- Paperback: 256 pages
- Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Inc; New Ed edition (30 July 2007)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0470017511
- ISBN-13: 978-0470017517
- Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
- See Complete Table of Contents
Back from the Dead
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More About the Author
Product Description
From the Inside Flap
As a young lawyer Joan Cheever served as co-counsel for Walter Williams, an inmate on Texas' Death Row. For nine years she attempted to stave off his execution until, in October 1994, his chances finally ran out. At his request Joan stood beside him at his execution; it was an experience that changed the course of her life.
In the months following Walter's execution Joan continued to ask herself how events might have been different: would Walter have committed the crime if he'd had better opportunities in life or a more supportive family? And how would he have lived if he had been granted a second chance at life?
The only people who could help to answer these gnawing questions were other convicted murderers. In 1972, the US Supreme Court abolished the death penalty: a ruling that stayed in place until 1976, granting hundreds of convicted killers a second chance at life. Joan embarked on an exhaustive and dangerous search to track down and interview these murderers, most of whom didn't want to be found. Many had built entirely new lives and had become valued members of their communities; a very small number had killed again. Joan Cheever interviewed the murderers to find out if they had managed to rebuild their lives; she also spoke with the families of victims. The personal stories that she tells here contribute to a ground-breaking exploration of the issues at the very heart of the capital punishment debate.
In the months following Walter's execution Joan continued to ask herself how events might have been different: would Walter have committed the crime if he'd had better opportunities in life or a more supportive family? And how would he have lived if he had been granted a second chance at life?
The only people who could help to answer these gnawing questions were other convicted murderers. In 1972, the US Supreme Court abolished the death penalty: a ruling that stayed in place until 1976, granting hundreds of convicted killers a second chance at life. Joan embarked on an exhaustive and dangerous search to track down and interview these murderers, most of whom didn't want to be found. Many had built entirely new lives and had become valued members of their communities; a very small number had killed again. Joan Cheever interviewed the murderers to find out if they had managed to rebuild their lives; she also spoke with the families of victims. The personal stories that she tells here contribute to a ground-breaking exploration of the issues at the very heart of the capital punishment debate.
From the Back Cover
Back From The Dead is the story of two hundred former inmates of death row who, through a lottery of fate, were given a second chance at life. Many have not been so lucky.
After representing Walter Whitman, a convicted murderer and Texan Death Row inmate, as a young lawyer, Joan Cheever wanted to discover whether he could have been rehabilitated into the community? Had his execution protected society or was it simple revenge? To find the answers she left her white-picket world and young family and went in search of former residents of Death Row. Her journey led her across the United States, into the lives of these killers. She heard their stories at first hand, sometimes in seedy motels and sometimes at danger to herself. In Back from the Dead Joan reveals these tales of tragedy and failure, of racism and injustice, but also in some cases of triumph and redemption.
After representing Walter Whitman, a convicted murderer and Texan Death Row inmate, as a young lawyer, Joan Cheever wanted to discover whether he could have been rehabilitated into the community? Had his execution protected society or was it simple revenge? To find the answers she left her white-picket world and young family and went in search of former residents of Death Row. Her journey led her across the United States, into the lives of these killers. She heard their stories at first hand, sometimes in seedy motels and sometimes at danger to herself. In Back from the Dead Joan reveals these tales of tragedy and failure, of racism and injustice, but also in some cases of triumph and redemption.
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First Sentence
It was 85 degrees that night in Huntsville, Texas. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index
It was 85 degrees that night in Huntsville, Texas. Read the first page
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Like most Death Penalty Aficionados, I'd heard the name Furman
many times and had wondered what became of him, not to say the
rest of the condemned who were spared due to the US Supreme
Court's historic 1972 decision. Did living in the shadow of the
chair scare them straight when they finally got out of prison?
Therefore, I soon as I heard about this book, I eagerly snapped
it up!
It's a fairly short book and there's a fair bit of
autobiographical detail about the author Joan Cheever, which I
could've lived without (sorry Joan!).
The rest of it is partly about her experiences defending Walter
Williams, his subsequent execution in Texas in 1994 and her
attempts to meet his victim's - Daniel Liepold - mother. All
well and good, but this regrettably leaves little space for the
main course, which is meeting the "Class of '72".
