John Bodkin Adams
Encyclopedia
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 the murder of one patient in 1957. Another count of murder was withdrawn by the prosecution in what was later described as "an abuse of process" by the presiding judge Patrick Devlin
, causing questions to be asked in Parliament
about the prosecution's handling of events. The trial featured in headlines around the world and was described at the time as "one of the greatest murder trials of all time" and "murder trial of the century". It was also described at the time as "unique" because, in the words of the judge, "the act of murder" had "to be proved by expert evidence."
The trial had several important legal ramifications. It established the doctrine of double effect, whereby a doctor giving treatment with the aim of relieving pain may, as an unintentional result, shorten life. Secondly, because of the publicity surrounding Adams's committal hearing, the law was changed to allow defendants to ask for such hearings to be held in private. Finally, though a defendant had never been required to give evidence in his own defence
, the judge underlined in his summing-up that no prejudice should be attached by the jury
to Adams not doing so.
Adams was found guilty in a subsequent trial of 13 offences of prescription fraud, lying on cremation forms, obstructing a police search and failing to keep a dangerous drugs register. He was removed from the Medical Register in 1957 and reinstated in 1961 after two failed applications.
Scotland Yard
's files on the case were initially closed to the public for 75 years, until 2033. Special permission was granted in 2003 to reopen the files.
, an austere Protestant sect of which he remained a member for his entire life. His father, Samuel, was a preacher in the local congregation, though by profession he was a watchmaker. He also had a passionate interest in cars, which he would pass on to John. Samuel was 39 years old when he married Ellen Bodkin, 30, in Randalstown
, Ireland, in 1896. John was their first son, followed by a brother, William Samuel, in 1903. In 1914, Adams's father died of a stroke
. Four years later, William died in the 1918 influenza pandemic
.
After attending Coleraine Academical Institution
for a number of years, Adams matriculated
at Queen's University Belfast, at the age of 17. There he was seen as a "plodder" and "lone wolf" by his lecturers and, partly because of an illness (probably tuberculosis
), he missed a year of studies. He graduated in 1921 having failed to qualify for honours.
In 1921, surgeon Arthur Rendle Short
offered him a position as assistant houseman
at Bristol Royal Infirmary
. Adams spent a year there but did not prove a success. On Short's advice, Adams applied for a job as a general practitioner in a Christian
practice in Eastbourne
.
Adams arrived in Eastbourne in 1922, where he lived with his mother and also his cousin, Sarah Florence Henry. In 1929 he borrowed £2,000 (£ today) from a patient, William Mawhood, and bought Kent Lodge, an 18-room house in Trinity Trees (then known as Seaside Road), a select address. Adams would frequently invite himself to the Mawhoods' residence at meal time, even bringing his mother and cousin. He also began charging items to their accounts at local stores, without their permission. Mrs. Mawhood would later describe Adams to the police as "a real scrounger". When Mr. Mawhood died in 1949, Adams visited his widow uninvited and took a 22-carat gold pen from her bedroom dressing table, saying he wanted "something of her husband's". He never visited her again.
Gossip regarding Adams's unconventional methods had started by the mid 1930s. In 1935 Adams inherited £7,385 from a patient, Matilda Whitton. This is equivalent to £ today. The will
was contested by her relatives but upheld in court, though a codicil
giving Adams's mother £100 was overturned. Adams then began receiving "anonymous postcards" about him "bumping off" patients, as he admitted in a newspaper interview in 1957. These were received at a rate of 3 or 4 a year until the war, and then commenced again in 1945.
Adams stayed in Eastbourne throughout the war, though he was "furious" at not being deemed desirable by other doctors to be selected for a "pool system" where GPs would treat the patients of colleagues who had been called up. In 1941 he gained a diploma in anaesthetics and worked in a local hospital one day a week, where he acquired a reputation as a bungler. He would fall asleep during operations, eat cakes, count money, and even mix up the anaesthetic gas tubes, leading to patients waking up or turning blue
. In 1943, his mother died and in 1952 his cousin Sarah developed cancer
. Adams gave her an injection half an hour before she died and according to Cullen, this is the only "case where it can be considered that the Doctor was 'easing the passing
'".
Adams's career was very successful, and by 1956 "he was probably the wealthiest GP in England". He attended some of the most famous and influential people in the region, including MP and Olympic
medal winner Lord Burghley
, society painter Oswald Birley
, Admiral Robert Prendergast
, industrialist Sir Alexander Maguire
, the 10th Duke of Devonshire
, Eastbourne's Chief Constable Richard Walker and a host of businessmen. However, after years of rumours, and Adams's having been mentioned in at least 132 wills of his patients, on 23 July 1956 Eastbourne police received an anonymous call about a death. It was from Leslie Henson
, the music hall performer, whose friend Gertrude Hullett
had died unexpectedly while being treated by Adams.
of Scotland Yard
was known for having solved the infamous Teddington Towpath Murders in 1953. He was assisted by a junior officer, Detective Sergeant Charles Hewett.
The investigation decided to focus on cases from 1946 to 1956 only. Of the 310 death certificates examined by Home Office
pathologist Francis Camps
, 163 were deemed to be suspicious. Many had been given "special injections" of substances Adams refused to describe to the nurses caring for his patients. Furthermore, it emerged that his habit was to ask the nurses to leave the room before injections were given. He would also isolate patients from their relatives, hindering contact between them.
(BMA) sent a letter to all doctors in Eastbourne reminding them of "Professional Secrecy" (i.e. patient confidentiality) if interviewed by the police. Hannam was not impressed, especially since any information gleaned would relate to dead patients. He, and the Attorney-General, Sir Reginald Manningham-Buller (who prosecuted all cases of poisoning), wrote to the BMA secretary, Dr Macrae, "to try to get him to remove the ban". The impasse continued until on 8 November Manningham-Buller met with Dr Macrae to convince him of the importance of the case. During this meeting, in a highly unusual move, he passed Hannam's confidential 187 page report on Adams to Dr Macrae. Dr Macrae took the report to the President of the BMA and returned it the next day. In all likelihood, he also copied it and passed it on to the defence. Convinced of the seriousness of the accusations, Dr Macrae dropped his opposition to doctors talking to the police. In the end though, only two Eastbourne doctors ever gave evidence to the police.
On 28 November 1956, opposition Labour Party
MPs
Stephen Swingler
and Hugh Delargy
gave notice of two questions to be asked in the House of Commons regarding the affair, one asking what "reports [the Attorney-General] has sent" to the General Medical Council
(GMC) of the BMA in the "past six months". Manningham-Buller replied that he had "had no communications" with the GMC, but only with an officer of it. He did not mention the report. Instead, he instigated an investigation into a leak
, later concluding that Hannam himself had passed information regarding the meeting with Dr Macrae to a journalist, probably Rodney Hallworth
of the Daily Mail
.
Adams had forged: "That was very wrong [...] I have had God's forgiveness for it", Adams replied. Hannam brought up the deaths of Adams' patients and his receipt of legacies from them. Adams answered: "A lot of those were instead of fees, I don't want money. What use is it? I paid £1100 super tax
last year" Hannam later mentioned, "Mr Hullett left you £500". Adams replied, "Now, now, he was a life-long friend [...] I even thought it would be more than it was." Finally, when asked why he had stated untruthfully on cremation forms that he was not to inherit from the deceased, Adams said:
issued (in Pugh's name) under the Dangerous Drugs Act 1951. When told they were looking for "Morphine, Heroin, Pethidine and the like" Adams was surprised, "Oh, that group. You will find none here. I haven't any. I very seldom ever use them" he said. When Hannam asked for Adams' Dangerous Drugs Register – the record of those ordered and used – Adams responded: "I don't know what you mean. I keep no register." He hadn't kept one in fact since 1949. When shown a list of dangerous drugs he had prescribed Morrell, and asked who administered them, Adams said, "I did nearly all. Perhaps the nurses gave some but mostly me" – contradicting what the nurses' notebooks would show during his trial. Hannam then observed, "Doctor, you prescribed for her 75 – 1/6 grains heroin tablets the day before she died." Adams replied, "Poor soul, she was in terrible agony. It was all used. I used them myself [...] Do you think it is too much?"
