List of people executed in Connecticut

This is a list of people executed in Connecticut, prior to the abolition of capital punishment in the state on April 25, 2012. ^[1]

List

Number	Name	Age	Race	Sex	Occupation	Crime	Date	Method	County	Notes
1	Nepauduck	—	Native American	Male	—	Murder	January 30, 1639	Beheading	New Haven
2	Spencer, George	—	White	Male	Servant	Sodomy	April 1, 1642	Hanging	New Haven	Note 5
3	Plaine, William	56	White	Male		Sodomy	1646	Hanging	New Haven	Note 4
4	Young, Alse	31-32	White	Female	—	Witchcraft	May 26, 1647	Hanging	Hartford
5	Johnson, Mary	—	White	Female	Servant	Witchcraft	1649	Hanging	—
6	Carrington, Sr, John	37	White	Male	Carpenter	Witchcraft	March 1651	Hanging	Hartford
7	Carrington, Joan	—	White	Female	Housewife	Witchcraft	March 1651	Hanging	Hartford
8	Bassett (Holland), Margery "Goody"	—	White	Female	Housewife	Witchcraft	1651	Hanging	Fairfield
9	Knapp, Elizabeth	—	White	Female	Housewife	Witchcraft	1653	Hanging	Fairfield
10	Gilbert, Lydia		White	Female		Murder (by Witchcraft)	December 15, 1654	Hanging
11	Walter Robinson	15	White	Male	—	Sodomy	March 1655	Hanging	New Haven
12	John Knight	—	White	Male	—	Sodomy	June 1655	Hanging	New Haven
13	Greensmith, Nathaniel	—	White	Male	—	Witchcraft	January 1663	Hanging	Hartford	Note 1
14	Greensmith, Rebecca	—	White	Female	Housewife	Witchcraft
15	Barnes, Mary	36	White	Female	Housewife	Witchcraft (exonerated 2023) [2]	February 24, 1663	Hanging	Hartford
16	Potter, William	—	White	Male	—	Sodomy	June 6, 1662	Hanging	New Haven
17	Briggs, Ruth		White	Female		Murder	June 1668	Hanging	Hartford
18	Rood, Thomas	46	White	Male		Incest [a]	October 18, 1672	Hanging	New London
19	—	—	Native American	Male	—	Murder	1700	Hanging	New Haven	Note 2
20	—	—	Native American	Male	—	Murder
21	—	—	Native American	Male	—	Murder
22	Thomas, Abigail		White	Female		Murder	May 27, 1708	Hanging	Hartford
23	Waisoiusksquaw		Native American	Female		Murder	May 15, 1711	Hanging
24	Garrett, Catherine	27	Native American	Female	Servant	Murder	May 3, 1738	Hanging	New London
25	Jack		Black			Rape	November 16, 1743	Hanging	Hartford
26	Kate		Black			Murder
27	Shaw, Elizabeth		White			Murder	December 18, 1745	Hanging	Windham
28	Cuff		Black		Slave	Rape	May 15, 1749	Hanging	New Haven
29	Bramble, Sarah	—	White	Female	—	Murder	November 21, 1753	Hanging	New London
30	Frazier, Isaac	—	—	Male	—	Burglary	September 1768	Hanging	New Haven
31	Jacobs, John	—	Native American	Male	—	Murder	November 2, 1768	Hanging	Litchfield
32	Paul, Moses	—	Native American	Male	Drifter	Murder	September 2, 1772	Hanging	New Haven
33	Dunbar, Moses	30	White	Male	Farmer	Treason	March 19, 1777	Hanging	Hartford
34	Griswold	—	White	Male	—	Treason	1778	Hanging	New Haven
35	Davenport, Barnet	20	White	Male	Servant	Murder	May 8, 1780	Hanging	Litchfield
36	Ocuish, Hannah	12	Native American	Female	—	Murder	December 20, 1786	Hanging	New London
37	Mountain, Joseph	33	Black	Male	—	Rape	January 20, 1790	Hanging	New Haven
38	Doane, Richard	—	White	Male	—	Murder	June 10, 1797	Hanging	Hartford
39	Starr, Thomas	—	White	Male	—	Murder	June 14, 1797	Hanging	Middlesex
40	Anthony	—	Black	Male	Freedman	Rape	November 8, 1798	Hanging	Fairfield
41	Adams, Caleb	18	White	Male	Laborer	Murder	November 29, 1803	Hanging	Windham
42	Freeman, Samuel	25	Black	Male	—	Murder	November 6, 1805	Hanging	Windham
43	Niles, Henry	—	Native American	Male	—	Murder	November 4, 1807	Hanging	New London
44	Babcock, Miner	—	White	Male	—	Murder	June 6, 1816	Hanging	New London
45	Lung, Peter	—	White	Male	—	Murder	June 20, 1816	Hanging	Middlesex
46	Adams, Amos	28	Black	Male	—	Rape	November 30, 1817	Hanging	Fairfield
