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Jean Lee (murderer)
Encyclopedia
Jean Lee was an Australia
n woman, convicted of murder, and notable as the last woman to be executed
in Australia.
, Lee was the daughter of a railway worker. She had an unremarkable childhood in rural New South Wales and later in suburban Sydney and was remembered as an intelligent, popular student at her Roman Catholic school, although she was inclined to be rebellious on occasion. She married in 1938 and the following year gave birth to a daughter. After several years, her husband abandoned her and their child, and Lee gave her daughter to her mother to raise. After Lee's mother successfully sought legal custody of Lee's daughter, Lee moved to Melbourne where she became involved in petty crime.
She met Robert David Clayton, who had some criminal convictions, and their relationship soon became abusive and Lee was subjected to violence. She began to work as a prostitute
.
The couple found a method to extort
money from unsuspecting men, and later called it "The Badger Game". Lee would lure a man into a sexually compromising position, and Clayton would burst into the room, and surprise them. Clayton played the part of the outraged husband, and blackmail
ed the other man into giving him money in return for his silence. As many of the men were supposedly respectable married men, they would often give Clayton money, rather than risk him telling their wives. On occasion, the man would refuse and Clayton would then beat and rob him.
The couple were later joined by Norman Andrews, another criminal that Clayton had first met while in prison.
. Kent invited the trio to have a drink at his flat - 6 pm closing time was law
in Victoria. They had heard that he kept money in his home, and thought Kent would be a soft target. While Lee kept Kent busy by performing oral sex
, the two men would search the flat for money. The trio later gave conflicting statements to Police but what is known Kent was tied to a chair, by Lee, and over a period of hours all three kicked and beat him, while demanding to know where his money was kept, they took his money roll he had in his pocket but wanted more. Kent was at first defiant, but eventually insisted that he had no extra money. He was tortured then stabbed several times, before Andrews strangled him. Neighbours heard Kent's screams and called police, but by the time they arrived, Lee, Clayton and Andrews were gone, and Kent was dead. Kent was found under a pile of sheets and clothing, his furniture had been broken and his home had been ransacked. A later report claimed that Kent's penis had been cut off and stuffed down his throat.
The three were soon apprehended in a hotel room, still wearing blood-stained clothing. Lee and Clayton had more blood on their clothes than Andrews and Lee had an abrasion on her nose. Lee confessed to the crime and in an effort to save her lover, claimed that she had acted alone and that he had no knowledge of the events. All three were charged with murder
but by the time their trial began on 20 March 1950, they had turned on each other, with each person attempting to shift blame onto the other two. Lee was charged under the principle of "common purpose" which meant that although it was accepted that she had neither stabbed nor strangled Kent, she had played an active role in his death and was therefore equally culpable. The three were found guilty and sentenced to death. Lee became hysterical as she heard the sentence.
On 23 June 1950, the Court of Criminal Appeal ruled that their confessions had been improperly obtained and ordered a retrial, but this was overturned by the High Court and the verdicts and sentences were confirmed. Lee's mental state declined after this, and she alternated between violently attacking her prison guards and begging for mercy, while stating repeatedly that she was innocent and that they had never meant to kill anyone.
Lee also commented that she did not believe a woman would be hanged. As the date for her execution drew near, Lee grew increasingly erratic.
At 10:00 a.m. her accomplices Robert Clayton 32, and Norman Andrews 38, were also hanged. Clayton's last words were Goodbye Charlie and Andrews's last words Goodbye Robert.
Jean Lee was one of two women executed in Australia during the 20th century, the other being Martha Rendell
, who was hanged for murdering her de facto husband's children in 1909.
She was the last woman to be hanged before the death penalty was abolished
.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n woman, convicted of murder, and notable as the last woman to be executed
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
in Australia.
Life
Born Marjorie Jean Maude Wright in Dubbo, New South WalesNew South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, Lee was the daughter of a railway worker. She had an unremarkable childhood in rural New South Wales and later in suburban Sydney and was remembered as an intelligent, popular student at her Roman Catholic school, although she was inclined to be rebellious on occasion. She married in 1938 and the following year gave birth to a daughter. After several years, her husband abandoned her and their child, and Lee gave her daughter to her mother to raise. After Lee's mother successfully sought legal custody of Lee's daughter, Lee moved to Melbourne where she became involved in petty crime.
She met Robert David Clayton, who had some criminal convictions, and their relationship soon became abusive and Lee was subjected to violence. She began to work as a prostitute
Prostitution
Prostitution is the act or practice of providing sexual services to another person in return for payment. The person who receives payment for sexual services is called a prostitute and the person who receives such services is known by a multitude of terms, including a "john". Prostitution is one of...
.
The couple found a method to extort
Extortion
Extortion is a criminal offence which occurs when a person unlawfully obtains either money, property or services from a person, entity, or institution, through coercion. Refraining from doing harm is sometimes euphemistically called protection. Extortion is commonly practiced by organized crime...
money from unsuspecting men, and later called it "The Badger Game". Lee would lure a man into a sexually compromising position, and Clayton would burst into the room, and surprise them. Clayton played the part of the outraged husband, and blackmail
Blackmail
In common usage, blackmail is a crime involving threats to reveal substantially true or false information about a person to the public, a family member, or associates unless a demand is met. It may be defined as coercion involving threats of physical harm, threat of criminal prosecution, or threats...
ed the other man into giving him money in return for his silence. As many of the men were supposedly respectable married men, they would often give Clayton money, rather than risk him telling their wives. On occasion, the man would refuse and Clayton would then beat and rob him.
