Main content
Russell Stetler papers
Notifications
Held at: Haverford College Quaker & Special Collections [Contact Us]370 Lancaster Ave, Haverford, PA 19041
This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Haverford College Quaker & Special Collections. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.
Overview and metadata sections
Russell Stetler was a Haverford student, Class of 1966, who was active in opposing the Vietnam War while on campus. He formed a committee devoted to raising money for medical supplies for the Viet Cong, circulated a petition, and was involved in related activities off of Haverford's campus as well. After graduation, he served as the chief investigator at the California Appellate Project in San Francisco (1990 to 1995), the Director of Investigation and Mitigation at the Capital Defender Office in New York (1995 to 2005), and was the National Mitigation Coordinator for the federal death penalty projects (2005-2020) until his retirement from full-time work.
This collection contains materials related to Russell Stetler's work regarding the death penalty, primarily related to him videotaping Robert Harris' execution in 1992 which was then submitted as evidence for the Fierro v. Gomez case, which outlawed the use of lethal gas in executions. The collection includes legal documents from the Fierro v. Gomez case, doucments about Harris' execution, and articles published in the United States and abroad about the death penalty, the use of lethal gas, the Fierro v. Gomez case, and Harris' execution. Also included are papers related to the execution of Young Elk in 2000, other documents related to death penalty advocacy work, and film.
This collection has been arranged in five series: Fierro v. Gomez, Harris Execution, Articles, Other, and Film. The original folders have been preserved, just rearranged for a more cohesive organization. Within each series, the folders have been placed in alphabetical order and then by date when necessary.
Gift of Russell Stetler, July 2023
Processed by Maggie McCarthy, completed March 2024
Subject
- Publisher
- Haverford College Quaker & Special Collections
- Finding Aid Author
- Maggie McCarthy
- Finding Aid Date
- March, 2024
- Access Restrictions
-
The collection is open for research use
- Use Restrictions
-
Standard Federal Copyright Law Applies (U.S. Title 17)
Collection Inventory
Correspondence between Russell Stetler and Alan Schlosser and John Hasty regarding the witnessing and recordings of executions, a copy of a Memorandum and Order by Judge Marilyn Patel authorizing Russell Stetler to film Robert Harris' execution, and articles about Marilyn Patel's 1994 ruling which banned the use of lethal gas in California.
Copy of Fierro v. Gomez Defendants' Proposed Findings of Fact, an article about the death penalty, a diagram of court proceedings, the San Quentin gas chamber, an article about the use of lethal gas, a list of execution methods in different states, a copy of the Santa Clara Law Review Vol. 32 No. 4, summary of Houchins v. KQED, INC, and an article about the psychological effects of witnessing an execution.
Includes a copy of Judge Marilyn Patel's opinion in the Fierro vs. Gomez case which ruled execution by lethal gas violated the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution, two copies of an opinion in the appeal Fierro vs. Gomez case which affirms Judge Marilyn Patel's verdict, and the cover and title page of a binder of exhibits 1-13 presented in the Fierro v. Harris case.
A binder of exhibits 1-13 presented in the Fierro v. Harris case in California. Exhibits 1-6 are declarations from physicians or scientists taken in April 1992. All six state that execution by cyanide gas used at San Quentin Prison is a painful and needlessly cruel procedure. Exhibits 7-13 are documents related to San Quentin Gas Chamber Operations. This includes the Lethal Gas Chamber Execution Records from the San Quentin Prison from 1946-1967, operation instructions for the gas chamber, the San Quentin State Prison Hospital Staff Meeting Minutes from June 14, 1950 which discuss the legal execution of Huizenga, the unexpected death of Hronis, and the procedure and executions, a page from the Department of Corrections Administrative Manual regarding Medical Services after death, a Department Issue Memo regarding the possible relocation of the gas chamber and alternative execution methods, a memo regarding the costs of the gas chamber, and a copy of the Report of Inspection of the Lethal Gas Chamber at the San Quentin Prison which recommended repairs and maintenance. A table of contents is present at the front of the volume.
