Breaking Silence by Linda Castillo

Chief of Police Kate Burkholder is called out to an Amish farm because three members of the Slabaugh family are trapped in a manure pit. Unable to save them, Kate is especially upset because she grew up Amish herself and the deaths leave four orphans. The police force of Painters Mill, Ohio have also been busy dealing with a series of hate crimes against the Amish. With the Amish unwilling to press charges, Kate worries about the increasing violence. She and her fellow officers wonder if the deaths of the Slabaugh family and the hate crimes are connected. With Kate's boyfriend, John Tomasetti of the Bureau of Criminal Investigation around to help, she hopes that she will be able to find clues or witnesses that will help her close both cases. Breaking Silence is the third book in the Kate Burkholder series. It is not as violent as the first two, but just as good.