John "Babbacombe" Lee | |
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| Born | John Henry George Lee 15 August 1864[1] Abbotskerswell, Devon, England |
| Died | 19 March 1945 (aged 80) United States of America |
| Known for | Execution survivor |
John Henry George "Babbacombe" Lee (15 August 1864 – 19 March 1945) was an Englishman famous for surviving three attempts to hang him for murder. Born in Abbotskerswell, Devon, Lee served in the Royal Navy, and was a known thief.[2]
In 1885, he was convicted of the murder of his employer, Emma Keyse, at her home at Babbacombe Bay near Torquay on 15 November 1884, with a knife.[3] The evidence was weak and circumstantial, amounting to little more than Lee having been the only male in the house at the time of the murder, his previous criminal record, and being found with an unexplained cut on his arm. Despite this and his claim of innocence, he was sentenced to hang. After he survived three attempts at hanging, his sentence was commuted to life imprisonment. He became popularly known as "the man they couldn't hang".[4]
- ^ John Lee, The Man They Couldn't Hang
- ^ "John Lee: the man they could not hang by Derek Lee & Clifford Lee".
- ^ "John Lee, The Man They Could Not Hang | Blog". searchusapeople.com. 23 June 2019. Retrieved 8 December 2020.
- ^ Waugh, Ian. "The Man they Could not Hang". bbc.co.uk. BBC. Retrieved 8 July 2015.