Killing McVeigh: The Death Penalty and the Myth of Closure
On April 19, 1995, Timothy McVeigh detonated a two-ton truck bomb that felled the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, killing 168 people. On June 11, 2001, an unprecedented 242 witnesses watched him die by lethal injection. In the aftermath of the bombings, American public commentary almost immediately turned to “closure” rhetoric. Reporters and audiences alike speculated about whether victim’s family members and survivors could get closure from memorial services, funerals, legislation, monuments, trials, and executions.  But what does “closure” really mean for those who survive—or lose loved ones in—traumatic acts? In the wake of such terrifying events, is closure a realistic or appropriate expectation?  In Killing McVeigh, Jody Lyneé Madeira uses the Oklahoma City bombing as a case study to explore how family members and other survivors come to terms with mass murder. As the fullest case study to date of the Oklahoma City Bombing survivors’ struggle for justice and the first-ever case study of closure, this book describes the profound human and institutional impacts of these labors to demonstrate the importance of understanding what closure really is before naively asserting it can or has been reached.
1110780885
Killing McVeigh: The Death Penalty and the Myth of Closure
On April 19, 1995, Timothy McVeigh detonated a two-ton truck bomb that felled the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, killing 168 people. On June 11, 2001, an unprecedented 242 witnesses watched him die by lethal injection. In the aftermath of the bombings, American public commentary almost immediately turned to “closure” rhetoric. Reporters and audiences alike speculated about whether victim’s family members and survivors could get closure from memorial services, funerals, legislation, monuments, trials, and executions.  But what does “closure” really mean for those who survive—or lose loved ones in—traumatic acts? In the wake of such terrifying events, is closure a realistic or appropriate expectation?  In Killing McVeigh, Jody Lyneé Madeira uses the Oklahoma City bombing as a case study to explore how family members and other survivors come to terms with mass murder. As the fullest case study to date of the Oklahoma City Bombing survivors’ struggle for justice and the first-ever case study of closure, this book describes the profound human and institutional impacts of these labors to demonstrate the importance of understanding what closure really is before naively asserting it can or has been reached.
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Killing McVeigh: The Death Penalty and the Myth of Closure

Killing McVeigh: The Death Penalty and the Myth of Closure

by Jody Lyneé Madeira
Killing McVeigh: The Death Penalty and the Myth of Closure

Killing McVeigh: The Death Penalty and the Myth of Closure

by Jody Lyneé Madeira

eBook

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Overview

On April 19, 1995, Timothy McVeigh detonated a two-ton truck bomb that felled the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, killing 168 people. On June 11, 2001, an unprecedented 242 witnesses watched him die by lethal injection. In the aftermath of the bombings, American public commentary almost immediately turned to “closure” rhetoric. Reporters and audiences alike speculated about whether victim’s family members and survivors could get closure from memorial services, funerals, legislation, monuments, trials, and executions.  But what does “closure” really mean for those who survive—or lose loved ones in—traumatic acts? In the wake of such terrifying events, is closure a realistic or appropriate expectation?  In Killing McVeigh, Jody Lyneé Madeira uses the Oklahoma City bombing as a case study to explore how family members and other survivors come to terms with mass murder. As the fullest case study to date of the Oklahoma City Bombing survivors’ struggle for justice and the first-ever case study of closure, this book describes the profound human and institutional impacts of these labors to demonstrate the importance of understanding what closure really is before naively asserting it can or has been reached.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780814724552
Publisher: New York University Press
Publication date: 06/11/2012
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Pages: 336
File size: 3 MB

About the Author

Jody Lyneé Madeira is Associate Professor at Indiana University Maurer School of Law. 

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

The Oklahoma City Bombing: A Time Line

Preface 

Part I: Blood Relations

1 “A Rude Awakening”:

The Origins of the Victim-Offender Relationship 

2 “He Broke into My Life”:

Experiencing the Victim-Offender Relationship

3 Opening Up “Closure”: Redefining a Controversial Term

Part II: Traumas and Trials

4 “We Come Here to Remember”: Joining Advocacy Groups

5 “God Bless the Media”: Negotiating News Coverage

6 “Making Sure Justice Was Served”: Pursuing Accountability 

Part III: The Road to Execution

7 Emotion on Trial: Prosecuting Timothy McVeigh 

8 Reaching Law’s Limits: Trying Terry Nichols

and Welcoming the McVeigh Jury to Oklahoma City 

9 The Storm before the Calm: Awaiting McVeigh’s Execution

10 The Weight of an Impossible World:

McVeigh Confronts His Public Image 

vi | Contents

11 Done to Death: The Execution and the End

of the Victim-Offender Relationship

Conclusion: McVeigh Memorialized 

Appendix: Methodology

Notes

Index 

About the Author

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