Back from the Dead: One Woman's Search for the Men Who Walked off America's Death Row

By Joan M. Cheever and George Albert Brown

Book Overview

What would happen if the United States abolished the death penalty and emptied its Death Rows? If killers were released from prison? What would they do with their second chance to live? Would they kill again? Back From The Dead is the story of 589 former death row inmates who, through a lottery of fate, were given a second chance at life in 1972 when the death penalty was abolished; it returned to the United States four years later. During the years she represented Walter Williams on Texas' Death Row, Cheever always wondered what would happen if his death sentence was reversed and he was eventually released from prison. Would he have killed again? Two years after Williams' execution, Cheever was determined to find the answer. Leaving her young family and comfortable life in suburbia, she traveled across the U.S. and into the lives and homes of former Death Row inmates, armed only with a tape recorder, notepad, a cell phone that didn't always work, and a lot of faith. In Back from the Dead , Cheever describes her own journey and reveals these tales of second chances: of tragedy and failure, racism and injustice, and redemption and rehabilitation. Visit www.backfromthedeadusa.com to find out more. Back From the Dead is an excellent choice for your Book Reading Group or School Group. On the website www.backfromthedeadusa.com there are questions for group discussion, as well as an 'interview with the Author'. Joan Cheever will chat by speakerphone with any group that chooses Back From the Dead. Now you have the chance to ask your questions directly to the author. Why did Joan Cheever write this book? What was she looking for? Did she find it? How did she research Back From the Dead? What difficulties did she encounter? What was it like, interviewing and meeting former Death Row inmates? How did she leave her little children to do this? What was she feeling while on the road with The Class of '72? What was the most surprising thing she learned in writing about the men whose return address had once been: Death Row USA. A chat with the author is FREE - just get a group of readers together and make sure you have a speakerphone and Joan Cheever will do the rest How to Make a Request for a Telephone Conversation with the Author Your request for a speakerphone chat with Joan Cheever can be made through the form on this page: http: //www.backfromthedeadusa.com/book_groups_form.html Here are the guidelines: - Chats are scheduled between 9 AM Central and 8 PM Central time. (All time requests must be converted to Central Time.) - You'll be asked to provide a choice of dates and times. The more dates you can provide, the easier it will be to schedule a chat. The time you request should be 30 minutes to an hour after your group begins meeting so your group has some time to settle in first. - Leave a comment to let Joan know how you found out about the book and why you chose it for your group. Also, tell Joan a little bit about your book group - what other books you've been reading, the range of ages in the group, where you are from etc. - Chats are not limited only to readers of Back From the Dead in the United States. As long as it can be scheduled within the hours listed above, Joan welcomes a conversation with readers across the globe. - And if a chat is not possible, Joan is working on setting up an online 'Instant Message' discussion so that readers can ask the questions they have AND get an immediate response online during your meeting The Chat Details Once you've made your request, we will be back in touch with you, usually within a few days. Together we will determine the date and time for the chat. You will need access to a speaker telephone. Joan recommends giving it a trial run beforehand by

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0470017503
• ISBN13: 9780470017500
• Release Date: July 2006
• Publisher: Wiley
• Length: 320 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.7" x 0.9" x 5.6"

Customer Reviews

Fears and Foible in Finding Fellows Having Faced a Death Sentence

Tracking down 589 people is no small undertaking. Ms. Cheever not only does justice to any overwhelming task, but delves into the depths of the Class of '72, who received a second chance at life after having been sentenced to death. While on her journey to find what became of the "lottery winners" winners of Furman v. Georgia, Ms. Cheever touched their souls while exposing her own. In the end the author learns the meaning of forgiveness and becomes a "healer" in justice system wrought with injustice. The reader learns where and who some of the reprieved convicts are today with the added insight of Ms. Cheever's underpinings through snipets of her colorful Texas family. Just as the reader comes up for air, having met a former death row inmate, having heard the facts of his crime and punishment, the author teases the reader with a preview the next unsavory character. Putting down the book at this point is not an option. In the end there is much to ponder. Kudos to Ms. Cheever whose Notes are as good a read as the book.

