I Was A Death Row Executioner (Death Penalty Documentary) | Real Stories

[Music] 1978 to 1999 I served as the chief execution I perform 62 executions in the 17 years people that recommend the death penalty jury the judge if they had to perform the execution I think that they were in light a different story on given the definite it to anyone [Music] the United States is the last country in the developed West to execute criminals about 50% of Americans are for the death penalty and 50% against it our capital punishment system is flawed this is not a matter of vengeance it's a matter of just the death penalty we believe serves as a deterrent capital punishment is tainted by racial disparity having my father's killers executed did not bring me a sense of closure is it to restore society or is it to punish if you take a life shouldn't your life be taken justice is about us as a society 1982 was my first execution I was a correctional officer one of my main jobs were to saving lives so when it came down to execution I had to transform myself into a person that would take a life Jerry Gibbons was appointed executioner in 1977 when the United States reinstated the death penalty [Music] he grew up in the housing projects of Richmond Virginia and remembers one tragic night at a party when I was a teenager I witnessed a young lady shot to death right before my eyes I wanted to revenge for the young lady because she was innocent I was totally father definitely my thing is that if a person takes a life of another person then that person's life should be taken and that's what I believe Jerry received training to operate the electric chair and later to administer lethal injections he became chief executioner in 1982 I would say my team and mistake pride and they'll work their preparations getting this person ready for his next step in life prepare him - just to see his kids for the last time a last kiss of his mother sister I'm his wife or daughter we all are humans you know and this is one human that had made a mistake and we had to carry out the orders outside of his team of eight Jerry told no one about his work as an executioner not even his wife we will keep it a secret and I kept it a secret from my my family since 1977 he and other executioner's across the United States have put over a thousand 460 people to death it's a punishment that's supposed to be reserved for the worst of the worst [Music] it was a gorgeous day it was a beautiful April morning we met some friends in Boston 23,000 runners and half a million spectators gathered for the Boston Marathon Karen Brassard her husband and daughter were cheering a friend over the finish line we were there for maybe 10 or 15 minutes all excited with the crowd watching everybody come through and just suddenly it was this incredibly loud explosion there were seven of us there six of us were injured one of our dear friends lost both of her legs that day I knew that my husband was pretty badly injured my daughter had shrapnel from her hips to her feet and I had shrapnel in both of my legs the two blasts injured over 260 people and killed three including Krystle Campbell lingzi Lu and eight-year-old Martin Richard police pursue two brothers in a dramatic manhunt 26 year-old Tamerlan tsarnaev was killed in a shootout a day later police captured the younger brother Dzhokhar alive over the next few months Karen Ron and their daughter like many of the bombing victims had to undergo multiple surgeries I'm gonna try to not let this change who I am I'm not going to let this prevent me from living the life that I want to live I'm not going to be afraid later that summer Karen traveled from her home in New Hampshire to Boston her tsarnaev's arraignment at the federal court we were all seated together and he walked out he didn't look at any of us but his hand was obviously injured and my immediate response was I hope that hurts I hope it's painful that was not like me and the recognition of that about me was scary because it isn't Who I am tsarnaev pled not guilty to all 30 counts 17 punishable by death the federal prosecutor asked victims if the US should seek the death penalty I don't know I am I don't know I don't know what justice is I thought I knew terrorist acts are rare much more common are the murderers and other violent acts that happen every day across the United States in Philadelphia Shannon Schieber was finishing her first year of graduate school she had been up studying it was a early Thursday morning her final exam was Friday morning about two o'clock in the morning she was preparing to take a bath the assailant who who attacked her he pried open her sliding door she screamed for help as she was being attacked the next-door neighbor heard that he called 911 he told them that he heard his neighbor sham screamed for help and he heard like a choking sound the police arrived within 20 minutes they knocked on the door but no one answered you the next day when Shannon didn't show up for a lunch date with her brother Shawn he drove to her apartment building the old Oceanus neighbors came down and answered the door and Shawn said I'm trying to reach my sister or I can't reach her the guy just went pale they said oh my god I called the police last night and they went running up the steps they broke open her door and she was laying naked on her bed by the time we got to Philadelphia though the police were swarming around the apartment building and and they let us know immediately that she had been attacked and and that she had been murdered we were beginning to face the fact that part of us had died and I mean it hit us very quickly I just remember saying a whole lot of prayers that we'd be able together to get through this that weekend they attended Mass when we got to the Lord's Prayer saying the Lord's Prayer out loud was a real confrontation for me forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us I had to abandon something I had been saying often probably thoughtlessly thousands of times over my over my life and if anyone would have asked us well what would you want to do if you if you ever found who did this I'd just I'd be still angry I want to I'd want him dead - maybe I don't know I've never had this happen it was just so