"The Blood of Innocents"

Published in Time, May 1, 1995

"The sobs from inside the rubble told rescue workers instantly that children were still in the building, still alive. They plunged into the debris, turning over cribs and furniture, hoping to find signs of life, catching their breath at the sight of babies burned beyond recognition."

On April 19, 1995, a rented truck filled with explosives was detonated outside the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, shredding the front of the building and exposing its interior. The blast killed 168 people, including 19 children who attended a day-care center in the building.

Timothy McVeigh, a U.S. Army veteran of the Persian Gulf War (1990–91), eventually admitted to having planted the truck bomb. He was convicted and sentenced to death. Before his execution in 2001, McVeigh said he had planted the bomb to...