A binder of exhibits 14-50 presented in the Fierro v. Harris case in California. The majority of exhibits are declarations, written in 1992, of witnesses to executions by cyanide gas from 1947 to 1992 in California, Mississippi, Arizona, Nevada, and North Carolina, including a declaration from a former guard at the San Quentin Prison. Also included is a declaration from Patrick Croy, a former death row inmate at San Quentin, a declaration from Robert Davis, who while a State Senator, authored an amendment the proposed the discontinuation of lethal gas, a declaration from Assistant Coroner Kenneth Holmes stating that there are no autopsy records from those executed at San Quentin, a declaration from Richard Mermin, a resident of San Quentin, advocating for the discontinuation of lethal gas, a declaration from Arizona House Member Ruben Ortega supporting a resolution discontinuing execution by lethal gas, two copies of Howard Brodie's testimony during the trial People v. Bobby Joe Maxwell which discusses his witnessing of executions by lethal gas, a transcript of a news report of the execution of Donald Eugene Harding, and an article from the San Francisco Chronicle titled "Gas Chamber Assailed as Inhumane Method." A table of contents is present at the front of the volume.
A binder of exhibits 51-60 presented in the Fierro v. Harris case in California. These exhibits are documents related to the use of cyanide gas in the Holocaust. Included are declarations and transcripts of interviews from Holocaust survivors Paul Benko, Gloria Lyon, and John Steiner, a declaration from Lani Silver stating that the interviews from the Holocaust survivors were part of the Holocaust Oral History Project, testimony from Rudolf Hoess, a Nazi commander who witnessed execution by lethal gas in concentration camps (photocopied pages from the Autobiography of Rudolf Hoess, and the transcript of Rudolf Hoess' testimony in the International Military Tribunal: Nuremberg, and "Transcript of Pretrial Interrogation of SS Rudolf Hoess" from The Holocaust: Selected Documents), articles related to the use of lethal gas ("Directives for the Use of Prussic Acid (Zyklon) for the Destruction of Vermin (Disinfestation)" from The Holocaust: Selected Documents, article "Zyklon B" from Encyclopedia of the Holocaust, and essay "A Brief Account of Zyklon B" by James C. Warf), and documents related to gas chambers at concentration camps (photocopied pages of "Gas Chambers" from Encyclopedia of the Holocaust, "Origins of the Killing Centers" from Destruction of European Jews, "Gas Chambers" from Encyclopedia of the Third Reich, pages of "The Labor/Extermination Camps" from Hitler's Death Camps: The Story of Madness, and The Leuchter Report: The End of a Myth). A table of contents is present at the front of the volume.
A binder of exhibits 61-90 presented in the Fierro v. Harris case in California. Exhibit 61 is related to public opinion towards the death penalty and methods of execution consisting of an Arizona Republic Poll from 1992, Arizona KAET Poll from 1992, Colorado Talmey Research and Strategy Poll from 1988, and three Gallup Polls from 1953, 1985, and 1991. Exhibits 62-69 covers the legislative history of methods of execution in Arizona (1992 House Bills 2055 and 2002 advocating for discontinuing lethal gas in favor of lethal injection), California (1937 adoption of lethal gas), Mississippi (1984 Senate Bill 2185 advocating for discontinuing lethal gas in favor of lethal injection), Missouri (1987 House Bill 928 and 1988 House Bills 1340 and 1348 which advocated for the choice between lethal gas or lethal injection), New Mexico (1979 adoption of lethal injections), North Carolina (1983 adoption of lethal gas or lethal injections and abolishment of the electric chair), Oregon (constitutionality of the 1985 law), and Wyoming (1984 House Bill 1075 calling for the discontinuing lethal gas in favor of lethal injection and the staying of the execution of Roy Lee Engberg in 1987). Exhibits 70-90 are publications about the use of hydrogen cyanide gas in executions, primarily from medical and law journals and books. A table of contents is present at the front of the volume.
A binder of exhibits 91-100 presented in the Fierro v. Harris case in California. Exhibits 91-95 are newspaper articles about specific uses of the death penalty 1938 to 1992. The majority were published by the Los Angeles Times or by other papers in California. Exhibit 96 consists of articles published between 1937 and 1992 about the death penalty and methods of execution. Exhibit 97 is a declaration from Carl Behrens, a veteran and law enforcement officer, about his witnessing of the execution of Pat McGee. Exhibit Exhibit 98 is a declaration from John Friedberg, a neurologist, about the effects of lethal gas on the body. Exhibits 99 and 100 are missing. A table of contents is present at the front of the volume.
Copy of Judge Marilyn Patel's opinion in the Fierro vs. Gomez case which ruled execution by lethal gas violated the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution.
Copy of the Plaintiffs' Proposed Findings of Fact in the Fierro vs. Gomez case.
A binder of materials related to Robert Harris' case including newspaper and magazine articles, a summary of public opinion, a draft of questions and answers for Leon Harris, copies of a declaration of Leon Harris (some with handwritten corrections), handwritten notes, and copies of a declaration of Randall Harris.
A binder of materials related to Robert Harris' case including multiple copies of declarations of Michael A. Kroll, Karen Schryver, and Russell Stetler about witnessing Robert Harris' execution, a draft of an article written by Kroll about the execution, handwritten notes, photocopies of articles written about Harris' execution.
Includes declarations from Karen Schryver, Craig Haney, Russell Stetler, Michael Kroll, Randall Harris, and Leon Harris about witnessing the execution of Robert Harris
This folder includes a draft of a declaration with handwritten corrections of Russell Stetler about his witnessing of the execution of Robert Alton Harris by lethal gas in 1992, four pages of handwritten notes about the executions, an evidence receipt for the videotape of the execution, and description of PTSD and its uses in court.
This folder includes an unlabeled cassette tape, a copy of a sketch of Robert Harris' execution, an invoice for the purchase of the sketch, a business card for Joan Lynch, the artist, a page from the San Francisco Chronicle with an article about the destruction of the videotape of the Harris execution, a photocopy of an article about the videotape of the Harris execution, a diagram of the lethal gas chamber in San Quentin State Prison, a program for the memorial service for Bryan Shechmeister, the New York Times Week in Review which included articles about the death penalty, photos of the gas chamber, a flyer from CiPA Graphics, and work order forms from Creative Communications.
Includes a declaration of Russell Stetler about witnessing Robert Harris' execution, handwritten notes, photographs of notes, photo slides of the gas chamber, a list of the expected reactions to cyanide exposure, and an evidence receipt of the submission of the tape of Robert Harris' execution.
This folder includes a copy of a declaration of Russell Stetler about his witnessing of the execution of Robert Alton Harris by lethal gas in 1992, an evidence receipt for the videotape of the execution, profiles of US District Court for Northern California Judge Marilyn H. Patel and 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals Judges Stephen R. Reinhardt, Harry Pregerson, and John T. Noonan Jr. (all judges were involved in Robert Harris' execution litigations), and pages of handwritten notes.
Includes a magazine titled "Perfect Murder" produced by Cheap Art and published in conjunction with Camerawork. It addresses murder committed by unassuming white men, the murder of and mass burial of Black Americans and Native Americas, the taking of human trophies by U.S. soldiers, serial killers like Jeffer Dahmer, and abortion. Also included is an November 17, 1992 article by David Bonetti from the San Francisco Examiner titled "When Murder, photography meet" that covers a Camerawork exhibit called "Murder as Phenomena." Copy of Camerawork: A Journal of Photographic Arts vol. 19 no. 2 which includes a detailed description of the exhibit "Murder as Phenomena."
