Death by Installments: The Ordeal of Willie Francis

by Arthur S. Miller and Jeffrey H. Bowman

The principle revealed in Death by Installments is that the Eighth Amendment's prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment does not guarantee protection to black men who kill whites. Reading the carefully researched and well-told story of Willie Francis offers a four-decade-old view of both the society's commitment to this principle, and the Supreme Court's unwillingness then and now to challenge it.
Derrick Bell, Harvard Law...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0313260095
• ISBN13: 9780313260094
• Release Date: August 1988
• Publisher: Praeger
• Length: 189 Pages
• Weight: 1.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Unsuccessful electrocution attempt causes conflict at Supreme Court

Well-written account of the botched execution of Willie Francis in 1940's Louisiana. The state's attempt to "re-execute" Francis ultimately led to a divided U.S. Supreme Court decision permitting the state to try again. The author gives clear insight into the workings of the Court during this divisive period when the justices were not particularly collegial. Felix Frankfurter is the subject of substantial criticism. (Disclaimer: My grandfather was the prosecuting attorney, so the extent of my interest in this topic may not be representative.)