The Penalty is Death
The Penalty is Death

Author: Marlin Shipman

Publisher: University of Missouri Press

Published: 2002

Total Pages: 350

ISBN-13: 0826263054

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

In 1872 Susan Eberhart was convicted of murder for helping her lover to kill his wife. The Atlanta Constitution ran a story about her hanging in Georgia that covered slightly more than four full columns of text. In an editorial sermon about her, the Constitution said that Miss Eberhart not only committed murder, but also committed adultery and "violated the sanctity of marriage." An 1890 article in the Elko Independent said of Elizabeth Potts, who was hanged for murder, "To her we look for everything that is gentle and kind and tender; and we can scarcely conceive her capable of committing the highest crime known to the law." Indeed, at the time, this attitude was also applied to women in general. By 1998 the press's and society's attitudes had changed dramatically. A columnist from Texas wrote that convicted murderess Karla Faye Tucker should not be spared just because she was a woman. The author went on to say that women could be just as violent and aggressive as men; the idea that women are defenseless and need men's protection "is probably the last vestige of institutionalized sexism that needs to be rubbed out."

The Hanging of Susan Eberhart
The Hanging of Susan Eberhart

Author: Fay Burnett

Publisher:

Published: 2018-08-07

Total Pages: 396

ISBN-13: 9781720550365

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

In 1873, Georgia Governor James M. Smith insured that justice prevailed in Preston, Georgia. Enoch F. Spann and his paramour Susan Eberhart were tried and convicted in the murder of Spann's elderly, invalid wife. One year later, the two were hanged. But, it was not so easy to execute a woman in Georgia, especially a white woman. In the case of Susan Eberhart, the public cried out for mercy, but to no avail. A number of people were affected by the Governor's decision to withhold clemency, including the Governor himself. This tragic story exemplifies the classic struggle between justice and mercy. However in this case, the underlying themes of poverty, ignorance and mental illness complicate the struggle. The "Atlanta Daily Sun," a publication owned by Alexander H. Stephens, (former Vice-President of the Confederacy), described this story as "the most interesting case of crime that ever occurred in Georgia, and which is certainly one of the strangest in history of crimes. May we never hear of the like again." But, we did hear of the case again. The story of Susan Eberhart is one that simply "won't die." Her name continues to be invoked whenever a woman is scheduled for execution in Georgia. Dr. Fay Stapleton Burnett, a native of Metter, Georgia, is a retired dentist and first time author. Her passions are Georgia history, genealogy, and visiting St. Simons Island, Lake Russell, and all points in between. A "multi-generational Baptist," she is married to Rev. Brock Burnett, pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Winder, Georgia. She shares her extensive research on this case based on historic documents. The author discovered this story through the involvement of her Great-Great-Grandfather, Maj. George Lawson Stapleton, Jr. "I have examined your book for several hours, and want to congratulate you for the prodigious research you have done on the crime and the punishment of the perpetrators. I don't think you have left any stone unturned in this notable effort. The book will be a treasure for any future historian who wishes to report on these events. Both I personally and The Carter Center have long condemned capital punishment as unfairly applied, often in error, unnecessary and counterproductive, and I have expressed these views in several of my books. I hope your book will help to end this barbarous policy in America." - Former President Jimmy Carter

Women and Capital Punishment in the United States
Women and Capital Punishment in the United States

Author: David V. Baker

Publisher: McFarland

Published: 2015-12-07

Total Pages: 439

ISBN-13: 0786499508

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The history of the execution of women in the United States has largely been ignored and scholars have given scant attention to gender issues in capital punishment. This historical analysis examines the social, political and economic contexts in which the justice system has put women to death, revealing a pattern of patriarchal domination and female subordination. The book includes a discussion of condemned women granted executive clemency and judicial commutations, an inquiry into women falsely convicted in potentially capital cases and a profile of the current female death row population.