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For over thirty years, Watt Espy assembled true crime, penitentiary, detective, western U.S. life and culture, and legal publications containing articles about capital crimes, executions, and criminal profiles. The publications date from the 1930s into the 21st Century. While some present straightforward non-fiction explanations of crimes, others feature more sensational accounts with lurid depictions. Of interest are 30 issues of the award-winning , a newsmagazine written by prisoners at the Louisiana State Penitentiary. This series also includes more than a half dozen Death Row annuals, featuring profiles and photographs of condemned prisoners, and a set of serial killer, mass murderer and gangster trading cards. Please note that Espy personally bound the publications in boxes 88-90, but did not include all issues for each year in the bound volume. Therefore some publications have both bound and unbound issues.