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Suchan and Jackson hanged back to back
Broadcast Date: Oct. 19, 1982
Justice is swift for the members of the infamous Boyd Gang. Just two weeks after their capture, the four criminals stand trial for a multitude of crimes. The most serious is the murder of policeman Eddie Tong. For this crime, Lennie Jackson and Steve Suchan face the hangman's noose. It is the only capital case famed defence lawyer J.J. Robinette will ever lose. Writer Jack Batten describes the trial for CBC Radio's Morningside.Suchan and Jackson hanged back to back
• Jackson and Suchan were tried at Toronto's Old City Hall and found guilty of murder. Both were sentenced to death. They were to be hanged at 8 a.m. on Dec. 16, 1952. But to their surprise, the hangman arrived at midnight, and they were hanged simultaneously, their backs together, at 12:14 a.m.• Lennie Jackson went to the gallows without his artificial leg. He was forced to hop to the noose.
• Edwin Boyd and Willie Jackson were not involved in the murder of Edmund Tong. For their many robberies and escapes they were sentenced to lengthy terms in the Kingston Penitentiary.
• Willie Jackson was sentenced to 20 years, plus the eight years remaining on his previous term. He served 14 years and was paroled in 1966. He died in obscurity.
• Edwin Boyd was sentenced to eight life terms. But he was a model prisoner, and was paroled for good behaviour after serving 10 years.
• John J. Robinette won 16 high-profile capital cases, including the appeal and acquittal of "torso murder" defendant Evelyn Dick. He left criminal law after the Suchan trial to become Canada's best-known counsel, appearing frequently before the Supreme Court of Canada in several leading constitutional and civil cases.
Suchan and Jackson hanged back to back
Medium: Radio
Program: Morningside
Broadcast Date: Oct. 19, 1982
Guest(s): Jack Batten
Host: Peter Gzowski
Duration: 5:11
Last updated:
Jan. 24, 2003
Television
8:23
From his days as a young hoodlum and later as a wartime commando, Edwin Boyd seems preordained to become infamous.
Television
7:20
To many Torontonians, the Boyd Gang are local heroes, robbing from the rich banks and living on the lam. But everything suddenly changes.
Suchan and Jackson hanged back to back.
The CBC Digital Archives Website.
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
Last updated: Jan. 24, 2003.
[Page consulted on Feb. 13, 2012.]