Ashley Smith

Since March 12, 2005, Ashley Smith, 27, has been known
around the world as the single mother who persuaded Brian
Nichols, Atlanta’s courtroom gunman, to surrender to
police. After a deadly rampage at the city’s Fulton County
Courthouse, Nichols forced his way into Ashley’s apartment
and held her hostage for more than seven hours. Ashley
believes that God led her through those dark hours with
Nichols and that she is called to use the highly publicized
experience to help people everywhere find their purpose. A
native of Augusta, Georgia, Ashley lives with her family
and six-year-old daughter, Paige, and is active in her
church.


Ashley will devote some of the royalties she earns from
this book to create a memorial that will serve as a
permanent tribute to the victims.


Stacy Mattingly is coauthor of Prisoners of Hope: The Story
of Our Captivity and Freedom in Afghanistan with American
aid workers Dayna Curry and Heather Mercer. She also
coauthored two books with Ruth Graham: In Every Pew Sits a
Broken Heart and Legacy of Love. Stacy is a native of
Atlanta.