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I think your grandfathers story is, shall we say, apocryphal.

You should know that electrocution kills by stopping the heart (or causing fibrillation), and the heart must be kept from beating long enough for the person to die. It only takes a few mA to accomplish this and there is no benefit...no speedup...in using drastically higher voltages or currents.

Some people have been struck (or nearly struck) by lightning and survived. The high voltage stopped their heart but the heart started beating again without intervention.

On the other hand, using higher voltages requires more expensive equipment and presents a greater risk to bystanders.

Please don't interpret anything I have said here as support for capital punishment.