The book deals with only a very few inmates out of the 580+ that
were on the USA's death rows in 1972 and, really, the information
about each is pretty sparse. She does interview the famous
Furman though and finds out what he's doing now. Maybe my
expectations were too much; after all, the "Class of '72" were
largely undereducated, poor and of course, convicted rapists/
murderers etc, so expecting them to be easy to find, willing to
tell their stories in a coherent fashion and for that to make a
gripping book was probably a long shot.
Joan draws some conclusions towards the end and I must say I'm
not entirely sure I agree with them. I don't think you can
equate waiting to be executed with a number of years in prison
with a release date.
If you're fascinated by the Death Penalty, then this book is
probably worth buying. It's certainly readable; however, I'd
have to say that it isn't as good as it could have been and,
overall, is a bit of a missed opportunity.
many times and had wondered what became of him, not to say the
rest of the condemned who were spared due to the US Supreme
Court's historic 1972 decision. Did living in the shadow of the
chair scare them straight when they finally got out of prison?
Therefore, I soon as I heard about this book, I eagerly snapped
it up!
It's a fairly short book and there's a fair bit of
autobiographical detail about the author Joan Cheever, which I
could've lived without (sorry Joan!).
The rest of it is partly about her experiences defending Walter
Williams, his subsequent execution in Texas in 1994 and her
attempts to meet his victim's - Daniel Liepold - mother. All
well and good, but this regrettably leaves little space for the
main course, which is meeting the "Class of '72".
The book deals with only a very few inmates out of the 580+ that
were on the USA's death rows in 1972 and, really, the information
about each is pretty sparse. She does interview the famous
Furman though and finds out what he's doing now. Maybe my
expectations were too much; after all, the "Class of '72" were
largely undereducated, poor and of course, convicted rapists/
murderers etc, so expecting them to be easy to find, willing to
tell their stories in a coherent fashion and for that to make a
gripping book was probably a long shot.
Joan draws some conclusions towards the end and I must say I'm
not entirely sure I agree with them. I don't think you can
equate waiting to be executed with a number of years in prison
with a release date.
If you're fascinated by the Death Penalty, then this book is
probably worth buying. It's certainly readable; however, I'd
have to say that it isn't as good as it could have been and,
overall, is a bit of a missed opportunity.
Format:Hardcover
I am an avid reader of true crime and forensics and when I saw this book I thought that it would be a change from my usual type of book in that it would concentrate on the aftermath of the temporary rescinding of the death penalty in the USA. Unfortunately it takes too long to get off the mark, dithering as if the author can't quite decide how to do it. Also so many totally insignificant details that I got lost several times and had to turn back pages to pick up the story again. Not enough about the core of the book and I gave up on most of it - something I very rarely do. Sorry Joan - a truly wasted opportunity on what should be an interesting slant on the US judicial system.
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Tracking down 589 people is no small undertaking. Ms. Cheever not only does justice to the overwhelming task, but also delves into the depths of the Class of "72, who received a second chance at life after having been sentenced to death. While on her journey to find what became of the "lottery winners" of Furman v. Georgia, Ms. Cheever touches their souls while exposing her own. In the end the author learns the meaning of forgiveness and becomes "the healer" in a justice system wrought with injustice.
The reader learns where and who some of the reprieved convicts are today with the added insight of Ms. Cheever's underpinnings through snipets of her colorful Texas family. Just as the reader comes up for air, having met a former death row inmate and having heard the facts of his crime and punishment, the author teases the reader with a preview of the next unsavory character. At this juncture there is no option to book down the book. There is much to ponder. Kudos to Ms. Cheever whose Notes are as good as the book itself.
The reader learns where and who some of the reprieved convicts are today with the added insight of Ms. Cheever's underpinnings through snipets of her colorful Texas family. Just as the reader comes up for air, having met a former death row inmate and having heard the facts of his crime and punishment, the author teases the reader with a preview of the next unsavory character. At this juncture there is no option to book down the book. There is much to ponder. Kudos to Ms. Cheever whose Notes are as good as the book itself.
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