Abolition does not erase punishment. It replaces the execution chamber with a cell the prisoner will likely never leave. Part III asks whether life without parole is mercy, a hidden death penalty, or simply the only punishment a fallible justice system can morally defend.

A wrongful prison sentence is a tragedy the state can begin to repair. A wrongful execution is one the state has built into the architecture of its own punishment. Part II examines the cost.

The case for the death penalty is at its strongest in the cases hardest to look at. Part I asks what public outrage actually wants, and whether justice and revenge can still be told apart.