The couple were later joined by Norman Andrews, another criminal that Clayton had first met while in prison.
The Murder
In 1949, the trio targeted an elderly man, William "Pop " Kent. Kent, 73, was an SP BookieSP bookmaking
Starting price or SP bookmaking literally refers to taking bets at fixed odds, i.e. a fixed starting price, as opposed to the totalisator model of betting...
. Kent invited the trio to have a drink at his flat - 6 pm closing time was law
Six o'clock swill
The six o'clock swill was an Australian and New Zealand slang term for the last-minute rush to buy drinks at a hotel bar before it closed. During a significant part of the 20th century, most Australian and New Zealand hotels shut their public bars at 6 p.m. A culture developed of heavy drinking...
in Victoria. They had heard that he kept money in his home, and thought Kent would be a soft target. While Lee kept Kent busy by performing oral sex
Oral sex
Oral sex is sexual activity involving the stimulation of the genitalia of a sex partner by the use of the mouth, tongue, teeth or throat. Cunnilingus refers to oral sex performed on females while fellatio refer to oral sex performed on males. Anilingus refers to oral stimulation of a person's anus...
, the two men would search the flat for money. The trio later gave conflicting statements to Police but what is known Kent was tied to a chair, by Lee, and over a period of hours all three kicked and beat him, while demanding to know where his money was kept, they took his money roll he had in his pocket but wanted more. Kent was at first defiant, but eventually insisted that he had no extra money. He was tortured then stabbed several times, before Andrews strangled him. Neighbours heard Kent's screams and called police, but by the time they arrived, Lee, Clayton and Andrews were gone, and Kent was dead. Kent was found under a pile of sheets and clothing, his furniture had been broken and his home had been ransacked. A later report claimed that Kent's penis had been cut off and stuffed down his throat.
The three were soon apprehended in a hotel room, still wearing blood-stained clothing. Lee and Clayton had more blood on their clothes than Andrews and Lee had an abrasion on her nose. Lee confessed to the crime and in an effort to save her lover, claimed that she had acted alone and that he had no knowledge of the events. All three were charged with murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
but by the time their trial began on 20 March 1950, they had turned on each other, with each person attempting to shift blame onto the other two. Lee was charged under the principle of "common purpose" which meant that although it was accepted that she had neither stabbed nor strangled Kent, she had played an active role in his death and was therefore equally culpable. The three were found guilty and sentenced to death. Lee became hysterical as she heard the sentence.
On 23 June 1950, the Court of Criminal Appeal ruled that their confessions had been improperly obtained and ordered a retrial, but this was overturned by the High Court and the verdicts and sentences were confirmed. Lee's mental state declined after this, and she alternated between violently attacking her prison guards and begging for mercy, while stating repeatedly that she was innocent and that they had never meant to kill anyone.
Lee also commented that she did not believe a woman would be hanged. As the date for her execution drew near, Lee grew increasingly erratic.
Execution
On 19 February 1951, the morning of her execution, she became hysterical and had to be sedated. She fainted when the executioner came to her cell, and she was strapped semi-conscious to a chair. She was executed at 8:00 a.m.At 10:00 a.m. her accomplices Robert Clayton 32, and Norman Andrews 38, were also hanged. Clayton's last words were Goodbye Charlie and Andrews's last words Goodbye Robert.
Jean Lee was one of two women executed in Australia during the 20th century, the other being Martha Rendell
Martha Rendell
Martha Rendell was the last of three women to be hanged in Western Australia. She was convicted of murdering her de facto husband's son, Arthur Morris, in 1908. She was also suspected of killing his two daughters, Annie and Olive by swabbing their throats with hydrochloric acid...
, who was hanged for murdering her de facto husband's children in 1909.
She was the last woman to be hanged before the death penalty was abolished
Capital punishment in Australia
Capital punishment has been formally abolished in Australia. It was last used in 1967, when Ronald Ryan was hanged in Victoria. Ryan was the last of 114 people executed in the 20th century and prior to his execution Queensland and New South Wales had already abolished the death penalty for murder....
.
Further reading
- Paul Wilson, Don Treble and Robyn Lincoln, Jean Lee : the last woman hanged in Australia, Random House Australia, 1997.ISBN 0091834422
- Waterkeyn, Xavier, Death Row, Profile of People Who Face the Ultimate Penalty, 2006, New Holland Publishers, Australia. ISBN 1-74110-387-8
External links
- The Hanging of Jean Lee - ABC Radio NationalRadio NationalABC Radio National is an Australia-wide non-commercial radio network run by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.Radio National broadcasts national programming in areas that include news and current affairs, the arts, social issues, science, drama and comedy...
Poetica's sound version of Andrée Greenwell's composed work in full, with librettoLibrettoA libretto is the text used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata, or musical. The term "libretto" is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as mass, requiem, and sacred cantata, or even the story line of a...
by Jordie AlbistonJordie AlbistonJordie Albiston is a contemporary Australian poet and academic.Jordie Albiston grew up in Melbourne, and studied flute at the Victorian College of the Arts before completing a PhD in literature. Her first collection of poems, Nervous Arcs, won the Mary Gilmore Award, received runner-up in the Anne... - http://www.abc.net.au/dimensions/dimensions_in_time/Transcripts/s546556.htm