Gertrude Hullett
Encyclopedia
Gertrude "Bobby" Hullett (1906 – 23 July 1956), a resident of Eastbourne
, East Sussex
, England
, was a patient of the suspected serial killer
Dr John Bodkin Adams
, who was charged with her murder
but never tried for it.
after Jack's death. Adams prescribed for her large amounts of sodium barbitone and sodium phenobarbitone. She had told Adams on frequent occasions of her wish to commit suicide
.
On 17 July 1956, Hullett wrote out a cheque for Adams in the amount of £1,000; to pay for an MG car which her husband had promised to buy him. Adams paid the cheque into his account the next day, and on being told that it would clear by the 21st, asked for it to be specially cleared, so that it would arrive in his account the next day.
On 19 July, Hullett is thought to have taken an overdose, and was found the next morning in a coma
. Adams was unavailable and a colleague, Dr Harris, attended her until Adams arrived later in the day. Not once during their discussion did Adams mention to Dr Harris that Mrs Hullett had had depression or her barbiturate medication. The two doctors decided a cerebral hemorrhage was most likely, due partly to contracted pupils. This, however, is also a symptom of morphine or barbiturate poisoning. Moreover, her breathing was shallow; typical of an overdose-induced coma. On 21 July, a pathologist by the name of Dr Shera was called in to take a spinal fluid sample, and immediately asked if her stomach contents should be examined in case of narcotic
poisoning, but Adams and Harris both opposed this. After Shera left, Adams visited another colleague, Dr Cook, at the Princess Alice Hospital in Eastbourne and asked about the treatment for barbiturate poisoning. He was told to give doses of 10 cc of a relatively new antidote Megimide
every five minutes, and was given 100 cc to use. The recommended dose in the instructions was 100 cc to 200 cc. Dr Cook also told him to put Hullett on an intravenous drip. Adams did not follow these suggestions.
The next morning, at 8:30 a.m., Adams called the coroner
to make an appointment for a private post-mortem. The coroner asked when the patient had died and Adams said she had not yet. Dr Harris visited again that day and Adams still made no mention of potential barbiturate poisoning. When Harris left, Adams administered a single injection of 10 cc of the Megimide. Hullett developed broncho-pneumonia and on the 23rd at 6:00 a.m., Adams gave Hullett oxygen. She died at 7:23 a.m. on the 23rd. The results of a urine
sample taken on the 21st were received after Hullett's death, on the 24th. It showed she had 115 grains
of sodium barbitone
in her body, twice the fatal dose.
Later, before Adams' trial in 1957, the Director of Public Prosecutions
's office compiled a table of patients who had been treated with Megimide and Daptazole
for barbiturate poisoning between May 1955 and July 1956 at Saint Mary's Hospital in Eastbourne, where Adams had worked one day a week as an anaesthetist. Six of those patients had been treated in the first half of 1956, before Hullett's death. All but one had been put on a drip, and several had taken a higher dose than Hullett. It was presumed by the DPP, therefore, that Adams must have heard of these cases and the use of Megimide.
, (worth at least £2,900). Adams changed the car's distinctive vanity registration
(AJH532) on December 8 and then sold it on the 13th. He was arrested six days later on December 19.
was held into Hullett's death on 21 August. The coroner asked Adams why there had been no intravenous drip, to which Adams answered, "She wasn't perspiring. She had lost no fluids." A nurse, however, described Hullett as "sweating a good deal" from the 20th till her death. When asked if he read the instructions for the Megimide, Adams answered, "No, I didn't." The coroner also described the use of oxygen as "a mere gesture". In his summing up, he then said that it was "extraordinary that the doctor, knowing the past history of the patient" did not "at once suspect barbiturate poisoning". He described Adams's 10 cc dose of Megimide as another "mere gesture".
The inquest concluded that Hullett had committed suicide. The jury were directed by the coroner not to find that Hullett died as a result of Adams's criminal negligence. After the inquest, the cheque for £1,000 disappeared.
. He was found not guilty in 1957.
Controversially, the Attorney General
Sir Reginald Manningham-Buller
entered a plea of nolle prosequi
regarding the Hullett case, an act later described by the presiding judge Patrick Devlin
as "an abuse of process". Adams was never tried for her death. Francis Camps, however, suspected him of killing 163 patients.
Eastbourne
Eastbourne is a large town and borough in East Sussex, on the south coast of England between Brighton and Hastings. The town is situated at the eastern end of the chalk South Downs alongside the high cliff at Beachy Head...
, East Sussex
East Sussex
East Sussex is a county in South East England. It is bordered by the counties of Kent, Surrey and West Sussex, and to the south by the English Channel.-History:...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, was a patient of the suspected serial killer
Serial killer
A serial killer, as typically defined, is an individual who has murdered three or more people over a period of more than a month, with down time between the murders, and whose motivation for killing is usually based on psychological gratification...
