Austin Sarat

Cognoscenti contributor

Austin Sarat is associate dean of the faculty and William Nelson Cromwell professor of jurisprudence and political science at Amherst College. His publications include "Mercy on Trial: What It Means to Stop an Execution" and "Gruesome Spectacles: Botched Executions and America’s Death Penalty."

Recently published

President Donald Trump, accompanied by Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, left, gestures as he speaks about an infrastructure meeting with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of Calif. and other Democratic leaders during a meeting to support America's farmers and ranchers in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, Thursday, May 23, 2019, in Washington. (Andrew Harnik/AP)

Is America Heading For Another Civil War?

As the 2020 campaign unfolds, writes Austin Sarat, candidates on both sides are offering dire predictions of what will result if the other side wins.

Cognoscenti

Jul 30, 2019

This Oct. 9, 2014, file photo shows the gurney in the the execution chamber at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester, Okla. (Sue Ogrocki/AP)

The Death Penalty And Mercy: Dear Governors, Can You Spare A Pardon?

In the mid-1900s, governors granted clemency to as many as 1 in 5 death-row inmates, writes Austin Sarat. Now, governors rarely extend such mercy.

Cognoscenti

Jul 6, 2017