She visited Sonnier in prison and agreed to be his spiritual adviser in the months leading up to his execution in the electric chair.

Prejean gained insight into the minds of the convicted murderers, the process involved in executions, and the effects on the prison guards and other personnel.

They were held on what was known as death row and were deprived of most social contact and barred from work or participation in prison programs.

The origin of the phrase is unknown, although it may come from the title of an 1890 poem by Thomas Hardy about a person who turns into a corpse even when apparently alive.

Alternatively, the call may have been a stigma attached to the condemned man, to remind others within earshot not to touch him to avoid catching his bad luck.