Includes photocopies of newspaper articles about the videotaping of Robert Harris' execution.
Includes articles, photocopies and originals, from foreign papers, primarily from Britain, about the execution of Robert Harris and the ethics of the death penalty.
This folder includes newspaper articles published in California about the execution of Robert Harris, execution by lethal gas, and execution by lethal injection. The majority discuss the debate about the ethics of lethal gas.
A binder of media eyewitness accounts of Robert Harris' execution, sorted alphabetically, with the exception of the photocopies originally found in the front pocket.
Includes newspaper articles, photocopies and originals, about the ethics of the death penalty and the use of lethal gas.
Includes newspaper articles, photocopies and originals, about the ethics of the death penalty and the use of lethal gas.
Includes photocopies of newspaper articles about the ethics of the death penalty and the use of lethal gas, especially regarding the execution of Robert Harris.
Copies of publications written about the Fierro v. Gomez case, the Harris case, and the death penalty. The majority were published in law journals.
A program that accompanied the art installation "(Ain't) Natural History" by Leslie Ernst, Cathy Greenblatt, and Susan McWhitney. The installation addressed the undocumented history of female murderers and misogynistic myths of existing narratives.
Includes a book review of An Argument About Abortion, Euthanasia, and Individual Freedom, a program for a declaration of life ceremony, photocopy of Reflections on the Guillotine and handwritten notes about it, copy of the Civil Rights Exhibits in Support of Reply to Defendants' Opposition (includes exhibits 2 and 3: declarations of Michael Laurence, media accounts of Robert Harris' execution, and polls favoring lethal injection over lethal gas), a letter from Molly Coye from Howard Kornfeld, handwritten notes, photocopies of newspaper articles, programs from the memorial of Robert Harris, proposal for the Harris Oral History Project, reports from the San Quentin prison about Robert Harris before his execution, a copy of the San Quentin Industrial Procedure No. 796 regarding the lethal gas chamber, lyrics to the Bob Dylan song "I Shall Be Released," and a flier for an anti-death penalty demonstration.
A series of undated photographs of the San Quentin State Prison and the original film and a copy of the French book, Les Crematories D'Auschwitz: La Machinerie du Meurtre de Masse by Jean-Claude Pressac.
Copy of the opinion by Judge Fisher for the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals case California First Amendment Coalition v. James Woodford; Arthur Calderon; James Gomez about which stages of executions witnesses are allowed to be present for.
A transcription of the gallery text panels from the exhibit "Police Pictures: The Photographs as Evidence" that was organized by the San Francisco Museum of Art and on display from October 17, 1997- January 20, 1998. The the text panels were titled "Race, Heredity, and the Criminal," "American Outlaws," "Political and Social Outcasts," "Mug Shots and Evidence," "Social Perspectives on the Criminal," "Criminal Files," and "Surveillance and Identity."
This folder includes multiple copies of a list of executions by lethal gas in San Quentin between 1940 and 1993. Each copy is either sorted by date, alphabetically by name, time to apparent unconsciousness, time to certain unconsciousness, time until death, and minimum time of conscious pain.
This folder includes a copy of the redacted version of the San Quentin Industrial Procedure No. 796 regarding the lethal gas chamber. It was originally written in 1984 and revised in 1992.
Includes an essay by James Thompson about the life and execution of Young Elk, emails with press releases about the death of Young Elk and the denial of his last rites, and a copy of an emergency motion filed to allow Young Elk to receive his last rites.
Videocassette tapes titled "Gas Chamber/Death Row" by CDC Communications and "Robert Harris Clemency Video for Gov. Wilson" by the California Appellate Project.
Videocassette tape titled "Gas Chamber/Death Row" by CDC Communications and a copy of the 1995 documentary by Jaap Van Hoewijk, Procedure 769: The Witness to the Execution of Robert Allen Harris.