Johann Gawenda

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Charge:	Murder
Sentence:	Death
Years Imprisoned:	2
Year Crime:
Year Convicted:	1881
Year Cleared:	1883
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	Germany
County or Region of Crime:
City of Crime:
Result:	Judicially Exonerated Released
Summary of Case:	"Johann Gawenda was codefendant of Gallus. Gawenda falsely confessed to murdering his 16 year old daughter-in-law Katarina Sroka, and that Gallus had helped by bringing him the hoe used to kill her. Gallus pled not guilty but was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison as an accessory and Gawenda was sentenced to death, which was later commuted to 20 years imprisonment. A year after their sentencing Katarina was found alive in another town. She said she had run away from home and was working as a servant. The two men were acquitted after a retrial."
Conviction Caused By:	False confession by Gawenda after being manhandled by the sheriff
Innocence Proved By:	Alleged victim found alive. The two co-defendants were acquitted after a new trial.
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Was Perpetrator Identified?
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Age When Released:
Sex:	Male
Skin/Ethnicity:	White
Information Source 1:	"“Convicting the Innocent,” Max Hirschberg, Rocky Mountain Law Review 13, December, 1940, pp. 24-25"
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Johann Gawenda

Charge:

Murder

Sentence:

Death

Years Imprisoned:

2

Year Crime:

Year Convicted:

1881

Year Cleared:

1883

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

Germany

County or Region of Crime:

City of Crime:

Result:

Judicially Exonerated Released

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

False confession by Gawenda after being manhandled by the sheriff

Innocence Proved By:

Alleged victim found alive. The two co-defendants were acquitted after a new trial.

Defendant Aided By:

Compensation Awarded:

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Age When Imprisoned:

Age When Released:

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

White

Information Source 1:

"“Convicting the Innocent,” Max Hirschberg, Rocky Mountain Law Review 13, December, 1940, pp. 24-25"

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