Joe Arridy Jim and Kate



Robert Alton Harris was the first man to be executed in California after the U.S. Supreme Court cranked up death penalties again in 1976. Mr. Harris had all the effects of a terrible disability now known as fetal alcohol syndrome. No mention was made of his disabilities during his earlier trials and appeals. I don’t know when this photo was taken. It was dark and I was standing outside of San Quentin after his execution on April 21, 1992. When it appeared on the cover of this magazine, a colleague recognized me, bought a copy and sent it to me. (See pre-execution pages on Mr. Harris in Unequal Justice, pp. 97-99.