The BBC documentary “Lethal Solution” chronicles reporter Vivian White’s exploration of the death penalty in the US through the prism of the lethal injection issue. White traveled across the US to execution chambers where lethal injection executions are carried out and interviewed participants from a wide variety of perspectives.


The documentary features judges, doctors, and men on death row. White interviewed the family of a man whose execution lasted 34 minutes and a lawyer who witnessed that event, vividly recalling the details. He spoke with the doctor who first proposed the lethal injection system, and to the judge in California who recommended that medically-qualified people should be present at executions to ensure a humane death. In the California case, two doctors walked out of the execution chamber when they realized they might have to assist in the killing. The execution was called off.

The full 48-minute documentary may be viewed on the BBC Web site here.

(V. White, “Lethal Solution,” BBC, March 18, 2008; produced by Steven Grandison). See also Lethal Injection and Multimedia.