1941: Ivan Sullivan
November 12th, 2020 Headsman
On this date in 1941, Ivan Sullivan was hanged at Fort Madison, Iowa — in a prison yard near where he’d committed his crime.
Sullivan was lumbered with a 30-year sentence for robbery and kidnapping when he and a buddy, Lowell Haenze, cut their way through an electrified fence while they were working on a prison baseball park ahead of a Fourth of July game in 1940. “In a news report about the escape and the following crime spree, they were likened to John Dillinger and his gang in the Midwest.” And like the Dillinger gang they were loyal enough to orchestrate prison breaks for their chums still in the stir.
Returning to the jail, they attempted to spring another pal, William Cunningham. The attempt failed: Cunningham was wounded in the fray and apparently committed suicide as it all went awry. Meanwhile, a prison guard named Bob Hart was shot dead.
The fugitives weren’t recaptured in this moment but their celebrity lam was short-lived. In late July, after the botched robbery of a Diller, Nebraska bank, both men were hunted to ground and captured — Haenze after playing the hare in a dramatic chase/shootout in tiny Marysville, Kansas, wherein “some 150 or more persons assisted officers in chasing down Haenze … [and] about a dozen shots were exchanged in the main intersections of the city.” (Marshall County News (Marysville, Kansas), July 25, 1940) Sullivan surrendered shortly thereafter to officers in Atchison, Missouri.
Although he pleaded guilty to the hanging crime, Sullivan wheedled for consideration — seeking legal remedies up to the Supreme Court, suggesting continually that Hart had actually been killed by friendly fire rather than Sullivan’s own never-recovered gun,* and at the end asking that his execution be postponed through the 1941 holiday season in consideration of his aged parents. “My Dad and Mother are getting old and won’t have many more Thanksgivings and Christmas[es],” he wrote to Iowa governor George A. Wilson. (Des Moines Register, Nov. 11, 1941) He got no traction at all.
“I do not for one minute mean to insinuate that I am any other than a bank robber who kept his word to a friend. I know I’m not fit for honest people to associate with,” he told newsmen when all hope was gone. (Des Moines Register, Nov. 12, 1941) “I know I have no more chance now to escape the rope than a snowball in hell but I will pray not only for myself but also for the ones who are afraid to be a man for the fear of losing a vote.”
This interesting blog post shares the personal recollections of the hanging’s impact by one of Sullivan’s family members, who was a small child at the time of the execution.
* His charge that “the state crime laboratory [is] for the state only and against the defendants” — because this laboratory wouldn’t or couldn’t produce the bullet that killed Bob Hart for forensic examination — has a prescient feel about it.
On this day..
- 1863: Angel Vicente Peñaloza, "Chacho" - 2019
- 1717: The witch-children of Freising - 2018
- 1963: Four CIA saboteurs in Cuba - 2017
- 1886: William Wilson - 2016
- 1800: Thomas Chalfont, postboy - 2015
- 1964: Louis Drouin and Marcel Numa, Jeune Haiti - 2014
- 1969: Liu Shaoqi dies under torture - 2013
- 1858: James Rodgers, lamented - 2012
- 1793: Jean-Sylvain Bailly, moonstruck - 2011
- 1977: Atnafu Abate, Mengistu's last rival - 2010
- 1679: The hot-blooded Lady Christian Nimmo - 2009
- 1874: William Udderzook, because a picture is worth a thousand words - 2008
- 1755: Rowley Hanson - 2007
Entry Filed under: 20th Century,Capital Punishment,Common Criminals,Crime,Death Penalty,Execution,Hanged,Iowa,Murder,USA
Tags: 1940s, 1941, ivan sullivan, november 12
Kupte si skute?ný a registrovaný ?idi?ský pr?kaz na našem webu bez psaní jakýchkoli zkoušek nebo absolvování cvi?ného testu. vše, co pot?ebujeme, jsou vaše údaje a b?hem následujících osmi dn? budou zaregistrovány v systému. ?idi?ský pr?kaz podléhá stejné registra?ní procedu?e jako pr?kaz vydávaný v autoškolách, pouze s tím rozdílem, že nebudete muset skládat zkoušky. Navštivte prosím naše webové stránky, kde najdete další informace o tom, jak postupovat v tomto procesu a jak nás kontaktovat