Dr John Bodkin Adams
John Bodkin Adams
John Bodkin Adams was an Irish-born British general practitioner, convicted fraudster and suspected serial killer. Between the years 1946 and 1956, more than 160 of his patients died in suspicious circumstances. Of these, 132 left him money or items in their will. He was tried and acquitted for...
, who was charged with her murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
but never tried for it.
Jack Hullett
On 14 March 1956, her husband Alfred John (Jack) Hullett died at age 71. He had been treated by John Bodkin Adams, and shortly after his death, Adams went to a chemist's shop to get a 10-cc hypodermic morphine solution in the name of Mr Hullett (containing 5 grains of morphine), and asked for the prescription to be back-dated to the previous day. . When the police investigated the case, they presumed the purpose of the ruse was to cover up morphine that Adams had given Hullett from his own private supplies. Mr Hullett left Adams £500 in his will.Her treatment
Gertrude Hullett, 50, became depressedClinical depression
Major depressive disorder is a mental disorder characterized by an all-encompassing low mood accompanied by low self-esteem, and by loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities...
after Jack's death. Adams prescribed for her large amounts of sodium barbitone and sodium phenobarbitone. She had told Adams on frequent occasions of her wish to commit suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
.
On 17 July 1956, Hullett wrote out a cheque for Adams in the amount of £1,000; to pay for an MG car which her husband had promised to buy him. Adams paid the cheque into his account the next day, and on being told that it would clear by the 21st, asked for it to be specially cleared, so that it would arrive in his account the next day.
On 19 July, Hullett is thought to have taken an overdose, and was found the next morning in a coma
Coma
In medicine, a coma is a state of unconsciousness, lasting more than 6 hours in which a person cannot be awakened, fails to respond normally to painful stimuli, light or sound, lacks a normal sleep-wake cycle and does not initiate voluntary actions. A person in a state of coma is described as...
. Adams was unavailable and a colleague, Dr Harris, attended her until Adams arrived later in the day. Not once during their discussion did Adams mention to Dr Harris that Mrs Hullett had had depression or her barbiturate medication. The two doctors decided a cerebral hemorrhage was most likely, due partly to contracted pupils. This, however, is also a symptom of morphine or barbiturate poisoning. Moreover, her breathing was shallow; typical of an overdose-induced coma. On 21 July, a pathologist by the name of Dr Shera was called in to take a spinal fluid sample, and immediately asked if her stomach contents should be examined in case of narcotic
Narcotic
The term narcotic originally referred medically to any psychoactive compound with any sleep-inducing properties. In the United States of America it has since become associated with opioids, commonly morphine and heroin and their derivatives, such as hydrocodone. The term is, today, imprecisely...
poisoning, but Adams and Harris both opposed this. After Shera left, Adams visited another colleague, Dr Cook, at the Princess Alice Hospital in Eastbourne and asked about the treatment for barbiturate poisoning. He was told to give doses of 10 cc of a relatively new antidote Megimide
Bemegride
Bemegride is a central Nervous System stimulant and antidote for barbiturate poisoning.- John Bodkin Adams case :...
every five minutes, and was given 100 cc to use. The recommended dose in the instructions was 100 cc to 200 cc. Dr Cook also told him to put Hullett on an intravenous drip. Adams did not follow these suggestions.
The next morning, at 8:30 a.m., Adams called the coroner
Coroner
A coroner is a government official who* Investigates human deaths* Determines cause of death* Issues death certificates* Maintains death records* Responds to deaths in mass disasters* Identifies unknown dead* Other functions depending on local laws...
to make an appointment for a private post-mortem. The coroner asked when the patient had died and Adams said she had not yet. Dr Harris visited again that day and Adams still made no mention of potential barbiturate poisoning. When Harris left, Adams administered a single injection of 10 cc of the Megimide. Hullett developed broncho-pneumonia and on the 23rd at 6:00 a.m., Adams gave Hullett oxygen. She died at 7:23 a.m. on the 23rd. The results of a urine
Urine
Urine is a typically sterile liquid by-product of the body that is secreted by the kidneys through a process called urination and excreted through the urethra. Cellular metabolism generates numerous by-products, many rich in nitrogen, that require elimination from the bloodstream...
sample taken on the 21st were received after Hullett's death, on the 24th. It showed she had 115 grains
Grain (measure)
A grain is a unit of measurement of mass that is nominally based upon the mass of a single seed of a cereal. From the Bronze Age into the Renaissance the average masses of wheat and barley grains were part of the legal definition of units of mass. However, there is no evidence of any country ever...
of sodium barbitone
Barbital
Barbital , also called barbitone, was the first commercially marketed barbiturate. It was used as a sleeping aid from 1903 until the mid-1950s. The chemical names for barbital are diethylmalonyl urea or diethylbarbituric acid...
in her body, twice the fatal dose.
