Nothing quite like writing a chapter on capital punishment to get one into the holiday spirit. Oddly, many of the hangings I wrote about happened in December. The number is skewed in part by Governor Oswald West, a staunch foe of the death penalty, who scheduled seven for one day, Friday the 13th, 1912, hoping to shock people into repealing it. Didnt work, but only four actually hanged that day. Embittered after his initiative lost in a landslide, West ended up authorizing more executions than any governor in Oregon history, all between 1912 and 1914. In 1914, Oregon voters repealed the death penalty.
Posted on: Tue, 23 Dec 2014 19:34:09 +0000
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