William Habron
England
Date of Crime: August 1, 1876
William Habron was convicted of the murder of Constable Cock,
a local lawman. Habron was a patron of the Royal Oak, a pub near
Manchester that was on the constable's beat. Habron was frequently
getting into fights with other patrons, which Cock had to break up. After one fight Cock threatened to arrest Habron the next time he got into a
fight. Habron replied, “It'll be a sorry day for you, the day you
arrest me.” The next time Cock passed the pub and heard sounds of a
fight, he entered without waiting to be called and saw Habron and another
patron in the midst of a fight. Cock arrested Habron. However,
Habron had actually been on his best behavior. The other patron had
interpreted Habron's behavior as a sign of weakness and, inspired by liquor,
decided that it was a good time to pick a fight.
The next day a magistrate dismissed the case against Habron as
it was well substantiated that Habron was blameless in the fight. In
the courtroom following the dismissal, Habron reportedly walked up to Cock
and told him, “I promised you a sorry day if you ever ran foul of me. I'll
do you in for this.” Near midnight the same day Cock was shot to death.
Habron was arrested for the murder. At trial, the
circumstantial evidence against Habron was supplemented by testimony about
the perpetrator's boot prints. A police officer testified that boot
prints left by the murderer matched Habron's boots. The soles of
Habron's boots had a row of nails on each side as well as two rows of nails
down the center. The officer testified that the number and the
position of nail marks in the boot prints matched Habron's boots. However, no photographs or casts were made of the prints, so the judge and
jury had to rely solely on the officer's testimony. The defense argued
that Habron's style of boots and nails was common. Habron was
sentenced to death by hanging. However, the crown accepted the jury's
recommendation of life imprisonment and commuted Habron's sentence.
Two years later, in Oct 1878, another constable was shot while interrupting
a burglary in the London suburb of Blackheath. While this constable was not
killed, the suspect was caught. He was sentenced to life imprisonment for
the attempted murder of the constable. Following conviction, the suspect was
identified as Charles Peace, wanted for the murder of Albert Dyson. Peace
was then convicted of this murder and sentenced to death. Following his
sentencing, Peace confessed to the murder of Constable Cock. He said that
Cock had interrupted him during a burglary. Peace gave sufficient details of
the crime that authorities were fully convinced of his confession. Habron
was pardoned and Parliament awarded him £500.
[6/08]
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Reference: Convicting the Innocent
Posted in:
Victims of the State,
United Kingdom Cases,
Police Officer Murder Cases
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