Aug 21, 2017 | Appearance, Canada, Death Penalty, Execution, Ontario, People, Presentation, Uncategorized
The heavens opened. Traffic slowed to a crawl. (I know. Two clichés in two sentences…) Nevertheless, people from all walks of my life turned up on Thursday evening, August 17 at Ben McNally Books in downtown Toronto to celebrate the launch of Drop Dead: A Horrible History of Hanging in Canada.
So many individuals were caught up in the criminal justice system between Confederation in 1867 and the abolition of capital punishment in 1976; I could only include a fraction of their stories in Drop Dead. So while the gathering at the launch sipped their drinks and nibbled on nibblies, I shared with them the story of a case that didn’t make it into the book: a murder trial after the circus came to Picton, Ontario, in 1903, which had a happier outcome than most.
And at the end of the evening, lucky, lucky Vanessa Judelman walked away with the draw prize: a gift package of books, notepads, and a bottle of The Hanging Man wine, with a length of rope thrown in to boot!
Aug 14, 2017 | Canada, Death Penalty, Execution, People
PLAYERS IN THE DEADLY GAME OF HANGMAN IN CANADA
THE HANGMAN
“The main players are all assembled….And standing by on the sidelines, waiting for his turn, is the most contentious participant of them all: the hangman.
The game is on.”
Excerpted from Drop Dead by Lorna Poplak Copyright © Lorna Poplak, 2017
All rights reserved
www.dundurn.com
Aug 14, 2017 | Alberta, Canada, Death Penalty, Execution, Media, Presentation
Death by hanging.
That was the fate of more than 700 people in Canada between Confederation in 1867 and the abolition of capital punishment in 1976. How did this affect individuals caught up in the criminal justice system during this dark chapter of our history?
The family of Elizabeth Popovitch was devastated when she was hanged in 1946 for the robbery and brutal slaying of her benefactor.
Cook Teets was hanged for poisoning his wife, but he could not have administered the poison.
A youth was hanged a second time after recovering from his first hanging.
These and other sad, horrific, bizarre, but sometimes uplifting stories of people involved in the criminal justice system formed the basis of my recent conversation with Russell Bowers on the CBC’s Daybreak Alberta.
Jul 27, 2017 | Canada, Death Penalty, Execution, People
PLAYERS IN THE DEADLY GAME OF HANGMAN IN CANADA
THE FEDERAL CABINET
“When someone was convicted of a capital crime, the presiding judge was required to submit a detailed report to the minister of justice in Ottawa.
The federal Cabinet and officials of the Department of Justice would review the case. At the end of this sometimes lengthy process, cabinet would make the ultimate decision on what sentence to impose. If they resolved that the law “be allowed to take its course,” an Order-in-Council was issued instructing the local Authorities to proceed with the execution”
Excerpted from Drop Dead by Lorna Poplak Copyright © Lorna Poplak, 2017
All rights reserved
www.dundurn.com
Jun 21, 2017 | Canada, Death Penalty, Execution, Ontario, People, Uncategorized
PLAYERS IN THE DEADLY GAME OF HANGMAN IN CANADA
THE SHERIFF
“With the accused in custody, the official tasked with organizing the trial was the local sheriff. But if you think of a sheriff as a dude in the Wild West walking down a dusty road with a shiny star on his chest, spurs clanking on his heels, and a pair of six-shooters on his hips, think again.”
Excerpted from Drop Dead by Lorna Poplak Copyright © Lorna Poplak, 2017
All rights reserved
www.dundurn.com
Jun 15, 2017 | Canada, Death Penalty, People, Uncategorized
PLAYERS IN THE DEADLY GAME OF HANGMAN IN CANADA
THE MURDERER
“For every victim, there has to be an aggressor — a man, woman, or child who pulls the trigger or plunges the knife or slips arsenic into a cup of tea.”
Teolis hired 2 hit men to kill her husband. In March 1935, hangman Arthur Ellis miscalculated the length of rope required for her execution, and she was decapitated. This shocking event led to a huge public outcry and signaled the end of Ellis’s career.
Excerpted from Drop Dead by Lorna Poplak
Copyright © Lorna Poplak, 2017 All rights reserved
Photo courtesy of Library and Archives Canada
www.dundurn.com
