Inside Indiana State Prison's Death Row

Summary

Step inside Indiana's oldest maximum-security prison, where 12 men currently face execution and over 1900 inmates serve long sentences. The prison superintendent regularly checks on death row inmates, who must secure themselves in their cells when officers are not present. Some inmates like Ronald L. Sanford, convicted of a double homicide at 13, have spent decades reflecting on their crimes. Others, like Paul McManus, struggle with the emotional toll of death row, experiencing significant weight loss due to depression. Inmates in administrative segregation are locked down for 23 hours a day, with limited individual recreation. Prison life offers routine, with some inmates working jobs like barbers, as seen with Rick Parish, who has been incarcerated for 37 years. Friendships form even on death row, like between John Stevenson and Benjamin Ritchie, who bonded over shared interests. Benjamin Ritchie recounted shooting and killing a police officer during a car theft, admitting he deserved the death penalty at the time. James Harrison, who spent 18 and a half years on death row before his sentence was commuted to 150 years, finds solace in the hope that death row removes.