I. Course Objectives

This course is intended to provide a thorough review of the death penalty as a legal practice in the United States today. The course will emphasize:
1. The historical use of capital punishment.
2. The legal process followed to impose death sentences today.
3. Confinement conditions leading up to the execution itself.
4. The philosophical, political, legal, and social contexts within which the death penalty is applied.
5. The nature of the selection process used to determine which defendants get death sentences.

II. Texts

Required texts:
Lane Nelson and Burk Foster. Death Watch: A Death Penalty Anthology. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2001.
Mary E. Williams, Editor. The Death Penalty: Opposing Viewpoints, 4th edition. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2002.

Supplementary texts:
Ernest J. Gaines. A Lesson Before Dying. New York: Vintage Books, 1997. (Also available in hardback.)
Sister Helen Prejean. Dead Man Walking: An Eyewitness Account of the Death Penalty in the United States. New York: Vintage Books, 1993. (Also available in hardback and in various paperback reprints.)
Ivan Solotaroff. The Last Face You'll Ever See. New York: HarperCollins, 2001. 

III. Outline/Reading Assignments (see detailed "Course Outline")

Part I. The Death Penalty: History and Issues
Death Watch: 13, 14, 16, 5, 6, 15
Opposing Viewpoints: pp. 16-59, 61-108, 110-192

Part II. The Death Penalty: Legal Process and Execution
Death Watch: 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 19, 20, 17, 18, 23, 24, 25, 12, 21, 22

IV. Grading

The course grade is made up of a combination of components:
1. Two major exams (each covering one part above) worth 100 points each. The exams will cover everything done in class--readings, discussion, videos, speakers, extra handouts--in that bloc of the course. 
2. A final exam made up of two separate parts worth 100 points each. One part will be an in-class essay exam and the other will be an objective (multiple choice and fill in the blanks) exam. 
3. Optional book projects, as described below, on one or more of the supplementary texts listed above. Each book project is worth 100 points.
4. The class participation grade (as described below in detail) is worth 100 points.
5. Video journal. If all goes as planned, nine class sessions will feature death penalty videos of various lengths. The journal should be a brief critique of these videos--good and bad, interesting or not. It must be double-spaced, computer printed or typewritten. Discuss the videos in the order they were shown in class. Conclude with a paragraph listing your three most favorite and least favorite videos, with a brief explanation of your choices. For full credit, you must discuss at least eight of the nine videos.
6. From Attachment A, "Optional Projects," each student can choose one or more optional projects, worth 100 points each (no more than one from any single category). These projects all require written work in one form or another. Each paper has a different due date; please consult the "Course Outline" for the schedule. Any papers turned in late will be penalized at least a letter grade (10 points).

The course grade will be calculated using eight 100-point grades. The eight grades will be averaged, according to this scale:
A = 90-100
B = 80-90
C = 70-80
D = 60-70
F = Below 60

Class Participation. The class participation grade is worth 100 points, the same as a test. Seventy-five points of each grade come from class attendance. Roll will be taken every day. For every day you miss, you lose five points. The other 25 points are discretionary with the professor. These points are earned by taking an active part in class discussions and by answering lecture questions assigned as homework; these points are not earned automatically by being alive and being present in the classroom. The professor also has the discretion to take away up to 25 points for disruptive classroom conduct--particularly coming to class late, talking to other people while class is going on, sleeping, leaving class early, or cell phone annoyance. The rule is: if it is discourteous and disrespectful, your professor notices it and may take points away. To earn an "A" (90+) for class participation, you would need to be in class just about every day, on time, answer the lecture questions competently, frequently take part in class discussions, and avoid inappropriate behaviors.

Extra credit points. At the end of the semester, extra credit points (if earned) will be added to each student's grade. These points can be earned in several ways, as described on the "Extra Points Calculation Sheet" distributed to all students. All extra point assignments are open to all students, and some record must be kept of attendance or participation. Do not ask about individual projects that you might do that would not be open to other students.

V. Book Projects

Each student can choose to complete one or more book projects on the three supplementary texts listed above. Each project basically requires the student to read the book, complete a one-page critique form, and on a specified date late in the semester take in class a multiple choice test on the content of the book. The critique form and the test added together are worth 100 points, the same as a test grade. All the book tests and critiques will be scheduled for the same class day at the end of the semester. A student can choose to do one project, two projects, three projects, or none at all.

