A notable change in one Texan's life and death advocacy

A helpful reader passed along this very interesting Chicago Times piece, headlined "Voice of death testifies for life Ex-spokesman on execution aids defense."  Her is how the piece begins:

For eight years and 219 executions, Larry Fitzgerald was the face of the nation's busiest execution chamber, a man who watched as men and women were put to death and then, often in the face of tough questions and controversy, explained what had happened.

Now he is on the other side.  Retired from the Texas prison system, where he was chief spokesman based at the death chamber in Huntsville, Fitzgerald helps death penalty attorneys trying to keep their clients alive by testifying about life in the state prison system.

Fitzgerald's turnabout does not mean he is a capital punishment foe; indeed, he favors the death penalty in some cases.  Yet his new role has prompted criticism from some, including a former warden who called him a traitor.