On this gripping edition of Parallax Views, host J.G. Michael speaks with legal scholar Corinna Barrett Lain about her searing new book, Secrets of the Killing State: The Untold Story of Lethal Injection. Far from being a clean or clinical method of execution, Lain exposes lethal injection as the centerpiece of a scandalous history—rife with fake science, unqualified personnel, botched procedures, and layers of state secrecy designed to shield the public from the brutal reality of how America kills in the name of justice.

Lain pulls back the curtain on how this supposedly "humane" method evolved not through medical rigor, but through politics, improvisation, and obfuscation. We discuss how states have covered up grotesque failures, how governments have been swindled by shady operators like Harris Pharma, and the staggering cost to U.S. taxpayers. From inept and corrupt executioners gone rogue to a jaw-dropping story involving literal drug smuggling, Lain’s investigation blows the lid off the dark underbelly of America’s execution machinery, exposing a system held together by misinformation, malpractice, and a stunning lack of oversight.

This is an essential episode for anyone concerned with state power, the criminal justice system, and what happens when the machinery of death is hidden behind a veil of bureaucracy.