VI. Class Policies

1. Students are expected to attend class regularly. Roll will be taken each class day.
2. For class attendance, an excused absence is one of two types:
a. University business. Taking part in a University-sponsored event, such as a field trip, athletic event, or some other kind of scheduled activity beneficial to students.
b. Personal business. Sickness, family emergency, work, or other personal problem that prevents class attendance.
For either type of absence to be excused, the student must present the professor with written documentation signed by higher authority (coach, employer, doctor, professor, dean of students office, etc.) verifying the reason for the absence. Any absence without documentation is considered unexcused. For this class, no more than two absences can be fully excused; any beyond two will be taken into consideration in calculating the class participation grade. Excused absences must be corrected as they occur; do not wait until the end of the semester to try to correct this.
3. If you come to class, arrive on time and plan to stay for the whole period. Avoid being late for class, and do not plan to leave early, unless by prior arrangement with the professor.
4. Do your own work.
5. No make-up exams will be given except when the professor was notified of the absence by the day of the missed exam. Make-ups must be taken before exams are returned and discussed in class. No one will be allowed to take more than one make-up exam.
6. Emergency evacuation procedures. Any students who anticipate needing emergency assistance of any sort, including assistance in evacuating the building, should identify themselves to the professor.

HONR 385
"The Death Penalty in America"
Attachment A
Optional Projects

You can ignore the projects listed here, or you can do one or more of them as you choose. Follow the instructions for each separate project. All papers submitted must be double-spaced, typewritten or computer printed. 

1. "Innocent People." Innocent men and women are sometimes given death sentences and occasionally even executed. This project requires you to find three defendants who were given death sentences in error (or at least are commonly said to have been "innocent"). How did these people come to be wrongfully convicted? Briefly describe the processing of each case and identify the errors that were made leading to the wrongful conviction. This report should be at least 1,500 to 2,500 words long (6 to 10 pages). A separate bibliography page of references is required.

2. "Death Penalty Film Series." Many films have been made about the death penalty, death row and the execution process. This semester eight of these films will be shown on Monday afternoons at 2:00 p.m. in Judice 203. To complete this project, the student would need to view and write about six of the eight films. The paper is a comparative paper; each film should be briefly discussed and compared to the others. This paper should be at least 1,500 to 2,500 words long (6 to 10 pages). Any extra films viewed beyond the six required can be counted for the extra credit points, at one point each.

3. "Letters from Death Row." You will be provided with a list of names of several inmates on death row at the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola. This project requires you to correspond with one of them for the semester. Your focus is not the crime: it is life on death row. What is your life like? How do you make it day to day? How do you spend your time? How do the guards treat you? What do you look forward to? And other such questions about the state of life on death row. You can write your inmate, explain what you are interested in, and correspond with him as much as you can before the end of the semester. If you don't want to use your home address, you can use my UL address:
Student name
@ Professor Burk Foster
Department of Criminal Justice
University of Louisiana-Lafayette
P.O. Box 41652
Lafayette, LA 70504
Then at the end you have to write a paper based on this correspondence. In all fairness, you should have at least three or four letters on which to base this paper. If your inmate does not respond, or only writes one or two letters, I'm sorry. Pick another project. You also have to think about how to stop writing them, if you want to quit.

4. "Case Report." About 200 men and one woman have been given death sentences in Louisiana in the past 25 years. I'll give you a list of their names. Pick one of these, and write a thorough report about the crime, the trial, the victim, the defendant, the courtroom work group--sort of a "true crime and punishment" paper. I would expect you to do thorough background research, including interviewing any of the participants involved that you can find. You can use printed sources, but you should also contact other sources directly.

5. "Term Paper." This is a conventional research paper. On a topic approved by the professor no later than the last class meeting in February, the student will write a 1,500 to 2,500 word (6 to 10 pages) term paper. The paper must relate in some way to death penalty history, issues, legal process, execution process, or policies. It needs to be specific, well-focused, thoroughly researched, and neatly presented, including a page of references.
 
 
 
 

Adams, Randall Dale; Hoffer, William, and Hoffer, Marilyn Nona. Adams v. Texas. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1991.