painful eight days later the Schieber is buried there 23 year old daughter what does society do when someone commits a horrific act of violence for centuries seeking justice was a community affair and disproportionate blame fell on the poor mentally disabled and people of color in the 1800s some capital offenses were targeted specifically at slaves establishing a racial bias that continues today executions reached a historic peak in the 1930s averaging 167 per year but then in 1936 a gruesome execution caught the attention of the media on August 14th in Owensboro Kentucky Rainey bathia was publicly hanged by a white sheriff many thought Padilla was innocent one New York Times reporter wrote 10,000 white persons some jeering and others festive saw a prayerful black man put to death today on Davies County's pit in gallows the outcry over rainy bethey is hanging did not put an end to capital punishment instead it drove executions behind prison walls out of public view state officials built death houses and institutionalized the practice it's a death by formula it's a scripted death in the beginning it was hanging it was not only hanging but it was public and so you see the crowds coming and bringing a picnic lunch and celebrating then we moved from hanging to the electric chair and then we began to have the horror stories that happened out of the electric chair and then there's been a move to lethal injection and lethal injection it's like we're going medicinal so that will just be putting them to sleep but not everyone agrees the idea that they should go out in an opiate haze that it should be a pleasant death is absolutely perverse the debate about the death penalty has become increasingly polarized and politicized we want a system that's fair we want a system that respects the dignity of human beings the idea that we were executing innocent people was terrifying and there was just no way that we hadn't and that we weren't some people kill with an attitude so callous heinous sadistic that they have forfeited their right to live I believe in a deterrent of one and that is when we execute this person we know he will never kill again why is it that the death penalty really comes down to in many cases just where you live who your DA is we can all recognize injustice when we see it it's people not being treated fairly it's people not getting a fair shot you can be critical to definitely you can be critical of the idea that the government has the right to kill and also hold compassion and concern for victims maybe in some books of justice the person for this act deserves to die but do we as a society deserve to kill them today capital punishment largely falls to the state in which the crime was committed and laws and methods vary widely most states used lethal injection but some still use gas chambers the electric chair hanging and firing squads [Music] carrying out the death penalty is entrusted to specially trained guards like Jerry Givens of the 62 executions that Jerry's conducted 37 were by electrocution and 25 by lethal injection lethal injection is considered the more humane form but for Jerry it made the job of killing another person a lot tougher when you talk about execution and the electrocution is a button you push and once you push the button the kind close in and the current the current comes out and that's all I had to do was to push your button but when they come down to death by lethal injection you have seven tubes of chemicals you have four flushes and three deadly chemicals that is inserted into this man and my itself as the executioner I'm at the end of each syringe I'm pushing the poison down the tube into the body so I'm more attached to this person then it is pushing a button and releasing and let the current flow by itself fifteen days prior to an execution the condemned would be moved to the death chamber where Jerry and his team worked all nine of us were executioner's and we perfect a good execution that's what we withstood by the preparation was mental as well as physical we practice and practice and practice prior to the execution each of us knew our jobs our assignment and we never allow ourselves to get that close to anyone you know we trained for that we trained this way you don't get that close to the day of the execution 24 hours prior to that we could we have a call a Death Watch a guy will act differently because he knew that this is the last everything [Music] this is the sale where the condemned stays this is where the warden read his death warrant his clergy person sitting with him during this course of the day the condemned is given a shower his last meal his last visitations by six o'clock our preparations were stopped until then made his place to death at home in New Hampshire Karen and her family were slowly recovering from their injuries not so much the loss of physical abilities things like the loss of especially for me my rose-colored glasses you know just a reality relationships with people are different things are not the same when even with Ron and I it's different he's working through things and I'm working through things and it had been six months since the bombing and Karen had not yet seen her good friend Celeste who was with them at the finish line and lost both her legs in the beginning initially I I couldn't bring myself to be with self because I felt guilty Celeste and 16 others lost limbs that day Ron was one of the lucky ones doctors were able to save his leg but the trauma and pain still lingered we're gonna have to work for a long time to get to the new normal whatever that's gonna be after months of deliberation Attorney General Eric Holder announced the US would seek the death penalty the defense will argue that Dzhokhar was pressured into it by his older brother that he was a popular well-liked college kid led astray you know he's got to be held responsible and I agree and I and I do believe that but I also think he's not stupid [Music] Karen's son was the same age as okar it didn't seem like such a hard decision when it was abstract you know I've got family and friends who are very religious and don't believe in it and then I have others who just say but it's the right thing to do they're so sure I don't know that it's