Dead Run: The Untold Story of Dennis Stockton and America's Only Mass Escape from Death Row
- ISBN-10
- 0812932064
- ISBN-13
- 9780812932065
- Series
- Dead Run
- Category
- History (General)
- Pages
- 299
- Language
- English
- Published
- 1999
- Publisher
- Times Books
- Authors
- Joe Jackson, William F. Burke
Description
Summers are always stifling in southern Virginia, and they're even hotter on the Mecklenburg Correctional Center's Death Row when Dennis Stockton arrives there in July 1983. Charged with murder for hire, Stockton insisted he was innocent, but his jury sentenced him to die. In prison, he begins keeping a diary and it soon becomes his lifeline, nurturing dreams of freedom and publication as an author. Mecklenburg's officials had always prided themselves on running a secure prison, but that left them vulnerable to an ingenious escape conspiracy. Though indispensable in the plotting, Stockton decides not to run, betting instead on a new trial and exoneration. The escape of the "Mecklenburg Six" is dazzlingly suspenseful, as they take hostages, don guards' uniforms, and, staging a monumental bluff, make history with America's first mass escape from Death Row. Mean-while, Stockton notes it all in his journal. After the escape, a Norfolk newspaper editor, William F. Burke, Jr., writes to the remaining inmates, seeking information on the unprecedented breakout. Stockton's diary becomes the most revealing account, and when excerpts are published, a scandalous portrait of Death Row emerges: bribed guards, marijuana plants, homebrew alcohol, weapon stashes, unlocked cell doors, and jailhouse sex. Overnight, Stockton becomes the most hated man in Virginia's prisons for his exposé. During the next eleven years, he survives plots against his life and endures subhuman conditions. Throughout his ordeal he struggles to find his voice as a writer, while battling to gain a new trial and escape the "monster factory," his name for Death Row. As Stockton's scheduled execution nears, the case against him begins unraveling, leaving readers to ponder the true nature of justice.
Get the book
Other editions
Similar books
-
Dead Run
By P. J. TracyBut the quiet is deceptive. Before they know it, they witness a horrifying double murder—and discover that this is only the beginning of a race to save their own lives…and countless others.
-
The Dead Run: A Novel
By Adam MansbachWith The Dead Run Adam Mansbach delivers an eerie high-concept thriller, mixing horror, the supernatural, and suspense in a chilling, high-octane read.
-
Dead Run
By Erica Spindler"I'm in trouble, Liz.
-
Dead Run: A Memoir of Escape from Communist Romania to Freedom
By Radu “Rudy” GherghelDead Run is the inspiring story of a child who knew the difference between being controlled and being truly free.
-
Dead Run
By Sean RodmanBicycle racing is Sam's sport, and he wants to win--no matter what it takes. crime, cycling, mystery
-
Dead Run
By Erica Spindler"I'm in trouble, Liz.
-
In the Long Run We Are All Dead: Keynesianism, Political Economy, and Revolution
By Geoff MannA groundbreaking debunking of moderate attempts to resolve financial crises In the ruins of the 2007–2008 financial crisis, self-proclaimed progressives the world over clamored to resurrect the economic theory of John Maynard Keynes.
-
Dead Run
By David R. CrookYour day is ruined when you wake up dead.
-
Run from the Dead: Book 1
By Joanne NundyTogether, they run the nightmare gauntlet that used to be their neighbourhood. Run from the Dead is the first book in a zombie apocalypse series, following ordinary people trying to stay alive no matter what the cost.
-
In the Long Run We're All Dead: The Canadian Turn to Fiscal Restraint
By Timothy LewisIn The Long Run We're All Dead: The Canadian Turn to Fiscal Restraint offers the first comprehensive scholarly account of this vital public policy issue.