Thoughtprovoking, shocking and brutaly honest...

As a 'Moderate Conservative', my interest in this book was initially based only on two factors 1) the author was a native San Antonian and 2) the statistical analysis approach appealed to the math major in me. With that said, I can now say I have rarely read a book that caused me to examine my own deeply held beliefs, prejudices and opinions so honestly. Much like the authors mother, I have allways subscribed to the concept of 'an eye for an eye' and have believed in the good 'ol Texas version of justice. Mrs. Cheever very carefully and very methodically tracked down, researched and interviewed men that our justice system said should now be dead. She very candidly discusses those that the justice system may have been right about (those that continued to kill and commit crimes). But she also takes us into the homes and lives of men who were in fact 'rehabilitated' and lived (and still live) productive, law-abiding and loving lives. However, she does not glamorize those men, nor does she excuse the crimes they committed. At all times, she keeps the reader aware of the innocent lives that were lost and the family's that still deal with the grief of those losses. She raises the very valid question -can those sentenced to death as 'no hope for rehabilitation' actually be rehabilitated? While the justice system and arm-chair psychiatrists have strong opinions - Mrs. Cheever has used actual facts to unquestionably prove that 'Yes' it can be done and has been done. Due to a brief stay of execution afforded these men - the world has the opportunity to see what became of their lives - lives that should not have continued based on the death sentence they received for their crimes. After finishing the book, I cannot honestly say that I am yet opposed to the death penalty as a set-in-stone rule. However, I can say that I was immensely moved by both her passion, her words and her research. I can also say that I am glad that those men who were 'rehabilitated' were able to live their lives giving back to the communities, schools and church's that believed in them. The American Public has been given a great book to explore complex and painful ideas - I only hope that we take the opportunity to learn what lessons lie in it.

A Remarkable Account of the Class of '72

Lawyer and journalist Joan Cheever has written a remarkable account of the "class of 72," the Death Row prisoners whose death sentences were invalidated by the U.S. Supreme Court in Furman v. Georgia. Ms. Cheever sets out to answer some compelling questions. Where are these prisoners today? Of the 587 men and 2 women in the class of '72, how many are out of prison? How many killed again? Could any of the group be rehabilitated? What do they teach us about the death penalty? Joan Cheever sets out on a detective-like journey, and by the time this saga reaches its conclusion, she has taken the reader through much of the death penalty experience. This is a truly human story, and it is important to remember the fact that it is human beings who sit on our Death Rows, even if we frequently transform them into "monsters." In short, Back From The Dead is a story for anybody interested in the death penalty, no matter whether one is for it or against it. Most readers will find this book to be a true "page turner." Consider the opening paragraph from chapter one: "It was 85 degrees that night in Huntsville, Texas. I sat alone in a booth at the McDonald's, off IH-45, drinking coffee and picking at a plate of greasy French fries, staring at the clock on the wall. The clock ticked too slowly for me, but too quickly for Walter Williams, my 32-year-old client, who sat alone just a mile away, in his cell on Death Row. We were both waiting for midnight." What a great opener! Crisp and compelling. And what follows sustains the drama and intrigue. Ms. Cheever has done first-rate research in tracking down the class of '72, and the story that unfolds in Back From The Dead is brilliantly written and her analysis is most solid. I highly recommend this book.

A Terrific Read!

An insider's riveting walk into the minds of Death Row inmates. Ms. Cheever gives a thought-provoking, yet compassionate story of The Class of '72, inmates whose destiny changed with the Supreme Court decision. Flecked with humor and sincerity, Ms. Cheever enlightens her readers with such a natural stance in her writing that her reader feels she is accompanying her on her mission. A page turner, for sure. Ms. Cheever has definitely hit the mark with Back From the Dead and makes one think hard about capital punishment. A terrific read!

READ THIS BOOK

What a great read. I couldn't put it down and stayed up way too late turning page after page. The author knows how to keep your attention. The subject matter is timely and the story is fascinating. I even read the footnotes (which I never do). I plan to read it again.