Thomas Francis Collins (1886–1907) was an English drifter who was convicted and hanged for murder in

Albert County, New Brunswick Albert County (2016 population 29,158) is New Brunswick's third-youngest county located on the Western side of the Petitcodiac River on the Chignecto Bay in the Bay of Fundy. Prior to the abolition of county government in 1967, the shire town w ...

in 1907. The events of the murder and trials resulted in several legal firsts in Canada.

Background

Tom Collins arrived in Albert County in the fall of 1906. He found

room and board Room and board is a phrase describing a situation in which, in exchange for money, Manual labour, labor or other considerations, a person is provided with a place to live as well as meals on a comprehensive basis. It commonly occurs as a fee at h ...

with the parish priest of New Ireland, north of present day

Fundy National Park Fundy National Park is a national park of Canada located on the Bay of Fundy, near the village of Alma, New Brunswick. It was officially opened on 29 July 1950. The park showcases a rugged coastline which rises up to the Canadian Highlands, the ...

. He was there about a week when the priest left on church business. When the priest returned he found the body of his housekeeper Mary Ann McAuley in the woodshed with an axe wound to the back of her head and her throat slit. Tom Collins could not be located in the area but was eventually found north of the community of St. George. He was found with a set of the priest's clothes and a pocket watch belonging to Mary Ann. Tom Collins was taken into custody and questioned later that night. Collins gave his statement of what had happened that day, stating he had had an argument with Mary Ann but denying his guilt in the murder. This statement was not admitted at the first trial due to improper reading of Collins' rights.

First trial

The first trial began in January 1907. The prosecutor's case was circumstantial but it received assistance when the judge gave his final instructions to the jury stating in effect that the case was fully proven. The jury took two hours to come back with a verdict of guilty and the judge immediately ordered Collins hanged. The verdict was overturned on the basis of a judicial misdirection, a first in Canadian legal history.

Second trial

The second trial began on June 25, 1907 with Collins himself taking the stand. The jury deliberated two days but were unable to come to a unanimous verdict, with seven in favour of innocence and five opposed. A

hung jury A hung jury, also called a deadlocked jury, is a judicial jury that cannot agree upon a verdict after extended deliberation and is unable to reach the required unanimity or supermajority. Hung jury usually results in the case being tried again. ...

was declared which precipitated a third trial.

Third trial

The third trial began in the fall of 1907, presided over by the noted

Daniel Lionel Hanington Daniel Lionel Hanington (June 27, 1835 – May 5, 1909) was a New Brunswick, Canada politician and jurist. He was born at Shediac, New Brunswick, the son of Daniel Hanington, and was educated there and at Mount Allison University, Mount All ...

. The trial faced immediate trouble selecting the jury. Having had two previous trials and a

media circus Media circus is a colloquial metaphor, or idiom, describing a news event for which the level of media coverage—measured by such factors as the number of reporters at the scene and the amount of material broadcast or published—is perceived to ...

surrounding the case, it was difficult to find twelve impartial jurors. 120 people were examined, a record at the time, before a suitable jury was selected. Tom Collins was found guilty and sentenced to be hanged.

Execution

There were several appeals to Ottawa and a last-minute plea to Governor General

Earl Grey Earl Grey is a title in the peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1806 for General Charles Grey, 1st Baron Grey. In 1801, he was given the title Baron Grey of Howick in the County of Northumberland, and in 1806 he was created Viscou ...

who, on the advice of the

Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...

, declined

commutation Commute, commutation or commutative may refer to: * Commuting, the process of travelling between a place of residence and a place of work Mathematics * Commutative property, a property of a mathematical operation whose result is insensitive to th ...

. He was hanged by executioner John Radclive at the Albert County Jail on November 15, 1907.

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Collins, Tom Francis 1886 births 1907 deaths Executed English people Executed Canadian people People executed by Canada by hanging People from Albert County, New Brunswick Murder in New Brunswick British emigrants to Canada