public execution

Public Execution is a Mouse and the Traps retrospective album that has been released in both LP and CD formats. The LP has an unusually large number of tracks (19), while the CD includes 4 bonus tracks and catalogues almost all of the released music by Mouse and the Traps and their associated bands: Mouse, Positively 13 O'Clock and Chris St. John. (The only omitted tracks are on their final Bell Records single, "Knock on My Door" and "Where's the Little Girl").

A public execution is a form of capital punishment in which "members of the general public may voluntarily attend." The standard definition normally excludes the presence of a limited number of "passive citizens" that "witness the event to assure executive accountability." While today the great majority of the world considers public executions to be uncivilized and distasteful and most countries have outlawed the practice, throughout much of history executions were performed publicly as a means for the state to demonstrate "its power before those who fell under its jurisdiction be they criminals, enemies, or political opponents." Additionally, it afforded the public a chance to witness "what was considered a great spectacle."