Includes bibliographical references (p. 257-267) and index.
Contents
From lynchings to electrocutions -- The initial "harvest of death": 1924-1972 -- Rape, race, and a "peculiar chivalry" -- Capital murder and midnight appeals -- Spared the chair and sentenced to life --Adoption of lethal injection and contemporary death rituals -- Stages of sentencing and future dangerousness of convicts -- Some closing thoughts.
