8th Amendment: The Death Penalty

Huntsville, Texas has earned the dubious distinction of being dubbed the "execution capitol" of America. Since the Supreme Court overturned a ban on executions in 1976, Texas has easily led the nation in the number of men and women put to death. Produced by the Discovery Channel, this documentary examines the death penalty controversy from all angles. Not a scholarly discussion of the 8th Amendment (as the title implies), the video is rather a close-up view of how the execution process works. Viewers will see Huntsville prison officials handling demonstrators and fielding questions from the media (these officials perform their duties with efficiency, though often not with zeal), and learn about the intimate details of arranging last meals, preparing the witness seating charts, transferring the doomed prisoner to a last-minute holding cell, and the grueling final moments, last statements, and administration of the lethal injection (no actual execution is shown here). Putting a human face on the death penalty issue, the program features extensive interviews with Timothy Gribble, scheduled to die for the rape-murder of two women, who provides insight into the mind of a murderer as he waives the right to appeal and goes remorsefully but willingly to the death chamber (Gribble was executed in 2000). Informative, and as tasteful as the subject matter will allow, this documentary is aimed squarely at students, with discussion questions at the end of each video chapter. Recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (S. Rees)