From public hangings in the town square to lethal injections witnessed by journalists, executions historically have mostly been carried out with at least some public scrutiny. That will not be the case in Indiana early Wednesday, when Joseph Corcoran is set to be put to death by lethal injection without any independent witnesses present.
The unusual secrecy is the result of state laws shielding information about the death penalty, and some First Amendment advocates and death penalty experts say the lack of transparency during the gravest of government punishments is alarming.
