Capital Punishment: The Actors in the Process (International Library of Essays in Law and Society) (Vol 1,2)

Along with the right to make war, the death penalty is the ultimate measure of sovereignty and test of political power, and capital trials are today the moment when that sovereignty is most vividly on display. This volume brings together articles examining the death penalty process, with particular emphasis on capital trials. It highlights the various actors and officials involved in deciding who lives and who dies at the hands of the state, what they do and how they do it. It examines the families of murder victims, lawyers, judges, juries and appellate courts. Each plays a distinctive, and some a controversial role in the death penalty process, bringing different perspectives to bear on decisions made in the process.