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| Michael Gorman's Last Look at Sing Sing Prison. |
On October 9, 1888, convicted murderer Michael Gorman walked out
of Sing Sing Prison a free man after serving 33 years of a life sentence. Gorman,
who entered the prison as a young man, was 60 years old when he was pardoned by
New York Governor David Hill. During his incarceration, Gorman lost both
parents, two brothers died in the Civil War, and his old friends and family
forgot him. But one friend, James Dolan, never gave up on him. Dolan petitioned
governors through twelve administrations until finally winning a pardon from
Governor Hill.
Michael Gorman’s crime occurred on July 1, 1855, in
Brooklyn, New York. Three brothers, Charles, Robert, and William Johnson, along
with Patrick McDonough and James Campbell, were walking home around midnight on
Raymond Street. They came across three men lying face down in the gutter,
apparently passed out drunk. They tried to rouse the men, shaking them and
telling them they should go home.
One man, Michael Gorman, jumped up in a rage and said he would
go home for no one. He drew a dirk knife from his pocket and stabbed Charles
Johnson in the abdomen. He then attacked Robert Johnson, wounding him in the
back and abdomen, and stabbed Patrick McDonough in the right thigh.
The cries of the wounded attracted the attention of five
police officers from the Fourth District. They hurried to the scene and found
the three men on the ground bleeding. Officers Skidmore and Casler chased after
Gorman. They managed to secure Gorman after a desperate struggle that left
Casler severely injured.
The wounded men were taken to City Hospital. 17-year-old
Charles Johnson died later that day. Robert Johnson, 25, died twelve days
later. Patrick McDonough, 18, recovered
from his injuries. All of the men on both sides of the melee were Irish
immigrants.
Michael Gorman was indicted for the murders of Charles and
Robert Johnson. He pled not guilty to both counts. Gorman’s trial for the
murder of Charles Johnson began on October 23, 1855, and ended three days
later. The jury deliberated for 20 hours but ultimately could not accept Gorman’s
plea of self-defense. They found him guilty of murder. The judge sentenced him
to hang on December 21.
Friends of Michael Gorman worked to have his sentence
commuted to life in prison. They managed to get a respite from the hanging until
January 18 while they prepared to petition the Governor. They succeeded on the
day before the scheduled hanging when Governor Myron H. Clark agreed to commute
Gorman’s sentence to life in Sing Sing Prison.
In the years that followed, Michael Gorman was forgotten by
all but his closest friends. Chief among them was James Dolan, a boyhood friend
who was born in the same parish in Ireland as Gorman. Dolan never stopped
working for his friend's release. In the intervening years, he won the support
of hundreds of prominent citizens, including the judge who tried Gorman and the
district attorney who prosecuted him. He persuaded Rev. Henry Ward Beecher, America’s
most influential clergyman, to plead for Gorman’s release. Dolan petitioned governor
after governor with no success until 1888, when Governor David Hill agreed to
pardon Michael Gorman.
Governor Hill was initially reluctant, worried the 60-year-old
Gorman would be unable to support himself. Dolan signed a bond to provide for
his friend the rest of his days. The Governor yielded and granted Gorman’s
release.
"I have made up my mind to stop thinking of my prison
days and to enjoy the rest of my life as best I can,” Gorman told reporters. 1,200
inmates cheered as the old man walked down the corridors of Sing Sing for the last
time and through the door to freedom.
Sources:
“Brutal murder in Raymond Street,” Evening Post, July 2, 1855.
“The Commutation of Gorman's Sentence,” Brooklyn Eagle, January 18, 1856.
“Death of Robert Johnson,” CITIZEN., July 14, 1855.
“The End Of A Long Imprisonment,” New-York Tribune., October 9, 1888.
“A Friend Indeed,” Daily Inter Ocean, October 18, 1888.
“The Fulton Avenue Tragedy, Brooklyn,” New York Herald., July 4, 1855.
“Horrid Murder,” New-York Daily Tribune., July 2, 1855.
“Kings County Court of Oyer and Terminer,” New York Herald., October 25, 1855.
“King's County Court of Oyer and Terminer,” New York Herald., September 19, 1855.
“A Lifetime in Prison,” Sun., October 9, 1888.
“Must Be Hung,” New-York Atlas., December 16, 1855.
“News Article,” New York Herald., December 27, 1855.
“No More Thought of Prison,” evening world., October 10, 1888.
“Released From Prison,” Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, October 27, 1888.
“Respite,” Albany Journal, December 20, 1855.
“Sentence of Death Commuted,” The Sun, January 19, 1856.
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