Primary documents and analysis presented here shed light on the history of the Supreme Court's involvement in the death penalty and the impact of Supreme Court decisions on legislators, judges, prosecutors, and attorneys. Primary source documents examined include Court opinions, editorials, early newspaper accounts, amicus briefs, governors' statements, and state legislation. Material is arranged chronologically in five chapters on periods from 1789 to 2009, with emphasis on the 20th century. Parrish teaches history at the University of California-San Diego. Annotation ©2010 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)