47	Bailey, Adonijah	79	—	Male	—	Murder	1824	Hanging	Windham	Note 3
48	Washington, George	—	Native American	Male	—	Murder	June 1, 1824	Hanging	Tolland
49	Watkins, Oliver	—	White	Male	—	Murder	August 2, 1831	Hanging	Windham
50	Teller, William	28	White	Male	Convict	Murder	September 6, 1833	Hanging	Hartford	Note 1
51	Reynolds, Caesar	30	White	Male	Convict	Murder
52	Sherman	—	—	Male	—	Murder	June 13, 1834	Hanging	New London
53	Potter, Andrew	—	White	Male	—	Murder	July 20, 1846	Hanging	New Haven
54	Foote, Henry	—	White	Male	—	Murder	January 2, 1850	Hanging	New Haven	Note 1
55	McCaffrey, James	—	White	Male	—
56	Jennings, Michael	18	White	Male	—	Murder	July 11, 1854	Hanging	New Haven
57	Toole, Gerald	—	—	Male	Convict	Murder	1862	Hanging	Hartford
58	Starkweather, Albert	25	White	Male	Farmer	Murder	August 17, 1866	Hanging	Hartford
59	Wilson, James	47	White	Male	Convict	Murder	January 13, 1871	Hanging	Hartford
59	Hamlin, Henry	—	White	Male	Convict	Murder	May 28, 1880	Hanging	Hartford
60	Smith, James "Chip"	—	White	Male	—	Murder	September 1, 1882	Hanging	New Haven
61	Palladoni, Phillip	—	White	Male	—	Murder	January 5, 1888	Hanging	Fairfield
62	Swift, John	—	White	Male	Piano player	Murder	April 18, 1889	Hanging	Hartford
63	Scheele, Jacob	—	White	Male	Saloon keeper	Murder	June 18, 1891	Hanging	Fairfield
64	Borjensen, Andrew	—	White	Male	Laborer	Murder	January 29, 1892	Hanging	Litchfield
65	Petrillo, Angelo	—	White	Male	—	Murder	November 14, 1892	Hanging	New Haven
66	Cronin, John	38	White	Male	—	Murder	December 18, 1894	Hanging	Hartford
67	Hartlein, Kaspar	40	White	Male	—	Murder	December 13, 1896	Hanging	Hartford
68	Kippie, Thomas F.	42	White	Male	—	Murder	July 14, 1897	Hanging	New Haven
69	Fuda, Giuseppe	31	White	Male	Laborer	Murder	December 3, 1897	Hanging	Fairfield
70	Imposino, Nicodemo	22	White	Male	Laborer	Murder	December 17, 1897	Hanging	Fairfield
71	Boinay, Charles A.	34	White	Male	Wire weaver	Murder	April 14, 1898	Hanging	Fairfield
72	Willis, Benjamin R.	21	White	Male	—	Murder	December 30, 1898	Hanging	Fairfield
73	Brockhaus, Frederick M.	21	White	Male	Criminal	Murder	September 6, 1899	Hanging	Fairfield
74	Cross, Charles B.	18	White	Male	Farmhand	Murder	July 20, 1900	Hanging	Fairfield
75	Misik, Paul	34	White	Male	—	Murder	February 11, 1904	Hanging	Hartford
76	Watson, Joseph	18	Black	Male	Valet	Murder	November 17, 1904	Hanging	Hartford
77	Marx, Gershon	73	White	Male	Farmer	Murder	May 18, 1905	Hanging	New London
78	Sherouk, Ephriam	24	White	Male	Laborer	Murder	January 9, 1906	Hanging	Tolland
79	Bailey, Henry G.	40	White	Male	Farmhand	Murder	April 16, 1907	Hanging	Middlesex
80	Herman, Alexander	26	White	Male	—	Murder	May 10, 1907	Hanging	Fairfield
81	Washelesky, John	32	White	Male	—	Murder	July 1, 1908	Hanging	New Haven
82	Rossi, Lorenzo	31	White	Male	—	Murder	July 24, 1908	Hanging	Hartford
83	Zett, John	48	White	Male	—	Murder	December 21, 1908	Hanging	Tolland
84	Campagnolo, Giuseppe	28	White	Male	—	Murder	February 24, 1909	Hanging	New Haven	Note 1
85	Carfaro, Raffaele	19	White	Male	—	Murder
86	Zawedzianczek, John	28	White	Male	—	Murder	February 9, 1910	Hanging	Hartford
87	Tanganelli, Andrea	26	White	Male	—	Murder	March 29, 1912	Hanging	New Haven
88	Redding, George, Jr.	21	White	Male	Produce clerk	Murder	November 1, 1912	Hanging	New Haven
89	Saxon, Louis	29	White	Male	—	Murder	July 27, 1913	Hanging	Hartford
90	Plew, James	48	White	Male	Farmhand	Murder	March 4, 1914	Hanging	New Haven
91	Rikteraitis, Matijins	29	White	Male	—	Murder	May 8, 1914	Hanging	New Haven
92	Buonomo, Joseph	24	White	Male	Criminal	Murder	June 30, 1914	Hanging	Fairfield
