Executioner's Current : Thomas Edison, George Westinghouse, and the Invention of the Electric Chair

Tracing the origins and development of the electric chair, a story of industrial and political intrigue describes the battle between Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse for commercial control of electricity, the first use of electricity to execute a criminal, the legal battle that ensued over the punishment, and its long-term implications for the capital punishment debate. Reprint. 12,500 first printing.