Ernest Hutchinson – for the murder of his girlfriend.

At 9.00 am on Tuesday the 2nd of March 1909, 24 year old Ernest Hutchinson was led to the execution shed within Wakefield prison to hang for the murder of 29 year old Hannah Marie Whitely.

The execution was carried out by Henry and Thomas Pierrepoint. Hutchinson weighed just 139 lbs. and was given a drop of 7’ 0”.

The LPC4 form described his build as “fairly muscular”. The execution shed is clearly visible in this photograph.

Hutchinson had stabbed his live in girlfriend, Hannah Marie Whiteley, to death on Christmas Eve 1908 at their home at 20 Great Albion Street in Halifax. She had separated from her husband, George, in 1904.

Neighbours were alerted to the tragedy by the sight of Hannah’s five year old daughter, Eveline, crying at an upstairs window. Going to investigate they found blood flowing out under the front door and immediately forced an entry.

Hannah was lying on the floor just inside the door, having been stabbed multiple times. Hutchinson was discovered upstairs with a throat wound.

The police arrived and Hutchinson was taken to the Royal Halifax Infirmary for treatment. When questioned later Hutchinson told the police that he and Hannah had been living together since April 1908.

He suspected that Hannah was prostituting herself and there had been an incident on the 17th of November 1908, where he had hit her after hearing her let someone into the house.

On the 24th of December 1908 Hutchinson had been out drinking and carol singing. When he got home, he saw Hannah letting a man out of the house and found some money inside on a table.

He claimed that in the ensuing argument Hannah had tried to cut his throat with his shaving razor, hence the wound.

Hutchinson was tried at Leeds on the 12th of February 1909, before Mr. Justice Coleridge. The prosecution alleged that the throat wound was self inflicted and it took the jury just 15 minutes to reach a guilty verdict.

They added a recommendation to mercy, presumably on account of his age. A petition for a reprieve was got up locally but neither had any effect.

The LPC4 form noted that the throat wound had opened up about half an inch, as a result of the force of the drop. His weight is given as 139 lbs. on the LPC4 form and the drop was set at 7’ 0”.

It was reported that Hutchinson had been cheerful in the condemned cell and put on weight.

The inquest was held before coroner, Mr. P. P. Maitland and the prison medical officer, Dr. A. French, testified that death was practically instantaneous.

One would not think that Ernest Hutchinson was an especially common name and yet another Ernest Hutchinson would hang, also for the murder of his girlfriend, at Oxford prison on the 23rd of November 1932.

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