93	Bergeron, Joseph	40	White	Male	—	Murder	August 11, 1914	Hanging	New Haven
94	Montvid, Bernard	23	White	Male	—	Murder	August 6, 1915	Hanging	Hartford
95	Grela, Frank	41	White	Male	—	Murder	August 13, 1915	Hanging	Hartford
96	Roe, Harry	22	White	Male	—	Murder	March 3, 1916	Hanging	Hartford [3]	Note 1
97	Williams, Isaac	30	White	Male	—	Murder
98	Zuppa, Pasquale	28	White	Male	—	Murder	March 10, 1916	Hanging	New Haven
99	Vetere, Francisco	25	White	Male	Entertainer	Murder	October 5, 1917	Hanging	New Haven	Note 1
100	Castelli, Joseph	24	White	Male	—	Murder
101	Buglione, Stephen	20	White	Male	—	Murder	November 16, 1917	Hanging	Hartford	Note 1
102	Donvanso, Giovanni	21	White	Male	—	Murder
103	Wise, William	23	White	Male	—	Murder	December 14, 1917	Hanging	Hartford
104	Dusso, Frank	25	White	Male	Longshoreman	Murder	June 17, 1918	Hanging	New Haven	Note 2
105	Pisaniello, Carmine	21	White	Male	—	Murder
106	Lanzillo, Carmine	24	White	Male	Laborer	Murder
107	Perretta, Erasmo	28	White	Male	—	Murder	June 27, 1919	Hanging	Hartford	Note 1
108	Perretta, Joseph	33	White	Male	—	Murder
109	Nechesnook, Nikifor	28	White	Male	—	Murder	December 3, 1919	Hanging	New Haven
110	Cerrone, Daniel	31	White	Male	—	Murder	March 5, 1920	Hanging	New Haven
111	Wade, Elwood	24	White	Male	—	Murder	May 20, 1921	Hanging	Fairfield
112	Kaurawskas, John	36	White	Male	Laborer	Murder	May 27, 1921	Hanging	New Haven
113	Schutte, Emil	55	White	Male	Merchant	Murder	October 24, 1922	Hanging	Middlesex
114	Chapman, Gerald	35	White	Male	Gangster	Murder	April 6, 1926	Hanging	Hartford
115	Wing, Soo Hoo	19	Asian	Male	—	Murder	November 8, 1927	Hanging	Hartford	Note 1
116	Lung, Chin	33	Asian	Male	—	Murder
117	Feltovic, John	19	White	Male	—	Murder	December 10, 1929	Hanging	Fairfield
118	Dibattista, Frank	26	White	Male	—	Murder	February 21, 1930	Hanging	Hartford
119	Lorenzo, Henry	26	White	Male	—	Murder	August 12, 1930	Hanging	Hartford
120	Simborski, John	30	White	Male	—	Murder	April 7, 1936	Hanging	New Haven
121	McElroy, James	45	White	Male	Steamfitter	Murder	February 10, 1937	Electrocution	New Haven
122	Palka, Frank	26	White	Male	Mechanic	Murder	April 12, 1938	Electrocution	Fairfield
123	Weaver, Ira	36	White	Male	Handyman	Murder	April 29, 1940	Electrocution	Middlesex	Note 1
124	Cots, Vincent	32	White	Male	Mechanic	Murder
125	Gurski, Peter	28	White	Male	—	Murder	February 23, 1943	Electrocution	Litchfield
126	Funderburk, Wilson	38	Black	Male	—	Murder	April 20, 1943	Electrocution	Hartford
127	Decaro, Carlo	20	White	Male	Factory worker	Murder	May 3, 1944	Electrocution	Hartford
128	Rossi, Nicholas	33	White	Male	—	Murder	June 18, 1945	Electrocution	Hartford
129	Lewie, Raymond	19	White	Male	Convict	Murder	October 1, 1946	Electrocution	Hartford	Note 2
130	Tommaselli, Arthur	25	White	Male	Convict	Murder
131	McCarthy, James	21	White	Male	Convict	Murder
132	Bradley, Robert	38	Black	Male	Trash collector	Murder	April 12, 1948	Electrocution	New Haven
133	Lorain, William	34	White	Male	—	Murder	July 11, 1955	Electrocution	Hartford
134	Malm, Robert	32	White	Male	Dishwasher	Murder	July 18, 1955	Electrocution	Hartford	Note 1
135	Donahue, John	22	White	Male	Parolee	Murder			Fairfield
136	Davies, George	41	White	Male	Machine tool operator	Murder	September 20, 1959	Electrocution	New Haven
137	Wojculewicz, Frank	42	White	Male	Gangster	Murder	October 26, 1959	Electrocution	Hartford
138	Taborsky, Joseph L.	36	White	Male	Gangster	Murder	May 17, 1960	Electrocution	Hartford
139	Ross, Michael B.	45	White	Male	Insurance salesman	Murder	May 13, 2005	Lethal injection	Tolland
	Average Age:	30.56