Baldus, David C.; Woodworth, George G., and Pulaski, Charles A., Jr.Equal Justice and the Death Penalty: A Legal and Empirical Analysis. Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1990.

Barfield, Velma. Woman on Death Row. Nashville: Oliver-Nelson, 1985.

Bedau, Hugo Adam. The Death Penalty in America: Current Controversies. New York: Oxford University Press, 1997.

Berns, Walter. For Capital Punishment: Crime and the Morality of the Death Penalty. New York: Basic Books, 1981.

Bishop, George V. Executions: The Legal Ways of Death. Los Angeles: Sherbourne Press, 1965. 

Black, Charles L., Jr. Capital Punishment: The Inevitability of Caprice and Mistake. New York: W.W. Norton, 1981.

Bohm, Robert M. The Death Penalty in America: Current Research. Cincinnati: Anderson Publishing Co., 1991.
Bowers, William J.; Pierce, G.L., and McDevitt, J. Legal Homicide: Death as Punishment in America, 1864-1982. Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1984.

Butler, Anne and Henderson, C. Murray. Dying to Tell. Lafayette, LA: Center for Louisiana Studies, 1992.

Cabana, Donald A. Death at Midnight: The Confessions of an Executioner. Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1996.

Camus, Albert. "Reflections on the Guillotine." In Resistance, Rebellion and Death. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1961.

Chessman, Caryl. Cell 2455, Death Row. New York: Prentice-Hall, 1954.

Chessman, Caryl. The Face of Justice. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1957.

Christianson, Scott. Condemned: Inside the Sing Sing Death House. New York: New York University Press, 2000.

Davis, Christopher. Waiting for It. New York: Harper and Row, 1980.

Duffy, Clinton T. 88 Men and 2 Women. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1962.

Gettinger, Stephen H. Sentenced to Die. New York: Macmillan, 1979.

Gilmore, Mikal. Shot in the Heart. New York: Doubleday, 1994.

Grisham, John. The Chamber. New York: Doubleday, 1994. 

Johnson, Robert. Condemned to Die: Life Under Sentence of Death. Prospect Heights, IL: Waveland Press, 1989.

Koestler, Arthur. Reflections on Hanging. New York: Macmillan, 1957.

Lesser, Wendy. Pictures at an Execution: An Inquiry in the Subject of Murder. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1993.

Magee, Doug. Slow Coming Dark: Interviews on Death Row. New York: Pilgrim Press, 1980.

Malone, Dan and Swindle, Howard. America's Condemned: Death Row Inmates in Their Own Words. Kansas City: Andrews McMeel Publishing, 1999.

Mailer, Norman. The Executioner's Song. New York: Warner Books, 1979.

Marquart, James W.; Ekland-Olson, Sheldon, and Sorensen, Jonathan R. The Rope, the Chair, and the Needle: Capital Punishment in Texas, 1923-1990. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1994.

McLendon, James. Deathwork. Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott Co., 1977.

Miller, Arthur S. Death by Installment: The Ordeal of Willie Francis. New York: Greenwood Press, 1988. 

Miller, Kent S. and Miller, Betty D. To Kill and Be Killed: Case Studies from Florida's Death Row. Pasadena, CA: Hope House, 1989.

Radelet, Michael L. Facing the Death Penalty: Essays on a Cruel and Unusual Punishment. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1989.

Rideau, Wilbert and Wikberg, Ron. Life Sentences: Rage and Survival Behind Bars. New York: Times Books, 1992.

Scheck, Barry, Peter Neufeld, and Jim Dwyer. Actual Innocence: Five Days to Execution and Other Dispatches from the Wrongfully Convicted. New York: Doubleday, 2000.

Sellin, Johan Thorsten. The Penalty of Death. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publications, 1980.

Trombley, Stephen. The Execution Protocol: Inside America's Capital Punishment Industry. New York: Crown Publishers, 1992.

Van den Haag, Ernest, and Conrad, John P. The Death Penalty: A Debate. New York: Plenum Books, 1983.

Von Drehle, David. Among the Lowest of the Dead: The Culture of Death Row. New York: Times Books, 1995.
Weinstein, Bob, and Bessent, Jim. Death Row Confidential. New York: HarperPaperbacks, 1996.

Zimring, Franklin E. and Hawkins, Gordon. Capital Punishment and the American Agenda. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1986.