THE JACKLIGHTER : a 20-year Pennsylvania Cold Case
THE JACKLIGHTER: Murder, Betrayal, and Justice in Pennsylvaniaโs Endless Mountains is an investigative true crime book about a decadesโlong Pennsylvania cold case, the small town it tore apart, and a murder that refused to stay buried. Like CHAINED BIRDS, THE JACKLIGHTER blends witness interviews, true crime testimony, legal records, and investigative reporting to expose buried truths and systemic injustice.
Preorder THE JACKLIGHTER on Kickstarter (Amazon Preorders Coming Soon)
After months of preparation, THE JACKLIGHTERย is LIVE on Kickstarter, the crowdfunding platform for creatives. This project, Carla Conti’s second true crime book, will remain on Kickstarter, where true crime fans can buy it along with CHAINED BIRDS in exclusive digital bundles (eBook and audiobook combos).
And right now, Kickstarter is the only place to get signed paperback and hardcover bookplates … but that option ends when the campaign ends April 14th. Preorders for THE JACKLIGHTER will go live on Amazon later this year, and the book is set for release before the end of 2026.โจ
Watch The Jacklighter Video Trailer on Kickstarter
THE JACKLIGHTER : A Stolen Life. A Buried Secret.
June 2, 2026 marks 50 years since Martin Dillon went into the Pennsylvania woods and never came home. This is the book that case has always deserved.
In the shadows of Pennsylvania’s Endless Mountains, attorney Martin Dillon went hunting with his best friendโand never came home. The official story seemed straightforward: a tragic accident during an afternoon of trap shooting. But when the only witness was Dr. Stephen Scher, the man having an affair with Dillon’s wife, the victim’s family refused to believe it.
Then Scher did the unthinkable: he married Dillon’s widow and raised her children as his own, living a stolen life for 20 yearsโuntil Martin’s body was exhumed. Some secrets never stay buried.
A Hunting Accent or the Perfect Murder?
The Jacklighter follows a decades-long cover-up and quest for justice that tore apart a small town and a prominent family. From the suspicious “accident” in 1976 to the explosive murder trial 20 years later, to the killer’s release from prison, award-winning author Carla Conti uncovers the dark secrets hidden beneath Montrose, Pennsylvania’s Victorian charmโsecrets involving betrayal, forbidden love, and a killing method as cowardly as it was calculated.
With unique access to the hometown victims and key witnesses, Conti reveals how one shotgun blast shattered multiple lives and tested whether justice can survive when everyone in town thinks they know the truth.
โHe killed him, didnโt he? Steve killed him.โ
These were the first words spoken by the doctor’s wife upon hearing that Marty Dillon died in a hunting accident. She had just awoken in the ICU after a suicide attemptโyears before the body was ever exhumedโand she was the first person to accuse her husband of murder.
Read the First Two Chapters Free on Substack
Carla Conti is a journalist and the award-winning author of Chained Birds: A Crimemoir. Her next true crime book, The Jacklighter, is set for release in 2026. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, who supports her true crime habit.