Donald Edward DeMag (December 15, 1922 – December 8, 1954) was the last person

executed Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty and formerly called judicial homicide, is the state-sanctioned killing of a person as punishment for actual or supposed misconduct. The sentence (law), sentence ordering that an offender b ...

by the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

Life

Donald Edward DeMag was born in

Burlington, Vermont Burlington, officially the City of Burlington, is the List of municipalities in Vermont, most populous city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the county seat, seat of Chittenden County, Vermont, Chittenden County. It is located south of the Can ...

on December 15, 1922. Prior to his death sentence, DeMag had been sentenced to

life imprisonment Life imprisonment is any sentence (law), sentence of imprisonment under which the convicted individual is to remain incarcerated for the rest of their natural life (or until pardoned or commuted to a fixed term). Crimes that result in life impr ...

after being convicted of

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse committed with the necessary Intention (criminal law), intention as defined by the law in a specific jurisd ...

, and had escaped and been recaptured while trying to enter

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. In 1952, DeMag and fellow-prisoner Francis Blair escaped from the state prison in

Windsor Windsor may refer to: Places *Detroit–Windsor, Michigan-Ontario, USA-Canada, North America; a cross-border metropolitan region Australia New South Wales *Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area Queen ...

by crashing a laundry truck through the front gates. While on the run, DeMag and Blair had attacked Elizabeth Weatherup and her husband in

Springfield, Vermont Springfield is a New England town, town in Windsor County, Vermont, Windsor County, Vermont, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 9,062. History The land currently recognized as Springfield is the ...

. DeMag and Blair beat the couple with a lead pipe as they attempted to rob them. Weatherup died of her injuries. Two days after their escape, DeMag and Blair were recaptured. They were tried for

first-degree murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification or valid excuse committed with the necessary intention as defined by the law in a specific jurisdiction. ("The killing of another person without justification or excuse ...

, convicted and sentenced to death by

electric chair The electric chair is a specialized device used for capital punishment through electrocution. The condemned is strapped to a custom wooden chair and electrocuted via electrodes attached to the head and leg. Alfred P. Southwick, a Buffalo, New Yo ...

. Blair and DeMag were both executed by electric chair. Blair was executed on February 8, 1954.

Death and burial

DeMag was executed at the prison in Windsor on December 8, 1954. He was buried at Holy Family Cemetery in

Essex Junction, Vermont Essex Junction is a city in Chittenden County, Vermont, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the population was 10,590. It was incorporated as a village on November 15, 1892. Essex Junction became Vermont’s 10th city on July 1, 2022. ...

Later death penalty case

Although DeMag was the last person executed by Vermont, he was not the last person to be sentenced to death by a Vermont court. Lionel Goyet, a soldier who was Absent Without Leave for the fifth time, robbed and killed a farmhand, and was sentenced to death in 1957. His sentence was commuted six months later, and Goyet was conditionally pardoned in 1969. He had no further problems with the law, and died in 1980. The death penalty was effectively abolished by Vermont in 1965. It remained as a possible sentence if a defendant was convicted of murdering a prison employee or law enforcement officer, but was never used. As a result, the possibility of a death sentence in such cases was removed from state statutes by the

Vermont General Assembly The Vermont General Assembly is the legislative body of the state of Vermont, in the United States. The Legislature is formally known as the "General Assembly", but the style of "Legislature" is commonly used, including by the body itself. The G ...

in 1987.ProCon.org
State Death penalty Laws
retrieved February 4, 2014

References

Bibliography

* John Stark Bellamy II (2007). ''Vintage Vermont Villainies: True Tales of Murder & Mystery from the 19th and 20th Centuries'' (Woodstock, Vt.: Countryman) * Daniel Allen Hearn (2008). ''Legal Executions in New England: A comprehensive reference, 1623–1960'' (Jefferson, NC: McFarland) * Wilson Ring, "Death penalty comes full circle in Vt.", ''

Rutland Herald The ''Rutland Herald'', previously called the ''Rutland Daily Herald'', is the second largest daily newspaper in the U.S. state of Vermont (after ''The Burlington Free Press''). It is published in Rutland with its source of news geared towards ...

'', 2005-05-01 {{DEFAULTSORT:DeMag, Donald 1922 births 1954 deaths People from Burlington, Vermont 20th-century executions by Vermont American escapees American prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment American people executed for murder 20th-century executions of American people People convicted of murder by Vermont Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by Vermont People executed by Vermont by electric chair Escapees from American detention

Life

Death and burial

Later death penalty case

See also

References

Bibliography