Later, before Adams' trial in 1957, the Director of Public Prosecutions
Director of Public Prosecutions
The Director of Public Prosecutions is the officer charged with the prosecution of criminal offences in several criminal jurisdictions around the world...
's office compiled a table of patients who had been treated with Megimide and Daptazole
Amiphenazole
Amiphenazole is a respiratory stimulant traditionally used as an antidote for barbiturate or opiate overdose, usually in combination with bemegride, as well as poisoning from other sedative drugs and treatment of respiratory failure from other causes...
for barbiturate poisoning between May 1955 and July 1956 at Saint Mary's Hospital in Eastbourne, where Adams had worked one day a week as an anaesthetist. Six of those patients had been treated in the first half of 1956, before Hullett's death. All but one had been put on a drip, and several had taken a higher dose than Hullett. It was presumed by the DPP, therefore, that Adams must have heard of these cases and the use of Megimide.
Will
In a will dated 14 July, Hullett had left Adams her 1954 Rolls-Royce Silver DawnRolls-Royce Silver Dawn
The Rolls-Royce Silver Dawn is a car that was produced by Rolls-Royce at their Crewe works between 1949 and 1955. It was the first Rolls-Royce car to be offered with a factory built body which it shared, along with its chassis, with the Bentley Mark VI until 1952 and then the Bentley R Type until...
, (worth at least £2,900). Adams changed the car's distinctive vanity registration
Vanity plate
A vanity plate or personalized plate , prestige plate, private number plate, or personalised registration or custom plate or personalised plate is a special type of vehicle registration plate on an automobile or other vehicle...
(AJH532) on December 8 and then sold it on the 13th. He was arrested six days later on December 19.
Inquest
An inquestInquest
Inquests in England and Wales are held into sudden and unexplained deaths and also into the circumstances of discovery of a certain class of valuable artefacts known as "treasure trove"...
was held into Hullett's death on 21 August. The coroner asked Adams why there had been no intravenous drip, to which Adams answered, "She wasn't perspiring. She had lost no fluids." A nurse, however, described Hullett as "sweating a good deal" from the 20th till her death. When asked if he read the instructions for the Megimide, Adams answered, "No, I didn't." The coroner also described the use of oxygen as "a mere gesture". In his summing up, he then said that it was "extraordinary that the doctor, knowing the past history of the patient" did not "at once suspect barbiturate poisoning". He described Adams's 10 cc dose of Megimide as another "mere gesture".
The inquest concluded that Hullett had committed suicide. The jury were directed by the coroner not to find that Hullett died as a result of Adams's criminal negligence. After the inquest, the cheque for £1,000 disappeared.
Trial
Adams was indicted for Hullett's murder, but tried on a different count—that of murdering Edith Alice MorrellEdith Alice Morrell
Edith Alice Morrell , was a resident of Eastbourne and patient of the suspected serial killer John Bodkin Adams. He was tried for her murder in 1957 but acquitted...
. He was found not guilty in 1957.
Controversially, the Attorney General
Attorney General
In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general, or attorney-general, is the main legal advisor to the government, and in some jurisdictions he or she may also have executive responsibility for law enforcement or responsibility for public prosecutions.The term is used to refer to any person...
Sir Reginald Manningham-Buller
Reginald Manningham-Buller, 1st Viscount Dilhorne
Reginald Edward Manningham-Buller, 1st Viscount Dilhorne PC, QC , known as Sir Reginald Manningham-Buller, Bt, from 1954 to 1962 and as The Lord Dilhorne from 1962 to 1964, was an English lawyer and Conservative politician...
entered a plea of nolle prosequi
Nolle prosequi
Nolle prosequi is legal term of art and a Latin legal phrase meaning "to be unwilling to pursue", a phrase amounting to "please do not prosecute". It is a phrase used in many common law criminal prosecution contexts to describe a prosecutor's decision to voluntarily discontinue criminal charges...
regarding the Hullett case, an act later described by the presiding judge Patrick Devlin
Patrick Devlin, Baron Devlin
Patrick Arthur Devlin, Baron Devlin, PC was a British lawyer, judge and jurist. He wrote a report on Britain's involvement in Nyasaland in 1959...
as "an abuse of process". Adams was never tried for her death. Francis Camps, however, suspected him of killing 163 patients.
See also
- Edward Cavendish, 10th Duke of DevonshireEdward Cavendish, 10th Duke of DevonshireEdward William Spencer Cavendish, 10th Duke of Devonshire, KG, MBE, TD , known as Marquess of Hartington , was the head of the Devonshire branch of the Cavendish family...
, another suspected victim of Adams.