About this episode
In 1982, Sister Helen Prejean was invited to write a letter to a man on death row named Elmo Patrick Sonnier. She told us, “I thought that all I was going to be doing was writing letters. And lo and behold, two years later, I am in that execution chamber.” When we spoke to her in 2021, she was 81, and had been present at the executions of six men. Sister Helen’s book, Dead Man Walking , is about her time as a spiritual advisor to Elmo Patrick Sonnier and Robert Lee Willie. This episode was originally released in 2021. Say hello on Facebook , Instagram and TikTok . Sign up for our occasional newsletter . Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts . Sign up for Criminal Plus to get behind-the-scenes bonus episodes of Criminal , ad-free listening of all of our shows, invitations to virtual events, special merch deals, and more. We also make This is Love and Phoebe Reads a Mystery . Artwork by Julienne Alexander . Check out our online shop . Episode transcripts are posted on our website . Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices