Guenther Fritz Erwin Podola (8 February 1929 – 5 November 1959,

alias Alias may refer to: * Pseudonym * Pen name * Nickname Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Alias'' (2013 film), a 2013 Canadian documentary film * ''Alias'' (TV series), an American action thriller series 2001–2006 * ''Alias the ...

Mike Colato) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

-born petty thief, and the last man to be

hanged Hanging is the suspension of a person by a noose or ligature around the neck.Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed. Hanging as method of execution is unknown, as method of suicide from 1325. The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' states that hanging in ...

in Britain for killing a police officer. His trial was notable and controversial because of his defence of

amnesia Amnesia is a deficit in memory caused by brain damage or disease,Gazzaniga, M., Ivry, R., & Mangun, G. (2009) Cognitive Neuroscience: The biology of the mind. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. but it can also be caused temporarily by the use ...

and the use of expert witnesses to determine whether his illness was real.

Life

Podola was born in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. He was a fanatical member of the

Hitler Youth The Hitler Youth (german: Hitlerjugend , often abbreviated as HJ, ) was the youth organisation of the Nazi Party in Germany. Its origins date back to 1922 and it received the name ("Hitler Youth, League of German Worker Youth") in July 1926. ...

movement. Podola moved to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

in August 1952. On 1 March 1957 he was sentenced to 10 days' imprisonment following a conviction for

burglary Burglary, also called breaking and entering and sometimes housebreaking, is the act of entering a building or other areas without permission, with the intention of committing a criminal offence. Usually that offence is theft, robbery or murder ...

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

. Then on 26 March he was sentenced for another 11 counts of theft and burglary and imprisoned for 2 years. On 25 July 1958 Podola was released and deported back to

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

London

Podola moved to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

on 21 May 1959. He assumed the alias of ''Mike Colato'' and pretended to be a gangster.Google books - ''Villain's Paradise: A History of Britain's Underworld'', p452
/ref> He broke into the house of an American model,
Verne Schiffmann in

Roland Gardens Roland Gardens (foaled 9 May 1975 – after 1993) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire best known for winning the classic 2000 Guineas in 1978. During a racing career which lasted from 1977 until 1979 he ran sixteen times and won f ...

, and stole jewellery and furs worth £2,000. He offered to return her possessions for £500, but she notified the police who attempted to arrest Podola on 12 July 1959 in

Kensington Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in the West End of London, West of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up b ...

.Crimetime
/ref> Podola shot one of the officers, Detective Sergeant Raymond Purdy, through the heart with a Radom 9mm semi-automatic pistol, after he ran into a house at 105 Onslow Square. He was later apprehended and Podola claimed he was beaten up by the policeRoyal College of Physicians
/ref> and, as a result, lost his memory of events. The police claimed that he was merely hit on the head when they broke down the door to his hotel room.

Trial

The start of the trial was delayed for nine days while a jury heard evidence of whether Podola was medically fit to stand trial. After hours of deliberation, they decided he was. A fresh jury was called to hear the trial itself which commenced on 18 July 1959. When asked for his plea, he replied: "I do not remember the crime for which I stand accused ... I am unable to answer the charges." He was defended by

Frederick Lawton Frederick Joseph Lawton (November 11, 1900 – November 16, 1975) was an American bureaucrat who served as the ninth Director of the Bureau of the Budget. Lawton was born in Washington, D.C., and became a lawyer and an accountant. He spent mo ...

QC. Neurologist

Michael Ashby Michael George Corbett Ashby, MRCP, FRCP (1 November 1914 – 10 December 2004) was a consultant neurologist at the Whittington Hospital, London and an expert witness for the prosecution in the failed trial of suspected serial killer John Bodk ...

gave evidence as an expert medical witness at his trial, as did

psychiatrist A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in psychiatry, the branch of medicine devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, study, and treatment of mental disorders. Psychiatrists are physicians and evaluate patients to determine whether their sy ...

Archibald Leigh, who claimed Podola was feigning his illness. The jury took 38 minutes to find Podola guilty of

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...

, and he was sentenced to death by the trial judge, Mr Justice Edmund Davies. He later confessed his guilt. The Home Secretary,

R. A. Butler Richard Austen Butler, Baron Butler of Saffron Walden, (9 December 1902 – 8 March 1982), also known as R. A. Butler and familiarly known from his initials as Rab, was a prominent British Conservative Party politician. ''The Times'' obituary c ...

, under a little-known and little-used power, referred the case to the Court of Criminal Appeal, which upheld the conviction. The Attorney-General's refusal of leave to appeal to the House of Lords brought the case to a close in a fresh outburst of public controversy. Podola was hanged at

Wandsworth Prison HM Prison Wandsworth is a Prison security categories in the United Kingdom, Category B men's prison at Wandsworth in the London Borough of Wandsworth, South West (London sub region), South West London, England. It is operated by His Majesty's Pri ...

at 9:45 a.m. on 5 November 1959. He was buried in the prison graveyard (grave 59). His execution took place five years before the last execution of any criminal and six years before the suspension and later abolition of the death penalty.

References

External links

Photo of Podola including bruised eye, which he claimed occurred due to excessive police force during his arrestA discussion of the legal ramifications of the case for English law (p. 487-488)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Podola, Guenther 1929 births 1959 deaths 1959 murders in the United Kingdom 20th-century German criminals People convicted of murder by England and Wales 20th-century executions by England and Wales People executed for murder Executed people from Berlin Hitler Youth members German people executed abroad Prisoners and detainees of Canada German people convicted of murdering police officers People executed for murdering police officers Executed Canadian people German expatriates in the United Kingdom German expatriates in Canada People convicted of burglary People deported from Canada 1950s murders in London