Billy Bailey
USA- Billy Bailey: The Last American Hanged
- A Life of Crime
- A Brutal Crime
- A Swift Trial and Sentencing
- The Day of Execution
Billy Bailey: The Last American Hanged
Billy Bailey (1947 – January 25, 1996) was an American murderer who was executed by hanging in Delaware in 1996. He became the third person in the United States to be sentenced to death since 1965, following Charles Rodman Campbell and Westley Allan Dodd. Bailey also became the first individual to be hanged in Delaware in 50 years and, as of the present, the last American criminal to be executed by hanging.
A Life of Crime
In 1979, Bailey was assigned to a factory for released prisoners in Wilmington, Delaware. However, he quickly escaped and made his way to his step-sister Sue Ann Coker's home in Cheswold, Delaware. Together with Sue's husband Charles Coker, Bailey went on a car ride. Charles stopped their truck at a liquor store at Bailey's request. Inside, Bailey held the shopkeeper at gunpoint and stole a bottle of alcohol. Leaving the store with a gun in one hand and a bottle in the other, Bailey informed Charles that the police would soon arrive at the crime scene and asked him to drive him to Lambertson's Corner, the farm of Gilbert and Clara Lambertson.
A Brutal Crime
Once they reached the Lambertson's field, Bailey shot Gilbert twice in the chest and once in the head with his own shotgun. Clara was shot in the shoulder with a handgun and was also hit with a shotgun blast in her abdomen and neck. Both Lambertsons died, and Bailey placed their bodies in chairs before attempting to flee. It was on the Lambertson's field that Bailey was spotted by a police helicopter. As he tried to fend off the police, Bailey was eventually arrested.
A Swift Trial and Sentencing
Bailey's trial did not last long. He was found guilty of committing "horrible, heinous, and inhumane" murders and was sentenced to death by hanging. Although he was offered lethal injection as an alternative, Bailey declined this option. It had been 50 years since the last hanging in Delaware, so the execution team sought advice from Walla Walla State Penitentiary in Washington. In 1986, a wooden gallows was constructed in the yard of the Delaware Correctional Center in Smyrna. The gallows, however, needed time to settle and was not immediately put to use.
The Day of Execution
Prior to his execution, Bailey was transferred from his cell to a nearby trailer located next to the gallows. On his last day, Bailey spent his time sleeping, eating, watching television, conversing with guards and workers, and meeting with his sister, a prison chaplain, and his lawyer. For his final meal, Bailey requested a well-done steak, baked potato with sour cream and butter, rolls with butter, peas, and vanilla ice cream. As per protocol, Bailey was given the opportunity to file a final appeal, which was ultimately denied. On January 25, 1996, his sentence was carried out.
