At 10.00 a.m. on 2nd May 1960 United States district judge Louis Goodman agreed to a stay of execution in the case of Caryl Chessman, convicted killer, due to be executed in a few moments’ time. The judge instructed his secretary to telephone San Quentin prison to halt the execution – she got the wrong number. This was the ninth time that a stay of execution had been granted. Great Crimes & Trials: Caryl Chessman
He had a long record of petty crime. ibid.
He had neither murdered nor fully raped anyone. ibid.
An international petition was set up and signed by more than two million people. ibid.
I don’t know if I actually had hope. Caryl Chessman, executed after nine appeals on death row
I don’t feel that there is anything equitable or fair or sensible or socially valid about capital punishment. Caryl Chessman, executed after nine appeals and twelve years on death row, news conference before death
He had no barrister to represent him ... This was probably his last view of daylight. He was hanged for his crime. John Smith was a boy of just fifteen. The Strange Case of the Law III: The Story of English Justice: Presumed Innocent BBC 2012
A rather crude and biased legal process was remoulded to give us what we have today – the fair trial. ibid.
More than 200 offences were punishable by death. ibid.
William Garrow, the son of a Scottish schoolmaster, Garrow was called to the bar in 1783 ... His lasting impact came from the time he spent at the Old Bailey. ibid.
Garrow was famed for his aggressive style of cross-examination. ibid.
Innocent until proven guilty ... a hallowed concept. ibid.
Thomas Hardy and two other members of the London Corresponding Society were to stand trial for High Treason ... The government had another 800 arrested warrants waiting to be executed. ibid.
The adversarial trial was perhaps England’s best and most benevolent export. ibid.
Forging a banknote was a capital crime ... The Forgery Act: 120 statutes were transformed into one. ibid.
With consummate skill Robert Peel did more to reform the criminal justice system than almost any other Home Secretary. ibid.
Governments relied on the Riot Act. ibid.
Sir Edward Marshall Hall whose career spanned the late Victorian and Edwardian eras. It is thought he may have helped more people to escape the noose than any other barrister. ibid.
This new court showed that English law was strong enough to acknowledge and deal with its mistakes. ibid.
The common law currently faces a serious challenge ... Judges once the creators of the law have largely had the role taken from them by parliament. ibid.
Since the 1970s government seem to have become increasingly addicted to enacting new laws ... I call it legislative diarrhoea. ibid.
Round the other bar if you want a drink. Now look, man. Don’t push it. Round, do you mind? Out. The Wednesday Play: 3 Clear Sundays by James O’Connor, director Ken Loach, landlord’s colour bar, BBC 1965
Ain’t done nuffink? You’ve knocked out the wickedest copper on the manor! ibid.
Religion? You’ve got to have a religion. ibid. screw to black man
And the biggest crime you can commit is getting caught. ibid. Ma to boys
I’m sorry to say now that you witnessed a murder. ibid. Governor to two framer inmates
A proper mug is our Danny … Now he’s up on a murder charge. ibid. Ma
I’m heading to Shrewsbury prison in Shropshire … When Shrewsbury prison opened in 1793 it was the main execution site in the west of England. Britain Behind Bars: A Secret History II
It never leaves you, that moment when you go down to the cells. ibid.
In the early 19th century over 200 crimes were punishable by death. ibid.
More than 160,000 convicts were sent to Australia. ibid.
Victorian reformers successfully campaigned to cut the number of capital crimes from over 200 to just 5. ibid.
‘I didn’t kill them, I executed them. Well somebody had to do it, didn’t they.’ ibid. Albert Pierrepoint