Death Row Destiny

The years leading up to the passing of the Brooke-Strickland Act were filled with mass overpopulation, societal decay, and violent crime. In 2046, the year before the Act mandated the death sentence for even the smallest crime, the homicide rate in 7/10 major cities in the former United States was at record highs.

A little known add-on to the Act also extended the death penalty to minors. This would soon arouse extreme controversy when it would be utilized to hang a gang of street children accused of raping the daughter of a wealthy executive.

"Alright Merle, what do you have for us today?", Charlie yelled.
Charlie was the executioner that day. I was the photographer in charge of documenting this historic event. The first time anyone under the age of 18 had been put to death in almost a century.

"Just some street rats, Chuck!" the guard answered with a chuckle.
Charlie handed Merle a sheaf of paperwork. He turned to the prisoners, and winked. The kids didn't react, their senses having been dulled beforehand with a tranquilizer solution added to their last meal.

There were 5 of them.
Tom, age 13, a slender, almost feminine boy with long blonde hair tied into a pony tail.
Sara, age 16, a latina short stack with a glare permanently plastered on her face.
Luca, age 15, a string bean with curly brown hair and freckles.
Mika, age 12, the youngest in the group, tan skin contrasting with an explosion of pink hair cut short on her head.
Nate, age 17, sharp eyes and a buzzcut, biceps and legs toned from daily hard labor.
All were wearing the disposable jumpsuits given to death row inmates. They stood listlessly as Merle scribbled on the sheet of paper authorizing the transfer of the prisoners to the executioner.

"Alright, that's it then", Charlie said as Merle gave back the forms.
"Let's go, guys". He yanked on the chain, and the doomed children slowly shuffled forward to the execution chamber. The chamber was simply a large featureless room with a digital clock, and a series of drains embedded into the floor. Several HD cameras tracked the prisoners as they walked in. A specific request from the father of the raped girl, the execution would be streamed live to the world.

The prisoners stopped, their eyes wandering up to the gallows. Five nooses attached to a solid steel pipe attached to the ceiling. The trap doors each had an X painted on them, where the prisoners would stand. A standard long drop would snap their necks, ensuring a quick death.
Charlie prodded them forward, and they slowly ascended up the steps.
Each kid stepped in front of a noose, and Charlie began to slip a noose over each head, tightening them as he went.

The tranquilizer had begun to wear off by then, and the kids were slowly realizing that the rest of their lives were measured in minutes. Mika began to cry, and Luca started trembling. Sara just uttered a string of Spanish and English profanities as the noose around her neck was tightened, and Nate just bowed his head and whispered prayers. Tom desperately pleaded with Charlie, but the executioner had heard it all before.

"Alright, all done". Charlie turned to me and asked if I wanted to take one final set of portraits of the convicts. I nodded, and walked up the stairs. Each prisoner had a different expression as I took their photographs. Luca averted his eyes, Mika had finished crying and just faced the camera with a blank face, Tom had tears in his eyes but tried to present a brave face, Sara stuck her tongue out at me in one final act of childish rebellion, and Nate smiled sadly.

I finished, and walked back down the stairs to rejoin Charlie. He had taken a remote control from his pocket, and scrutinized the clock. "Five, four, three, two-"
all of the kids had closed their eyes tight by now "-one!"

Charlie pressed the button on the remote. The trap doors clattered open, sending five children to their demise. Five corpses twisted and swung, twitching spasmodically as their nervous system shut down.

Two guards walked in to assist in taking down the bodies. I photographed each corpse, marvelling at the grotesque contortions frozen on their faces. I asked Charlie what would happen to the bodies. "Well, no next of kin, so we usually just send them to the medical school next door for autopsy practice", he answered absentmindedly as he checked off the names on his list.