A Life and Death Decision: A Jury Weighs the Death Penalty (Paperback)

by Scott E. Sundby (Author)
Key Phrases: guilt deliberations, twelfth juror, undecided jurors, Steven Lane, George Brown, Another Chorus (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Although law professor Sundby casts this book as an impartial look at capital jury deliberations, it would be difficult to walk away from it without a few lingering doubts about the efficacy of the current system of death penalty sentencing. Drawing on information from the Capital Jury Project, a nationwide study that interviewed more than 1,000 capital jurors, as well as on data from studies of group decision-making, this work offers a gripping and important look behind the jury room doors. Those who oppose the death penalty will no doubt come across much here to bolster their views. And those who support it will find themselves with plenty of food for thought as Sundby surveys crucial issues such as jury instructions, jury room setup and voir dire procedures. Regardless of where one stands in the debate, however, Sundby uses the personal stories of the jurors so compellingly that he brings the drama of the jury room to vivid life. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

"In this most recent publication from the prolific capital jury project, Sundby (law, Washington and Lee Univ.) reports the details of a single murder case as it unfolds, from the shifting perspectives of the jurors who have to decide whether to impose the death penalty. The defendant's guilt is certain; however, the narratives show that the various jurors view him through the frames of their own values and that they differ markedly from one another in the ways in which they reconstruct the crime. Confirming the findings of most other recent jury studies, Sundby finds that these conscripts approach their task conscientiously, determined to do justice. But he also finds that even when the legal requirements are clear, it proves surprisingly difficult for most jurors to actually vote to impose death on a human being. This is a model for what can be done with in-depth interviews by a scholar who is steeped in the subject and approaches it with compassion. Because of its insider perspective, thoroughness, and clarity, this book will be valuable in courses in which the death penalty is considered as a policy problem. Summing Up: Highly recommended."--Choice "Scott Sundby provides a remarkable new perspective on the death penalty--from the jury room. To some, it will confirm their faith in the magic of twelve citizens to find the truth. To others, it exposes the fragility of an imperfect system with which we impose the ultimate penalty."--Bill Kurtis anchors A&E's American Justice and is the author of The Death Penalty on Trial: Crisis in American Justice

"Reading like a legal thriller, Sundby's book is a fascinating study proving the imposition of the death penalty depends more on who is on the jury than who is on trial. Like Sherlock Holmes, Sundby peers deep into the jury box and the mind of each juror to follow the Byzantine process used to send another human being to a grisly death."-- Roy Black, the famed criminal defense attorney who has handled more than 200 capital cases in the last four decades.  "This is the best account I have ever read of how a jury decides whether to impose a death sentence. We see the case from the jurors' multiple and sometimes inconsistent points of view. Deftly combining a narrative of one trial with conclusions drawn from broader research, Sundby provides unique insight into the realities behind debates about the death penalty."--Stuart Banner, author of The Death Penalty: An American History
"While this book will resonate with criminal justice professionals and academics, it is also provides a fine introduction to thinking seriously about the death penalty from the inside out." --Diana R. Gordon, New York Law Journal, May 2005

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Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan (October 2, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0230600638
• ISBN-13: 978-0230600638
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #670,965 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is a nonfiction must-read!!, May 9, 2005

By	Lisa Faigman (Mill Valley, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Life and Death Decision: A Jury Weighs the Death Penalty (Hardcover)

Scott Sundby gives the reader a window, almost a fly-on-the-wall peek, into the capital jury room, a place most people do not experience first-hand. Whether or not you have a strong opinion about the use of the death penalty in the U.S. criminal justice system, this book will challenge your views and provide new insights. Professor Sundby has succeeded in writing a true page-turner that is at once emotionally provocative and incredibly informative. The prose is elegant and smooth, and it is a pleasure to read. Everyone interested in justice in America should read, and discuss the issues raised, in this book.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An absorbing, informative and important book, August 5, 2005

By	Susan A. Bandes (Chicago, IL USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: A Life and Death Decision: A Jury Weighs the Death Penalty (Hardcover)

Sundby's book takes the reader beyond abstractions about how capital punishment decisions are made, and provides a rare and consistently fascinating account of how two actual juries reach their decisions. The book is filled with insights about the legal and emotional dynamics of the jury room and the courtroom in death penalty cases. It pulls off a couple of very difficult feats. It treats all the jurors interviewed with respect and understanding, and should be equally informative for those with strong feelings for or against the death penalty and for those who are undecided. In addition, it manages to convey quite a bit of valuable information about the death penalty and the criminal justice system in a way that should be accessible and interesting for those with or without a background in the law. In short, a must-read for anyone who wants a better understanding of the American system of capital punishment, or of jury decision-making in general.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Must Read For Those Interested in the Death Penalty, September 7, 2008

By	Gerald P. Word (Carrollton, GA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Scott Sundby's book is a must read for anyone interested in the death penalty in the United States. It takes years of research by the Capital Jury Project and encapsulates it into two case studies. The cold statistics come to life as Sundby relates how different factors influence the life and death decisions that go on across America in death penalty trials through the eyes of each juror on the panel. A real eye opener. It should be required reading in every law school and for every lawyer who defends death penalty cases.