A condemned man, Sigismund Palmer, 34-year-old mechanic of St Ann who had been sentenced to death in December 1968 for murdering Cecil Henry, was hanged on the gallows of the St Catherine District Prison at 8:30 am on Tuesday, January 19, 1971.

But the question on some people’s mind at the time was: ‘Was the right man convicted for the crime and was it worth dying for?’ After all, two brothers had testified against him.

Palmer had appealed his murder conviction and sentence to the Jamaica Court of Appeal and also to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in England but lost both appeals. Canon B C Jones, rector of the Cathedral in Spanish Town, administered to Palmer’s…

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Next week: One brother hanged, other convicted of manslaughter after grab-and-flee incident

Sybil E Hibbert is a veteran journalist and retired court reporting specialist. She is also the wife of Retired ACP Isadore ‘Dick’ Hibbert, rated among the top Jamaican detectives of his time. Send comments to allend@jamaicaobserver.com