law professor at the University of Illinois. He’s been a practicing lawyer for more than 30 years and has tried dozens of cases to judges and juries across North Carolina and has handled numerous appeals in state and federal courts. Since 2010, Steve’s been a partner at Poyner Spruill LLP, where his practice concentrates on family law. Steve’s writing career began more as an accident than an ambition—a mid-life crisis of sorts—and has morphed into quite the side hustle. His first book, MURDER ON BIRCHLEAF DRIVE (2019), reached #1 on Amazon's best-seller list in the true crime genre and cracked the Top 100 List of all non-fiction books sold on Amazon. His third book, EXTREME PUNISHMENT: The Chilling True Story of Acclaimed Law Professor Dan Markel's Murder, was released in October 2022. He and his books have been featured on NBC's Dateline, TV news broadcasts, UK Talk Radio, YouTube videos, podcasts, and in newspaper and magazine articles. Steve lives, practices law, and burns the midnight oil writing, in Raleigh, North Carolina. He and his amazing wife Aletia Ferreira have five children in their blended family, four of whom have now flown from the nest. www.stevenbepstein.com