https://www.ridicskyprukazonline.com/
Kupite pravu i registriranu voza?ku dozvolu na našoj web stranici bez pisanja ikakvih ispita ili polaganja ispita. sve što nam treba su vaši podaci i oni bi bili registrirani u sustavu u sljede?ih osam dana. Voza?ka dozvola ?e biti podvrgnuta istom postupku registracije kao i ona koja se izdaje u autoškolama, jedina razlika je u tome što ne?ete morati polagati ispite. Posjetite našu web stranicu za više informacija o tome kako nastaviti s procesom i kako nas kontaktirati
https://www.vozackadozvola.com/
Koop een echt en geregistreerd rijbewijs van onze website zonder examens te schrijven of de oefentest te doen. alles wat we nodig hebben zijn uw gegevens en deze zouden binnen de komende acht dagen in het systeem worden geregistreerd. Het rijbewijs zal dezelfde registratieprocedure ondergaan als die welke worden afgegeven in de rijscholen, het enige verschil is dat u geen examens hoeft af te leggen. Bezoek onze website voor meer informatie over het proces en hoe u contact met ons kunt opnemen https://echtnederlandsrijbewijs.com/
Compre uma carteira de motorista real e registrada em nosso website sem fazer nenhum exame ou fazer o teste prático. tudo o que precisamos são seus dados e eles seriam registrados no sistema nos próximos oito dias. A carteira de habilitação deve passar pelo mesmo procedimento de registro que as emitidas nas autoescolas, a única diferença aqui é que você não será obrigado a fazer os exames. Visite nosso site para obter mais informações sobre como proceder com o processo e como nos contatar
https://imt-cartadeconducao.com/
Compre una licencia de conducir real y registrada en nuestro sitio web sin escribir ningún examen o realizar el examen de práctica. todo lo que necesitamos son sus datos y se registrarán en el sistema dentro de los próximos ocho días. La licencia de conducir se someterá al mismo procedimiento de registro que las emitidas en las escuelas de manejo, la única diferencia aquí es que no se le pedirá que tome los exámenes. Visite nuestro sitio web para obtener más información sobre cómo realizar el proceso y cómo ponerse en contacto con nosotros.
https://www.comprarcarnetconducir.com/
Koop een echt en geregistreerd rijbewijs van onze website zonder examens te schrijven of de oefentest te doen. alles wat we nodig hebben zijn uw gegevens en deze zouden binnen de komende acht dagen in het systeem worden geregistreerd. Het rijbewijs zal dezelfde registratieprocedure ondergaan als die welke worden afgegeven in de rijscholen, het enige verschil is dat u geen examens hoeft af te leggen. Bezoek onze website voor meer informatie over het proces en hoe u contact met ons kunt opnemen
https://cbr-rijbewijskopen.com/
Achetez un permis de conduire réel et enregistré sur notre site Web sans passer d’examens ni passer le test pratique. tout ce dont nous avons besoin, ce sont vos données et elles seront enregistrées dans le système dans les huit prochains jours. Le permis de conduire doit subir la même procédure d’enregistrement que ceux délivrés dans les auto-écoles, la seule différence ici est que vous ne serez pas tenu de passer les examens. S’il vous plaît visitez notre site Web pour plus d’informations sur la façon de procéder et comment nous contacter
https://www.permisdeconduirefacile.com/
Compre una licencia de conducir registrada en este sitio web en solo unos días sin ningún examen o prueba de práctica. aquí está el enlace del sitio web https://www.comprarcarnetconducir.com/
você está tendo alguma dificuldade em obter uma carteira de motorista válida, em caso afirmativo, entre rapidamente em contato com a agência de documentação mais confiável e obtenha sua carteira de motorista válida e registrada no site https://imt-cartadeconducao.com/