right for me to make that decision to take someone else's life in Philadelphia Shannon's killer was still on the loose the shivers pressed for answers but the police had none it's just like you're in a coma I mean you're just like walking through something but you you don't know exactly how you're going to deal with them how am I ever ever going to get through this this is tremendous sense of loss and you know for some time I could visualize Sheehan and kind of walking through a door just walking in the house and walking through a door saying I died and she called me doc she was so kind and generous and loving and helpful if she always would come to us and say mom and dad I have to make a difference Shannon was many many things she had a tremendous appetite for learning everybody loved Shannon everybody loved her she was an extremely loving daughter in their grief Vicki and Syl turned to each other and reached out for support this takes time it doesn't you know everybody goes down a different path in a different timeline to this journey toward healing they began attending support meetings for families of murder victims there they saw the devastating toll of sorrow and anger the father of one of the murdered daughters we know well took his first drink and he never stopped for a year and he eventually lost his job and in marriage but Welch's daughter was one of a hundred and sixty six people killed in the Timothy McVeigh bombing of Oklahoma City one night about a year later he woke up in the morning and he had this dream and his daughter Julie was there telling him dad dad he murdered me are you going to let him murder our whole family the shivers also saw the high price people paid for putting their lives on hold as they waited for an execution we started finding out what murder victim's families go through if you decide to say look at I want that man executed it would take 15-20 years as much longer for it actually to happen and we just saw the effects of this head-on these family members we saw destroying their lives during his years serving as Virginia's chief executioner Jerry would hear inmates swear they were innocent when you hear a person going to his deathbed sticking out that he was innocent - the last syringe going to his body he's sticking out that he was innocent on his last words his last breath it give me something to think about as the executioner and it placed some doubt there there was one young man in particular bürol Washington Jr he was trying to tell society back then that he was innocent forget the one really paid no attention in 1983 Earl was arrested in Culpepper Virginia and brought in for questioning he thought it was for a burglary he had committed he said I was all the question the a is about different crimes you know he said that I said I did him anything I know I want capital raping motor which is called Captain Marvel was compared to death panel after intense questioning police officers extracted a confession from Earl for the brutal rape and stabbing murder of a 19 year old mother of three at his trial experts testified that Earl had an IQ of only 69 and was extremely suggestible casting doubt on his confession despite inconclusive evidence the jury found her guilty and the judge sentenced him to death he was taken to mecklenburg a supermax prison in virginia he was scared to death he was timid he didn't want to come out of his cell he's mentally [ __ ] he couldn't read he couldn't write I walked him in to the cell and he needed anything banging on the door I'll come and see what you want that was Earl the whole time he was on the road he was scared and timid hardest thing for me when my mom did him signal at 5:00 on the swing street and what was people said they hate to see the mama cry what I did two weeks before Earl's date of execution the guards came to transport him to the death house in Richmond they chained him up put him in a waist chain handcuffs shackles and they walked him out literally drugging him out and meanwhile everybody's banging on the doors they're there because of the guards Joe reached out to his caseworker Marie Dean's to see if anything could be done I called Murray in a panic I said I don't I don't look this guy did or not but I don't think he did I'll make this guy knows what's going on when Earl arrived at the death house he was handed over to Jerry I receive Errol from Mecklenburg and when he came in I gave him couldn't turn him to the infirmary he was given a complete physical at that time we only had death by electrocution the chair so he didn't have a choice you could elect to us and what him to the Chia homie every day for the whole week I was there he said they were getting ready from dental when that became was good law want me to go I'll go I'll yeah if you don't hang on oh we're working day and night Joe and Marie secured a rare stay of execution Marie was convinced that Earl had been pressured into falsely confessing my work with mentally [ __ ] defendants made me know that this was a what we would call a coerced confession whether it was core psychologically or we're in some other way did you kill that woman no sir but you told the police that you did yes why did you tell the police that you did it oh no you don't know knows did you understand then that you were being accused of a murder no something you didn't understand that knows new DNA tests proved Earl was not the murderer he was moved off death row but he remained in prison Virginia law at the time did not allow the introduction of new evidence Jerry heard little about what happened to Earl his focus was on preparing for the next execution [Music] one year after the Boston Marathon bombing a memorial service brought everyone together for the first time when we walked down the road to the sights Ron and I and Chris Terra stopped at each site and said a prayer a week later Karen and Ron United with survivors at the 2014 Boston Marathon they cheered their friend Celeste in a symbolic run across the finish line I am angry at what he did and when I see my friends and they struggle and I see other survivors I don't want my decision to be based on how angry I get in those instances that fall judge O'Toole announced the trial would be held in Boston we