Death penalty in Australia
A total of 66 people were hanged in South Australia and 45 of these hangings took place at Adelaide Gaol. These hangings were undertaken:
- 7 outside the front door
- 13 in the north-west lane area
- 21 in the New Building
- 4 in the Hanging Tower.
Once a death sentence was passed, the prisoner was segregated and placed under 24 hour suicide surveillance. They had 28 days to appeal against the death penalty. In earlier days the period between the death penalty sentence and execution was 21 days. Elizabeth Woolcock was found guilty on 4 December 1873 but in order to avoid an execution on Christmas Day the judge set the date to 30 December.
