A new book authored by Todd Peppers and Laura Trevvett Anderson, ​“Anatomy of An Execution,” fol­lows the sto­ry of Douglas Christopher Thomas, a juve­nile offend­er who was exe­cut­ed in Virginia in 2000. Thomas was con­vict­ed of a dou­ble homi­cide in 1990 and sen­tenced to death in 1991. He was one of the last juve­niles put to death before the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the exe­cu­tion of those under the age of 18 at the time of their crime to be uncon­sti­tu­tion­al in 2005 (Roper v. Simmons). The authors explore a vari­ety of death penal­ty issues sur­round­ing the case, includ­ing the qual­i­ty of court-appoint­ed coun­sel, con­di­tions on death row, and the rea­sons for exclud­ing the exe­cu­tion of juve­niles. The book was pub­lished by Northeastern University Press.

(T. Peppers and L. Anderson, ​“Anatomy of an Execution: The Life and Death of Douglas Christopher Thomas,” Northeastern University Press, 2009). Click here for oth­er books on the death penal­ty. See also Juveniles.

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