have two choices we can either let him stay alive and have his interaction and have his Joy's or put him to death and had that be the end of it they don't get to see their little boy playing baseball anymore or reading him a story at night and this young man is in jail and he's reading stories that he likes he's got books available to him that he enjoys or he meets with his sisters and gets to see pictures of their children growing up and I just don't think it's fair that they have had their their joys taken away from them and he still is able to experience that Karen decided to attend the trial I want to be there to see justice in Philadelphia nearly four years after Vikki and sills daughter Shannon was murdered the police got a lead in 2001 there had been a series of assaults started taking place on Fort Collins Colorado they put out a report to police agencies all across the United States so they sent DNA from Shannon's case to Fort Collins the DNA was a match the suspect was married and employed at an Air Force Base so about eight o'clock that night 23rd day of April 2002 this fellow and his wife walked into the police station and by midnight that night they had a full confession for the dozen different cases the man they arrested was 29 year old Troy graves Philadelphia's illusive Center City rapist Graves was accused of multiple counts of sexual assault and one count of murder in the death of Shannon Schieber the prosecutor was District Attorney Lynn Abraham the prosecutor in the city of Philadelphia who is known as a pretty deadly da in other words she put more people on death row then any other prosecutor in Pennsylvania and probably any large number around the country troy graves was found guilty and the district attorney wanted the death penalty but the Sheba's did not it meant they would have to fight for the life of their daughter's killer we had said to each other and consulted with our very large families that what would we do if they ever caught it well we haven't stick to our principles you know if someone was going to want Tim put to death we were gonna argue for life without the possibility of parole the district attorney voiced her disagreement in outrage the district attorney there became very very upset and she became very public with her with her opinion and she said I don't care what the Schieber said the death penalty was the appropriate sentence for their daughter's murder why would they not want it for Vickie and SIL the answer was clear we just can't let this anger this natural human anger and pain overwhelm us and and make us so vengeful and and hateful because it would just over time destroy us and we knew that Vickie and SIL received piles of hate mail accusing them of not loving their daughter you know if you can't stand by your principles when it's difficult they're not your principles several years passed before Jerry learned that Earl Washington was not guilty it had to be like 15 or 20 executions at that girl was released from death row that I found out that he was he was innocent I said wow that's that's that's a close calling you know he came within days and I would have executed an innocent person our criminal justice system supposed to be the best in the world I don't think we'd make those mistakes forget when you see the person like Errol Washington something happened there in the aftermath of the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995 Congress passed legislation to escalate death sentences the result was a dramatic increase in executions by 1999 Jerry was putting to death more than one person per month the death certificate reads death by homicide you know it don't make sense I don't want to be considered as a person just committed a homicide but that's what it really at the sixty-two executions and the only killer that I could see was myself and I refused to look into the mirror he nearly took the life of rural Washington and couldn't help but wonder if there were others research now shows that for every nine executions there is one inmate found innocent and exonerated one out of ten who might have been mistakenly put to death nearly two years after the bombing the trial was about to begin Karin left her home in New Hampshire early to arrive for the opening statements it was the first time she had seen tsarnaev since the arraignment inside the courtroom Karin and the other survivors were seated just 20 feet away he refused to look at them the defense team would make the case that xot cars are nayeth was unduly influenced by his older brother the prosecutors would argue that he was fully responsible for his actions many victims shared their experiences including the father of eight-year-old Martin were described having to choose between comforting his dying son and saving his daughter over the next four weeks Karin and other survivors relived the horror of the bombing they reached out to each other for support coming to court it was amazing how quickly and how close we all got it was we're like family but her husband Ron stayed away since the bombing run has changed it's a hard thing to watch the man that you love struggle so desperately and be so angry he's just not the same as he was before federal jury convicted Dzhokhar tsarnaev on all 30 counts he was facing for the Boston Marathon bombing just 11 hours the jury found our naove guilty of all charges now they would decide if he should be put to death the survivors were divided Karen's friends Celeste was for a death sentence the Richards not wanting to go through years of Appeals had decided against it it's a long tough process to really examine why you feel what you feel you really have to look at yourself pretty hard to decide as soon as Vickie and SIL learned the identity of the man who raped and murdered their daughter Vicki wanted to know more I want to I want to know why I want understand what he did why was this going forward like that what was going on is where was his background I had to talk to his mother I wanted to understand who he was Vicky located Troy graves mother and gave her a call we were on the phone together for many many hours and tears just here sobbing with each other I said but I want just to understand what you are going through I want