Thomas Hall

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Charge:	Murder
Sentence:	Death
Years Imprisoned:	1.1
Year Crime:	1886
Year Convicted:	1887
Year Cleared:	1887
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	New Zealand
County or Region of Crime:
City of Crime:	Timaru
Result:	Judicially Exonerated (Not released due to other charges.)
Summary of Case:	"Thomas Hall was convicted on February 2, 1887 of poisoning his father-in-law with antimony in Timaru, New Zealand. Hall's father in law Henry Cain died on January 29, 1886. Hall's trial was in Dunedin, and he was sentenced to death by Judge Joshua Strange William. Hall appealed and his conviction was overturned on March 8, 1887. He remained in prison for his conviction in 1887 of attempting to murder his wife Catherine Hall by poisoning, and forgery charges. Hall's business was in financial trouble, and the prosecution alleged his motive was to collect on two life insurance policies for £3,000 each that he took out on his wife's life, and to collect her estate that he was the beneficiary of. Hall was sentenced to life imprisonment, which at the time was considered to be 20 years confinement. Hall's wife Kate Hall was granted a divorce on December 6, 1901 in Auckland, and she moved to England, where she died in Golders Green, county of Middlesex on March 29, 1925. Hall was released in 1907 from Mount Eden prison in Auckland and former Prime Minister Sir John Hall granted him an annuity of £200 on condition that he live the remainder of his life out of New Zealand. Hall died on August 10, 1929."
Conviction Caused By:
Innocence Proved By:	Hall's murder conviction was overturned on appeal.
Defendant Aided By:
Compensation Awarded:
Was Perpetrator Identified?
Age When Imprisoned:	38
Age When Released:	39
Sex:	Male
Skin/Ethnicity:	White
Information Source 1:	"Hall, Thomas, Page 1 - Biography, Source: Teara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand"
Information Location 1:	http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/2h5/hall-thomas
Information Source 2:	"The Alleged Poisoning Case At Timaru, Clutha Leader, R?rahi XIII, Putanga 633, 3 Mahuru 1886, Page 3"
Information Location 2:	http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&d=CL18860903.2.7&l=mi&e=-------10--1----2--
Information Source 3:	Timaru's 1886 Sensational Poisoning Cases
Information Location 3:	http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~nzlscant/hall.htm
Information Source 4:
Information Location 4:
Information Source 5:
Information Location 5:
Book About Case:	Timaru Alleged Poisoning Case
Book Information:	http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/artwork/291/thomas-hall
Book About Case (2):
Book Information (2):
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Thomas Hall

Charge:

Murder

Sentence:

Death

Years Imprisoned:

1.1

Year Crime:

1886

Year Convicted:

1887

Year Cleared:

1887

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

New Zealand

County or Region of Crime:

City of Crime:

Timaru

Result:

Judicially Exonerated (Not released due to other charges.)

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

Innocence Proved By:

Hall's murder conviction was overturned on appeal.

Defendant Aided By:

Compensation Awarded:

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Age When Imprisoned:

38

Age When Released:

39

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

White

Information Source 1:

"Hall, Thomas, Page 1 - Biography, Source: Teara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand"

Information Location 1:

http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/2h5/hall-thomas

Information Source 2:

"The Alleged Poisoning Case At Timaru, Clutha Leader, R?rahi XIII, Putanga 633, 3 Mahuru 1886, Page 3"

Information Location 2:

http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&d=CL18860903.2.7&l=mi&e=-------10--1----2--

Information Source 3:

Timaru's 1886 Sensational Poisoning Cases

Information Location 3:

http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~nzlscant/hall.htm

Information Source 4:

Information Location 4:

Information Source 5:

Information Location 5:

Book About Case:

Timaru Alleged Poisoning Case

Book Information:

http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/artwork/291/thomas-hall

Book About Case (2):

Book Information (2):

Movie About Case:

Comments About Case: