The firing squad

Blackburn corectional facility was a maximum secuity facility that only housed those on death row. Many of the prisoners were political dissidents. Others were those who made disparaging remarks against the president and his administration. Some made a political coment an old lady disliked. She called the department of public safety and reported it. They were arrested and many were sentenced to death.

In this era, sentences for disent ran the gamut from short sentences to hard labor to death. Sentences for political duscent was at the discretion or whims of the judge. Someone sentenced to death could get a pardon or comutation but the judge could change there mind. The officer who ordered the commutation or pardon could be reversed by another judge or oficial. No action was final.a professor known for political activism got his death sentence commuted and was released. Ten years later, he was rearrested for the crime he was pardoned for. He was excicuted this time.

A favorite method of execution of the president was death by firing squad. Most crimes that warranted the death penalty was punisible by firing squad. The congress streamlined apeals process. Apeals were now at the discretion of the justice department. Most judges were appointed by the president and would not go against him.

A new program began where five death row inmates were chosen at random. They were procesed, lined up and schoot. It became a daily occurrence. Eleven am five inmates chosen at random processed and schoot.

All death row inmates Could be picked. Not just political prisoners but any condemned.

Blackburn only house female inmates. Any women in Blackburn could end up on the busdiness end of a gun.

Anna joy was pacing in her cell. She wore a prison uniform that resembled a potatoe sack. She was barefoot. The uniform was made of course material and was uncomfortable. Some inmates decided to just go naked. She wanted to perserve some if her dignity. They were not alowed underwear.

Anna had been an english literature major. She got good grades. She was on the deens list. She edited the school news paper. She grew up in a poor country area. Her parents bearly eaked out a living. She had beried herself in her studies in high school. She was valedictorian of her high school. She played sports as well.

She got a scholarship with chancellor’s university. It was a network of community colege which had networks thoughout the country.the coleges were a partship between private universities and the federal department of education.

She did well in college. She seemed to have a bright future. Then she messed up. She loved penut butter cookies. She was obsessed with them.she routinely made them in the dorm’s kitchen and let her floor have some.

The president hates anything punut butter. He put a tax on anything with penut butter in it. She thought this was arbitrary and unfair. As it has been said, ‘the power to tax is the power to destroy. ‘ she saw no need to destroy punut buter.

She wrote an editorial for the student newspaper. She wrote a scholarly letter. She came at it from a liberterian perspective. It was thoughtfull and reapectfull. No attacks nothing. It was hardly dissent. She voted for the president in the last election. She was a proud member of the president’s political party. She was a member of the local party executive bored. It was a disagreement on an insugnificant iasue.

The president did not tolerate any disagreement . no dissent, no opposition. You were one hundred percent for him or one hundred against him. There was no middle ground.

When the department of public safty saw the article, they sent it to the juatice department. The attoney general informed the president and he was furious. He ordered her arest at once.

She was taking an exam when the federal police arived. She was wearing a pink blouse and gray skirt and sandles. She was not told what she was being charged with. Het clasmated were shocked. No one was more pro president Michael Ellis washburn then her. She was not very polutical but she adnired the garbege colector turned sate rep turned congressman senator then vice president and president.

There was plenty of evidence that she was guilty. The way the satute was writen she violated the law. Her lawer tried to present evidence that she ment no disrespect. She disagreed with this one issue. The prosecutor argued that discent wrong. It was dangerous. She was found guilty. She bagged for mercy but the judge sentenced her to death.