Роде
Twenty
Т Н Е
S
Т А Т Е
June
29, 1935
How We’ve Killed Them Off
AFTER July I. it . ill no
/Д
longer bo pouiUl
m>
Ж
for .1 |ier*on con¬
victed of capital crime in
North Carolina to *ay. a»
"T
FIRST off, we used to hnnfl our
criminals or burn them at the stake.
Then came hanging's exclusively,
which were followed by the electric
chair — and after July 1. we’re go¬
ing to gas them to death.
one negro did, that “Thi*
’lectrocushion* ‘boro gwine
teach me a lesson," for be¬
ginning with that date,
capital punishment i* to l>o inflicted by
meant of lethal gate.
Thu evident indication of progrox in
the state’» history of capital puni*hment
recall*
«ото
interciting fact! concern¬
ing previous methods of imposing the
death penalty ami alio tome significant
and interesting figures of the twenty-
five year» of the electric chair.
Old English Customs
Capital punishment had its beginning
in North Carolina with the first
Colonist», who brought with them the
criminal law practiced in England at
that time, which . for the most part,
was extremely horrible and gruesome.
Methods of punishing by «lentil in the
early history of the colony were almost
as numerous as the capital crimes. When
we recall that there were more than
twenty of these, punishable by such
method, ns hanging, burning at the
stake and other horrible methods, and
that today there arc only four capital
crime*, we realize how far we have
eoine in the humane treatment of our
criminals.
Some of the crime* pun Uhablc by
«loath before the State Constitution
limited them to four, (murder, arson,
rape and first degree burglary),
чего
highway robbery, Mealing slave*, fight¬
ing a duel in which one of the parties
wa« killed, bigamy, (unless the first
mate was living unknown in distant
parts or had been absent for seven years
aero*» the sea) counterfeiting, hone-
Mealing, etc.
Some of the*e crimes gave the
privilege of benefit of clergy, which
meant that clergymen were exempt
from the penalty of/ death. Later, all
those who were connected in any way
with the church and those who could
read were also exempt.
Last Legal Hanging
The last legal hanging in North Caro-
lina took place on March 11, 1910. The
following description of it appeared in
the Raleigh iVcw* and Observer:
п
I, M.AJEI. IVEY SEAY
“The last legal hangin-; in the Old
North State took place at Elizabethtown
at high noon today when Henry Spivey,
colored, paid the death penalty for the
murder of his father-in-law, Frank
Shaw, near Abbott-burg. tbit county, in
the fall of 1909.
“Spivey was tried and convicted at
the March term of court 1909, and
sentenced to be hanged on March 1 1, fol¬
lowing. He had lien respited by the
Governor twice an«l had high hope* of
further respite, if not reprive to life
imprisonment. At his trial, he had the
service of nine attorneys and they have
worked diligently to save his neck.
“Judge Adams who tried the ease re¬
fused to sign n petition for life im-
prUonment, so did Solicitor Sinclair,
and only two of the trial jury would sign
for reprieve.
"Sheriff Clark has had hi* prisoner
guarded closely «lay and night, knowing
the character of the man. lie had trie!
to escape from the jail here after his
conviction and was taken to the State
Penitentiary for safe-keeping and gave
the officers of that institution lots of
trouble.
“The gallows today was enclosed by
a high board fence and an enclosure
about it was roped off. Spivey seemed
brave and walked to the gallows, but
ju*t as the black cap wa* being adjusted
he began to sink and with quick prncnco
of mind Sheriff Clark pulled the lever.
It wn* ten minute* before the attending
phyiieinn pronounced the doomed man
dead.
“Although Spivey had considerable
property nt the time of hi* arrest and
bad handled thousand* of dollars as a
gambler, at which busincs* he was an
expert, his body wa* buried by the
county authorities, at the county poor
farm, his wife refusing to have any¬
thing to do with it.
“The crowd di*per*od in an orderly
manner. No trouble wa*
inanifnted, though armed
guard* were iu attendance.''
The General Assembly of
1909 changed the method of
inflicting the death penalty
from hanging to electrocu¬
tion. The fir*t person to be
electrocuted in the Mate wa*
a 87-year-old negro. Walter Morrison,
who waseleetrocutcdon March 10, 1910,
for committing rape on Polly Rodgers,
a Croatan woman.
At first 12 Witnesses were allowed, in
addition to the warden, prison physician,
a minister and relatives of the prisoner.
However, an incident in connection with
the electrocution of Mclver Burnett in
192»
caused the legislature of 1925 t«>
limit the number to six. At this
electrocution. 82 person*, including 12
women, one of whom was the woman
upon whom he had committed rape,
jammed the death room nt the State
Prison.
In the 25 years of the electric chair
in North Carolina 150 men have been
electrocuted. One hundred and twenty-
two of these were negroe*. No woman
has ever gone to the chnir in this state
though several have been convicted of
capital crime.
How They Are Divided
Of the 150 electrocutions, 120 were
for murder, 25 for rape and 5 for first
degree burglary. No one has ever been
electrocuted for anon. Neither has a
white man been sent to the death chair
for first degree burglary.
Twelve negroes nnd eight whites
went to the chair in 1934, the banner
year for electrocutions. The year 1925
was second with 1 2. and 1930 third, with
'10. In 1913, there was not a single
electron lion, the first year that has ever
happened.
1934 also hold* the record for double
and triple electrocutions. Of the 18
double and two triple one* in 25 years,
four double and the two triple ones took
place that year.
Any person* sentenced between now
and July 1 and those now under sentence
will be electrocuted, even after lethal ga*
has gone into effect.
North Carolina is the only eaitem
state to adopt this modern method of
inflicting the death penalty and the
fourth state in the entire United States
to use lethal gas.