Lengthy, detailed article describing the 1883 murder of Bath constable William

Lengthy, detailed article describing the 1883 murder of Bath constable William Uncle Billy Lawrence, and the subsequent hanging of his killer, Daniel Wilkinson. In the nineteenth century, hanging a condemned felon was the preferred method of execution, and was supposed to result in instant death. In Wilkinson\u27s case, it was a full fifteen minutes of slow strangulation before he finally expired. Eventually, the story of Wilkinson\u27s botched hanging made the rounds, and Mainers were revolted. By the end of the legislative session of 1887, Maine lawmakers had abolished the death penalty. Since then, there have been numerous unsuccessful attempts to reinstate the death penalty in Maine