Final answer:
Phones in the death chamber are typically connected to facilitate communication with the governor for a last-minute reprieve. This is because the governor has the authority to grant clemency or delay an execution, often in situations where emergency applications are made close to the scheduled execution time.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question pertains to the procedures following the conclusion of legal appeals for death row inmates. When an inmate is in the death chamber, phones are typically connected to allow communication for coordination and potential last-minute interventions. To clarify:
- (a) The inmate's family for a final conversation: It is common practice to allow an inmate some final words with their family, but this does not typically happen via a phone in the death chamber.
- (b) The governor for a last-minute reprieve: Telephones in the death chamber may be connected to high government officials such as governors in case of a last-minute clemency decision or stay of execution.
- (c) The media for live coverage: Media is not provided live coverage via telephone from the death chamber.
- (d) The execution team for coordination: While the execution team needs to communicate, this is not typically done through a phone in the death chamber.
Options (b) and (d) are the most plausible, but the most accurate answer is (b) as it is the governor who might call for a last-minute reprieve, a decision that is often made very close to the scheduled time of execution requiring help with emergencies. This is a dire situation demonstrated in various historical and contemporary situations where individuals on death row seek last-minute interventions to their sentences.