Notes:

1. On this occasion, two executions took place.
2. On this occasion, three executions took place.
3. This is what the chart claimed in 2005, but contrary to popular belief, Adonijah Bailey was not the oldest person executed at age 79 in 1824; instead, he was tried and sentenced to death at age 80 in January 1825 for the murder of Jeremiah W. Pollock, and hanged himself on May 24, over 2 weeks before he was to be executed. ^{[4] [5]} The title of the oldest person executed goes instead to Gershon Marx, hanged on May 18, 1905, for murder at age 73. ^[6]
4. James Savage, ed., John Winthrop, The History of New England from 1630 to 1649, Vol. 2, (Boston:Little, Brown, 1853), page 324. See also Goodheart, where there are 158 death penalty victims identified for Connecticut. ^[7]
5. Posthumously pardoned.

Summary

Age	Frequency	Percent
19 and below	9	5%
20 to 29	39	28%
30 to 39	25	18%
40 to 49	13	9%
50 and above	2	1%
Unknown	51	37%
Race	Frequency	Percent
White	113	81%
Native American	11	8%
Black	10	7%
Asian	2	1%
Unknown	3	2%
Sex	Frequency	Percent
Male	125	90%
Female [8]	14	10%
Crime	Frequency	Percent
Murder	116	83%
Witchcraft	9	6%
Rape	5	4%
Sodomy	5	4%
Treason	2	1%
Burglary	1	1%
Incest	1	1%
Date	Frequency	Percent
1600 to 1699	18	13%
1700 to 1799	22	16%
1800 to 1899	33	24%
1900 to 1999	65	47%
2000 to present	1	1%
Method	Frequency	Percent
Hanging	119	86%
Electrocution	18	13%
Beheading	1	1%
Lethal injection	1	1%
County	Frequency	Percent
Hartford	48	35%
New Haven	42	30%
Fairfield	18	13%
New London	9	6%
Middlesex	6	4%
Windham	5	4%
Litchfield	4	3%
Tolland	4	3%
Unknown	3	1%
Total:	139 executions

See also

• Capital punishment in Connecticut
• Capital punishment in the United States
• Ocuish, Hannah
• Ross, Michael Bruce
• Taborsky, Joseph "Mad Dog"
• Young, Achsah

Notes

1. Thomas Rood's daughter, Sarah Rood, whom he was convicted of having sexual relations with and who had fathered his child, was also tried for incest and pleaded guilty. However, Sarah was spared execution and instead flogged after the court found that her father had been raping her.

References

1. "Connecticut governor signs death penalty repeal". CBS News. April 25, 2012.
2. "Connecticut confronted as originator of New England witch trials". March 2, 2023.
3. "Williams and Roe Are Denied Pardons" (PDF). Norwich Bulletin. February 29, 1916.
4. "RootsWeb: RIGENWEB-L Re: [RIGENWEB] Pollock Murder -- the Scoop". Archived from the original on October 14, 2012. Retrieved December 5, 2010.
5. "The Telescope". 1824.
6. "[Deathpenalty]death penalty news----CONN., ALA., MISS., KY., USA".
7. Goodheart, Lawrence B. (January 1, 2011). The Solemn Sentence of Death: Capital Punishment in Connecticut. Univ of Massachusetts Press. ISBN   978-1558498471.
8. Pollard, Heather. "The Execution of Women in Connecticut". Research Gate. Retrieved May 17, 2024.

7. https://archives.albany.edu/concern/daos/cz30q762p

External links

• Death Penalty News from Mail-Archive.com
• Connecticut Executions from 1894 to 2005