Get Your Free Audiobook

  • The Execution of Willie Francis

  • Race, Murder, and the Search for Justice in the American South
  • Written by: Gilbert King
  • Narrated by: Korey Jackson
  • Length: 11 hrs and 21 mins

Prime logo New to Audible Prime Member exclusive:
2 credits with free trial
1 credit a month to use on any title to download and keep
Listen to anything from the Plus Catalogue—thousands of Audible Originals, podcasts and audiobooks
Download titles to your library and listen offline
₹199 per month after 30-day trial. Cancel anytime.
The Execution of Willie Francis cover art

The Execution of Willie Francis

Written by: Gilbert King
Narrated by: Korey Jackson
Free with 30-day trial

₹199 per month after 30-day trial. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for ₹836.00

Buy Now for ₹836.00

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice.

Publisher's Summary

On May 3, 1946, in St. Martinsville, Louisiana, a 17-year-old Black boy was scheduled for execution by electric chair. Willie Francis had been charged with murder; his trial had been brief; his death sentence never in doubt. When the executioners flipped the switch, Willie screamed and writhed as electricity coursed through his body. But Willie Francis did not die. Having miraculously survived, Willie was informed that the state would attempt to execute him a second time within a week. The ensuing legal battle went all the way to the Supreme Court, asking: Could the state electrocute someone twice?

A gripping narrative about a brutal crime and its shocking aftermath, The Execution of Willie Francis offers a heroic—and ultimately tragic—tale of one man's quest for moral justice in a nation still blinded by race.

©2008 Gilbert King (P)2023 Audible, Inc.

What listeners say about The Execution of Willie Francis

Average Customer Ratings

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.