A new book by Professor Jody Lynee’ Madeira of the Indiana University School of Law fol­lows the after­math of the Oklahoma City bomb­ing to explore whether the fam­i­lies of mur­der vic­tims obtain clo­sure from an exe­cu­tion. In Killing McVeigh: The Death Penalty and the Myth of Closure, Prof. Madeira recounts her wide range of inter­views with those who expe­ri­enced this tragedy first-hand. Regarding the book, Professor Carol Steiker of Harvard said, ​“Everyone seems to have an opin­ion about whether the exe­cu­tion of mur­ders can offer ​‘clo­sure’ to the vic­tims’ loved ones. Finally, we have a study that has inves­ti­gat­ed the largest, most media-sat­u­rat­ed mass mur­der and exe­cu­tion in recent times….Madeira’s in-depth, fair-mind­ed, and sen­si­tive account opens a win­dow for us into the strug­gles of those affect­ed and explores the com­pli­cat­ed role that our pub­lic insti­tu­tions of crim­i­nal jus­tice play in the com­plex and dif­fi­cult work of recon­struct­ing life after atrocity.”

(J. Madeira, ​“Killing McVeigh: The Death Penalty and the Myth of Closure,” New York University Press (May 2012); DPIC post­ed May 23, 2012). See Victims. Read more books on the death penal­ty. Listen to DPIC’s pod­cast on Victims.

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