The Autobiography of an Execution

De: David R. Dow

Narrado por: Joshua Ferris

A riveting, artfully written memoir of a lawyer's life as he races to prevent death row inmates from being executed.
Near the beginning of The Autobiography of an Execution, David Dow lays his cards on the table. "People think that because I am against the death penalty and don't think people should be executed, that I forgive those people for what they did. Well, it isn't my place to forgive people, and if it were, I probably wouldn't. I'm a judgmental and not very forgiving guy. Just ask my wife."

It this spellbinding true crime narrative, Dow takes us inside of prisons, inside the complicated minds of judges, inside execution-administration chambers, into the lives of death row inmates (some shown to be innocent, others not) and even into his own home--where the toll of working on these gnarled and difficult cases is perhaps inevitably paid. He sheds insight onto unexpected phenomena-- how even religious lawyer and justices can evince deep rooted support for putting criminals to death-- and makes palpable the suspense that clings to every word and action when human lives hang in the balance.

Reseñas de la Crítica

"I have read much about capital punishment, but David Dow's book leaves all else behind."—Anthony Lewis

"In an argument against capital punishment, Dow's capable memoir partially gathers its steam from the emotional toll on all parties involved, especially the overworked legal aid lawyers and their desperate clients. The author, the litigation director of the Texas Defender Service and a professor at the University of Houston Law Center, respects the notion of attorney-client privilege in this handful of real-life legal outcomes, some of them quite tragic, while acknowledging executions are 'not about the attorneys,' but 'about the victims of murder and sometimes their killers.' While trying to maintain a proper balance in his marriage to Katya, a fellow attorney and ballroom dancer, he spells out the maze of legal mumbo-jumbo to get his clients stays or released from confinement in the cases of a hapless Vietnam vet who shot a child, another man who beat his pregnant wife to death and another who killed his wife and children. In the end, Dow's book is a sobering, gripping and candid look into the death penalty."

—Publishers Weekly

"For a lot of good reasons, and some that are not so good, executions in the U.S. are carried out in private. The voters, the vast majority of whom support executions, are not allowed to see them. The Autobiography of an Execution is a riveting and compelling account of a Texas execution written and narrated by a lawyer in the thick of the last minute chaos. It should be read by all those who support state sponsored killing."

—John Grisham, author of The Innocent Man

"Defending the innocent is easy. David Dow fights for the questionable. He is tormented, but relentless, and takes us inside his struggle with candor and insight, shudders and all."

—Dave Cullen, author of Columbine

"David Dow's extraordinary memoir lifts the veil on the real world of representing defendants on death row. It will stay with me a long time."

—Jeffrey Toobin, author of The Nine

What a difficult subject...

It seems like Dow isn't anti-death penalty as much as he is anti-unfairness in death penalty sentencing. He argues that poor and mentally challenged people are dis-proportionately sentenced to death and that whether or not someone is executed has more to do with their lawyer's skills (a.k.a. money) and the political environment at the moment than whether or not they are actually guilty.

He is believable.

He has quite a few smaller tirades against "lazy" judges who he claims are just in it because of who they know and who don't actually care about truth or justice. Perhaps he's right. How would we know otherwise?

I liked how he covered several cases, and provided some background into his life and history, and I didn't even mind his "family life" scenes because they sorta grounded the story in reality a bit. I didn't like all the detailed "dreams" he related though - what role do dreams play in a biography? Overall it was very informational and quite thought-provoking, regardless of your position on the death penalty.

The narration was good.

Deliciously Unsettling!

This book unsettled me and forced me, in a healthy way, from my nice and happy bubble. The justice system scares me and I don't know where people who are are falsely-accused of a crime get the strength to carry on! I don't know how death-penalty lawyers and cops can ever see life as "normal" since the meter for normal must get set waaaay askew! The systems seems WAY off-balance and I don't see any hope for fixing it. If I got falsely-accused of a crime, I honestly don't know if I would even be able to face my trial!

Worthwhile Read

First, the disclaimer - To be clear, this book offers an opinionated perspective on the death penalty. Careful scouring of the Texas death row’s historical record will leave an intuitive person skeptical as to if Dow has presented in this book all the evidence used against his client. Dow is a liberal elitist who flashes his self-imagined moral superiority, atheism, expensive wine, and lavish main courses. Frankly, he is exactly the man you’d expect to lead a rallying cry against the death penalty - admittedly unable to relate to the violent, and a life lived free from violence’s impact. He tells of being partially raised by a nanny and employing one as well. This is an author of marked privilege, and I question the broadness of his perspective and relatability.

Dow’s service to death row inmates is impeccable. He is an elite storyteller and author. He brilliantly juxtaposes the personal backdrop of this book with a gripping account of trying to save a client he believes in. This is a man who is operating in the trenches with a flaming sword in his hands. He’s fighting hard for what he believes in. I admire and respect the work Dow describes.

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Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

yes. A perspective not normally available on a difficult subject. I enjoyed the mix of work and family issues.

What does David R. Dow bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

very pleasant voice that really humanized him as both father and lawyer

Death Penalty. USA Can No Longer Afford.

I must admit that I only started to read this book because of my views regarding the Death Penalty. I was curious about the views and opinions of David R. Dow as he is the Cullen Professor at the University of Houston Law Center and the Rorschach Visiting Professor of History at Rice University. He also runs a death penalty clinic in which law students assist in the representation of inmates facing execution and is the founder and director of Texas’s oldest innocence project, the Texas Innocence Network, an organization that uses UH law students to investigate claims of actual innocence brought by Texas prisoners. In 2014, he started the Juvenile and Capital Advocacy Project, which is also located at the UH Law Center.

I figured that this guy knew a thing or two about the Death Penalty! I was not disappointed. I was surprised by his candor. This guy more often or not really disliked the people that he was representing.

David Dow makes it quite clear that his job and the job of his team was to save people from execution. NOT to prove their innocence JUST to keep them alive. He did not have to like them.

This man has four loves. He loves deeply . He loves hard. I have no idea in what order these loves are stacked. Depends on the day I suppose.

The law, his wife, his son, his dog.

I enjoyed this book very much. In fact I read it twice prior to writing this review. It will make you think. Maybe you will get as frustrated with the system as I did? The arbitrary red tape that is left to the very last moment and the 'flip' attitude of lazy Government employees who are not prepared to do their job in order to perform their 'due diligence' even thought a human being may well be losing their life in less than an hour.

An excellent read.