Amherst College

The article discusses the 50th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's 1976 decisions that reinstated the death penalty, arguing that the constitutional framework established then was based on an unrealistic 'fantasy of fairness.' Author Austin Sarat criticizes the legitimacy of capital punishment and advocates for its abolition.

Tennessee's attempt to execute Tony Carruthers on May 21 failed, leaving him alive as the ninth person to survive a botched execution in 80 years. The article argues that a second attempt would be inhumane and criticizes the state's use of the death penalty.