Condemned: Inside the Sing Sing Death House »

Scott Christianson is the author of Notorious Prison: Inside the World's Most Feared Institutions and Condemned: Inside the Sing Sing Death House (NYU Press, 1999). A longtime investigative reporter, his articles have appeared in The New York Times, the The Washington Post, The Nation, the Criminal Law Bulletin and many other publications. Since the author began this project, six of the convictions discussed in Innocent have been overturned.

From 1891 to 1963, New York's infamous Sing Sing was the site of 614 legal executions carried out by the state. Christianson, a former investigative reporter and state criminal justice official, gives details on the legendary death house and introduces those whose lives were claimed in its electric chair through mug shots, letters, and telegrams. While the majority of inmates were everyday people, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were also executed here, as were major figures in the infamous Murder, Inc., forerunner of the American Mafia. Lacks a subject index. The author is director of the New York Death Penalty Documentation Project. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Library Journal

For the first time since archival records were opened in 1977, readers can take a tour of Sing Sing Prison's infamous death house. From 1891 to 1963, 606 men and eight women were legally executed there in the electric chair. These executions were carried out with the strictest security away from public view. Yet journalist accounts of some of the high-profile capital cases made Sing Sing famous the world over. Investigative reporter Christianson (With Liberty for Some) has compiled the mug shots and dossiers of 70 condemned inmates with pictures of their physical surroundings. The result is a slim volume of indelible impressions. Today, Sing Sing is an average New York State correctional facility. Executions are no longer carried out there, and its notoriety has been eclipsed by more dreaded prisons in other states. Sing Sing's legacy, however, will likely remain an important part of America's history of criminal justice. Highly recommended.--Frances O. Sandiford, Green Haven Correctional Facility Lib., Stormville, NY Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.\