Dead Run: The Shocking Story of Dennis Stockton and Life on Death Row in America [Paperback]

Joe Jackson (Author), William F., Jr. Burke (Author), William Styron (Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 2000

In June, 1983, Dennis Stockton entered Death Row in Virginia's state penitentiary, accused of a murder he insisted he had not committed. For the next 12 years he remained there, during which time he helped plan the only successful mass escape from Death Row in our history (though he ultimately decided not to join the escapees), developed a career as a writer through a diary and newspaper columns, and continually proclaimed his innocence. His explosive diary entries - published in the (Norfolk) Virginian Pilot - about life on Death Row made him a marked man among prisoners and guards alike. Despite strong evidence of his innocence, however, Stockton was executed on September 27, 1995.

Dead Run is the stunning story of Dennis Stockton's life in "the monster factory," his name for Death Row. Written by his editor at the Virginian Pilot and the reporter who investigated his claims of innocence, it is a riveting true-life thriller and essential reading for anyone with an opinion on the death penalty.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Dead Run is the story of Dennis Stockton, mastermind of one of the most daring mass prison breaks in American history. It begins with his conviction for a crime he maintained that he didn't commit and weaves through his troubled life, his perpetual incarcerations, and his often brilliant, often comical escapades within the prison system. With frequent excerpts from Stockton's prolific diaries, the book reveals not only much about its surprisingly insightful protagonist but about the prison system in general, including institutionalized corruption, power-hungry guards, inmates, and prison officers. There's more than enough intrigue, action, and disturbing comedy to fill several thrillers, but Dead Run is a true story of a man who refused to sit still and wait for the hour of his death. --Lisa Higgins --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

A career criminal who was in and out of prison from the time he was caught passing bad checks as a teenager, Dennis Stockton was no angel. But, as journalists Jackson and Burke convincingly demonstrate, he was wrongly executed for a murder he didn't commit. In this chilling account drawing on interviews and Stockton's own death row writings (some of which they published in their newspaper, the Virginia Pilot), the authors paint a picture of a prison system as inept as it is corrupt and cruel, and of justice severely perverted. The man who allegedly hired Stockton to kill a North Carolina teenager in 1978 was never prosecuted. And the sole witness, himself a convict, who testified against Stockton was later heard bragging of committing the murder himself. But Virginia, where Stockton was tried, prohibits introducing new evidence more than 21 days after conviction. Stockton also brought trouble on himself with his prison diary and his decision to publish parts of it in the Virginia Pilot, the state's largest newspaper. In the diary, he revealed inside information about the escape of six fellow death row inmates on Memorial Day weekend 1984. Stockton related that underpaid and often corrupt guards were either incompetent or actively assisted the prisoners (all of whom were captured within three weeks). The revelations enraged prison guards and inmates, putting Stockton's life in danger, and embarrassed the state, in all likelihood ending any hopes Stockton might have had for clemency. Burke and Jackson offer a gripping inside look at the life usually hidden behind prison walls and a frightening indictment of the criminal justice system. 25 illus.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 299 pages
• Publisher: Walker & Company (October 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0802775993
• ISBN-13: 978-0802775993
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,334,039 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Gruesome Details of a Popular Policy, December 7, 1999

By 

kenneth briggs (Easton, PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dead Run: The Untold Story of Dennis Stockton and America's Only Mass Escape from Death Row (Hardcover)

What struck me most about Dead Run is how well it is reported. This is not a tract; it is an elaborate journalistic mosaic of the grim realities behind the loud cries for death row vengeance. Jackson and Burke provide the story that allows readers to draw their own conclusions. There are no saints and justice is elusive at best. It is an account that has left a deep impression in this reader's consciousness.

14 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars BEST CRIME JOURNALISM IN YEARS, November 4, 1999

By 

jack olsen - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dead Run: The Untold Story of Dennis Stockton and America's Only Mass Escape from Death Row (Hardcover)

DEAD RUN is the best work of crime journalism I've read since THE EXECUTIONER'S SONG. It transcends the increasingly shabby true-crime genre. It is a superb study of life on Death Row. It is the latest proof that the land of the free continues to execute the innocent. It is a jailbreak story that rivals PAPILLON. It is crime history at its most elevated, and yet there's not a stodgy line. Social context is never forgotten, but the narrative line chugs ahead like a runaway locomotive. I will re-read this book many times and recommend it to all who enjoy a great yarn and responsible journalism.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Humanizing death row inmates, March 30, 2000

By 

Julian P Killingley - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dead Run: The Untold Story of Dennis Stockton and America's Only Mass Escape from Death Row (Hardcover)

This book is a lightweight but interesting read. It suffers from the authors' inability to decide whether to focus on Dennis Stockton or the great escape. The reality is that the escape has little to do with Stockton - the authors' understandable fascination with the details of the escape rather detract from their focus on Stockton.

Stockton is an interesting character and I don't feel that this book really does the merits of his (unsuccessful) legal appeals proper justice. Stockton's appearance has a peculiarly haunting quality to it with his deeply sunken shadowed eyes and lined face. One cannot help but think that his disreputable former lifestyle substantially contributed to his eventual demise - he was a person that a clever prosecutor could easily portray in a very bad light.

The authors have privileged access to Stockton's own words and their account draws on this to give the reader an unusually authentic look into the strange world of Death Row. I feel that more could have been made of this as Stockton was a perceptive observer who left a substantial record.

However, the authors are beguiled by the great escape from Mecklenburg Correctional Center and dwell lovingly on its every detail. I'm afraid that I am not as impressed by this as the authors obviously were. There is some lionizing of the escapers, especially the singularly unattractive Briley brothers. The reality is that the escape was only possible because of the extraordinary stupidity of the corrections officers. Yes - the inmates had a fair degre of low cunning, but I would not elevate that to the degree of intelligence the authors imply they possessed.

What is truly amazing is the regime at Mecklenburg and Virginia's parsimonious funding of its corrections facilities. The state spent millions building Mecklenburg but then proceeded to pay the corrections officers so badly that they were clearly prey to scams and wheezes to earn a dishonest dollar to live on. It really does beggar belief that officers could allow inmates to continue to behave as though they were out on the streets with ready access to money, drugs, weapons and even firearms. It is a miracle that none were killed in the course in the escape - they certainly deserved to pay a heavy price for their foolishness.

However, the behavior of the escapers after they gained their freedom shows their real level of intelligence. They had no plan beyond getting out of Mecklenburg and their behavior was such that they were readily recaptured. Even the Brileys, the alleged master manipulators and brains behind the escape, behaved in a thoroughly predictable fashion and did little to keep a low profile.

Readers who are familiar with Supreme Court death penalty cases will meet many familiar names with walk on parts in this book - Giarratano, Coleman and others. The book is interesting enough as a general read but adds little to our knowledge of death row or the administration of justice. The only real eye opener is the way corrections officers, in their eagerness to earn a buck or have a quiet life, were so ready to endanger their own lives.