to share with what I'm going through and maybe we can help each other and learn from each other and and just come to some kind of peace with all this because God you must be going through a terrible time to lost your son you know and she says oh mrs. Seibert I murdered your daughter Troy graves mother blamed herself for her son's actions and I said I understand what do you say she said it got more and more violent in our household and my kids would come to me and they'd say please mommy let's go this is a bad daddy is bad I was telling them I can't I don't have a job I don't have you know an education I can't support you oh my god how could I be angry Vicky began meeting with inmates on death row she discovered a system of victims on all sides we could just hear she and say mom and now that you know about the system the terrible flaws the bias the racial be Geographic bias of cotton cost issues they don't give their lawyers just all that I can go on on you know what are you gonna do about it they began advocating across the country and quickly found that many people thought all victims wanted the death penalty they say that the reason we have to keep the death penalty here is because that's what murder victims families want that's going to give them peace that's going to give them justice and and we come in and say not quite enough we've been through this this isn't the way you lose child part of you dies and so you have to you have to kind of learn to live with this hole in your heart either we can continue to dwell on it and Jenna well up the the misery and sustain that misery that we that that we incurred because of what was going on or we can we can try and force things to change the extent we can they countered their grief by sharing their story and providing testimony that would influence death penalty legislation losing a loved one to murder it's a tragedy of unimaginable proportions this all happens her testimony helped Maryland become the 18th state to repeal capital punishment I've told my daughter's story now in 22 different states and I have seen the tremendous effect of this whole system on murder victims family members in an ongoing tribute to the memory of their daughter Vicki and still continue their efforts to end the death penalty [Music] in Boston nearly three weeks had passed since our Nayef was found guilty but the federal jury had yet to make a decision about whether he should be put to death Karen went to the courthouse nearly every day over the course of the trial she had become one of the main spokespersons in media contacts for the survivors but for now there was nothing to do but wait suddenly attacks from a clerk inside alerted her that the jury was close to a decision they're gonna be coming down with the verdict any time now I would prefer it be the death penalty just because I think that's the fair thing the right thing is awful as that is I think it's the the just thing so that's what I'm hoping and we are coming on the air because the jury deciding the fate of Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar tsarnaev has reached a verdict they have sentenced him to death news of the verdict traveled fast I know that there's still a long road ahead but right now it feels like we couldn't take a breath and kind of absolutely breathe again you know without even realizing it you're holding your breath and once the verdict came in it was like okay now we can we can start from here with tsarnaev's fate sealed Karen began the long drive home I don't think it evens the score I don't think that it teaches anybody anything I don't believe that it's going to be a deterrent to the next young man who has anger but I just think that there's nothing no other choice in my mind that is fair you [Music] after 17 years and 62 executions Jerry's time as executioner came to an abrupt end in the midst of preparing for another execution he was subpoenaed by a grand jury and accused of money laundering Jerry claimed he was innocent but the court found him guilty the Sunday after his sentencing jerry's long-held secret about his role as executioner became public they put it in the paper they say the man that carry out execution orders for the state of virginia was found guilty once it was out I mean I'm exposed so I gotta come forward I gotta tell my wife is this in the truth about this yeah why I didn't know Oh cuz I didn't tell you I didn't want you to have to go through what I have to go through while Jerry served his time he learned that Earl Washington received a full pardon and after 17 years was finally released from prison about four percent of the guys that I've executed it they stuck out that they were innocent so in in after arrows case you know placed out there to find out that innocent people were there on death row after serving his time Jerry worked hard to rebuild his life he began speaking out against the death penalty one of the few executioner's to do so we need to do that we need to change and I didn't enjoy killing people so what can we do to prevent these things from happening Jerry thought often about Earl Washington if I ever get to see him I will just say I'm you know I'm sorry I'm glad that things didn't go the way they was planned to go and I'm glad this to see you on this side because I can't apologize to you after I take your life you know after I hit that button that's it I'm glad I didn't get the chance to hit that so I apologize to you for the thinking the way I thought you was guilty Jerry decided to visit Earl to talk with him face to face though it had been many years Jerry and Earl swap stories and quickly rediscovered a shared past inm one day I was at macking Bernie I was in 85 okay I went to Richmond five one swing Street yeah okay that's what I had luck the chair yeah you know I wonder what went through your mind doing that she was innocent I told my mama hated the whole world yeah she's a budding ratio of like it's a good thing that I didn't kill him you know because I don't think I could wear that he he didn't do anything wrong you know so his is something that I would had to face but to see him crossing that bridge and to meet him and hugging it's a good feeling and you don't know because you want my shoes [Music]

