'Hard to Look Away': Death Penalty Expert Brings Research to Law School
Author Corinna Barrett Lain reveals findings from seven years of research on lethal injection
OXFORD, Miss. – Lethal injection is the primary method of execution in 28 of the 29 states that use them as punishment. Legal scholar Corinna Barrett Lain plans to unveil the secrets of lethal injection during a Sept. 22 discussion at the University of Mississippi School of Law.
Lain teaches at the University of Richmond School of Law. She plans to share the unknown truths of lethal injection discovered during research for her book "Secrets of the Killing State: The Untold Story of Lethal Injection" (NYU Press, 2025).
This free, public event is set for 12:30 p.m. in the law school's Weems Auditorium.
A former prosecutor, Lain wrote two legal history papers about capital punishment before this book.
"Once you start looking at the death penalty – really looking at it – it's hard to look away," she said.
"This is not a book where I make an argument and try to convince people that I'm right. This is a book where I relentlessly document what states are doing and then leave it to the reader to decide if that's OK with them."
Lain plans to share a few of the more surprising finds from her research, along with the significance of those findings. She will also share a personal note about how studying executions for seven years changed her as she witnessed examples of redemption on death row.
Will Berry, Ole Miss law professor and associate dean of research, will serve as moderator. He also wrote a review of Lain's book.
There is a fundamental misunderstanding as to how states execute people, particularly when the method is lethal injection, he said.
"With a 10-year high in executions – 30 and counting – I hope attendees gain a better understanding of what their states are doing on their behalf when they punish criminal offenders with the death penalty and execute them," Berry said.
Audience members can purchase a copy of Lain's book at the event.
Lain wants people to leave thinking and asking questions concerning lethal injection.
"What is the real work that lethal injection is doing?" she asked. "And what is the place of secrecy in the state's most powerful moment in our democracy?
"These are the sorts of questions that I hope attendees will be asking themselves."
Top: Corinna Barrett Lain, an author and professor at the at the University of Richmond School of Law, has spent years researching lethal injection as a method of execution. She will discuss her findings during a lecture Sept. 22 at the School of Law. Adobe Stock photo