Long before the phrase “Ol’ Sparky” became part of pop culture, the very first execution by electric chair took place at ...

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In early August 1881, Lemuel W. Smith, 30, got drunk and made the bad decision to grab two metal strips on the generator that powered the lights of Buffalo, N.Y., known at the time as the “Electric ...

RICHMOND, Va. (WAVY) — On Friday, Governor Ralph Northam announced that several items used to execute people in Virginia were being transferred to the Virginia Museum of History and Culture in ...

On this day, May 4, in 1990, Jesse Tafero was executed in Florida after his electric chair malfunctioned, causing flames to leap from his head. Tafero’s death sparked a debate on humane methods of ...