Channel: undefined

Views: 1,399,941

Rating: 4.6742659 out of 5

Keywords: Real Stories, Real Stories Full Documentary, Real Stories Documentary, Full length Documentaries, Documentary, TV Shows - Topic, Documentary Movies - Topic, full documentary, full episode, death row, death penalty, capital punishment, prison documentary, death row prison documentary, the final hours, death row documentary, full prison documentary, death row inmates, documentary movies - topic, tv shows - topic, crime documentary, true crime

Id: 8JS5avm0g-4

Length: 51min 47sec (3107 seconds)

Published: Sat May 09 2020

Reddit Comments

[u/Publicsting]

I can also recommend Werner Herzog's documentary series on the death penalty and death row, available on Youtube.

[u/Seienchin88]

To add on the executioner part:

In Japan every warden in the deathrow can be an executioner. Just like the guys getting executed the executioners also don’t know about what they will have to do until they reach work that day. Otherwise a lot of wardens would claim sick leave.

[u/Taizan]

Just finished watching it. Great documentary giving different perspectives of people directly and indirectly involved.

[u/Ganjisseur]

"I murdered your daughter."

Goddamn this documentary hits in the feels hard

[u/mpinnegar]

Very disappointed they don't interview any of the executed. Come on media, SHOW ALL SIDES.

[u/chrisfalcon81]

It's the 4% that are innocent that bother me.

[u/Falkuria]

The whole marking people as "Death by: Homicide" for the executed targets just blows my mind. It's almost like at some point the govt just said: "Well, if this comes back on us, we can just say the chief executioner committed 67 homicides in the last 20 years."

I just can't wrap my head around a good intention behind that label.

[u/Salpal777]

What’s deciding to kill say about us as a society? We’re better than that.

[u/tiredofthebites]

Save it for the worst of the worst. I don’t see a reason why society should let the Paul Bernardos of the world keep breathing other than for research potential. Their organs are of more benefit to society than their malevolent and destructive life.