The most recent edition of The Angolite, the nation’s largest prison news magazine, contains an article detailing national death penalty trends and developments. The piece also highlights the impact of capital punishment on family members and close friends of those facing execution. It notes, “Lost in the shadows of these central arguments is something that defines us human beings: Taking care of our own. Unseen, unheard family members and close friends of those on death row have committed no crime, have done no wrong, yet they must suffer the sterilized and calculated execution of their loved one. When the state shuffles a mother’s son into the death chamber, her heart hurts just the same as the loved ones of the person her son murdered. She becomes another in a long line of grieving human beings — victimized by a system unintentionally designed to spread a wide net of emotional pain.”
The 10-page article, authored by Lane Nelson, also provides an in-depth look at the death penalty in the U.S., including a review of ongoing litigation, lethal injection challenges, and executions. In addition, it examines the issue of innocence and the impact that doubts about the fairness and accuracy of capital punishment has had on state policies and public opinion.
The Angolite is an award-winning bi-monthly prison news magazine produced by inmates at the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola.
(The Angolite, January/February 2007). Read more about The Angolite. See Resources, Victims, Lethal Injection, and Innocence.
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