Adams opened a cupboard for the police: amongst medicine bottles were "chocolates – slabs stuck – butter, margarine, sugar". While the officers inspected it Adams walked to another cupboard and slipped two objects into his jacket pocket. Hannam and Pugh challenged him and Adams showed them two bottles of morphine
; one he said was for Annie Sharpe, a patient and major witness who had died nine days earlier under his care; the other said "Mr Soden". He had died on 17 September 1956 but pharmacy records later showed Soden had never been prescribed morphine. Adams was later (after his main trial in 1957) convicted of obstructing the search, concealing the bottles and for failing to keep a Dangerous Drugs register.
Later at the police station, Adams told Hannam:
In the basement of Adams's house, the police found, "a lot of unused china and silverware. In one room there were 20 new motor car tyres still in their wrappings and several new motor car leaf springs. Wines and spirits were stored in quantity." Hallworth reports that Adams was stockpiling in case of another World War
. On the second floor, "one room was given over to an armoury [:] six guns in a glass-fronted display case, several automatic pistols". He had permits for these. Another room was used "wholly for photographic equipment. A dozen very expensive cameras in leather cases" lay around.
journalist, concerning rumours of homosexuality
between "a police officer, a magistrate, and a doctor". The latter directly implied Adams. This information had come, according to the reporter, directly from Hannam. The 'magistrate' was Sir Roland Gwynne
, Mayor of Eastbourne from 1929 to 1931 and brother of Rupert Gwynne
, MP for Eastbourne from 1910 to 1924. Gwynne was Adams's patient and known to visit every day at 9am. They went on frequent holidays together and had just spent three weeks in Scotland that September. The 'police officer' was the Deputy Chief Constable of Eastbourne, Alexander Seekings. Hannam however ignored this line of inquiry (despite homosexual acts being an offence in 1956) and the police instead gave the journalist a dressing-down. The memo is, however, testament to Adams's close connections to those of power in Eastbourne at the time.
There were rumours of Adams having three "mistresses" but these were probably just "covers" to avoid suspicion. Adams became engaged in around 1933 to Norah O'Hara but called it off in 1935 after her father had bought them a house and furnished it. Various explanations have been suggested: Surtees suggests that it was because Adams's mother didn't want him to marry "trade" though he also quotes a rumour that Adams wanted O'Hara's father to change his will to favour his daughters. Cullen suggests that, apart from being homosexual, Adams also didn't want his being married to interfere with his relationship with his elderly female patients. Adams remained friends with O'Hara his whole life and remembered her in his will.
Then while he was being taken away from Kent Lodge, he gripped his receptionist's hand and told her: "I will see you in heaven."
Hannam collected enough evidence in at least four of the cases for prosecution to be warranted: regarding Clara Neil Miller, Julia Bradnum, Edith Alice Morrell
, and Gertrude Hullett
. Of these, Adams was charged on one count: the murder of Morrell, but with the murder of Hullett (and also of her husband) being used to prove 'system'.
on 14 January 1957. The Chairman of the magistrates was Sir Roland Gwynne, but he stepped down because of his close friendship with Adams. The hearing concluded on 24 January and after a five-minute deliberation, Adams was committed for trial. A vital piece of evidence, a cheque written out for ₤1000, went missing after the hearing, instigating a further police investigation. While the culprit was not found, Scotland Yard suspected the local Deputy Chief Constable of Eastbourne, Seekings, of having misplaced it to help Adams. Seekings was known to have taken holidays with Adams and Gwynne, and even looked after Gwynne's finances while he was in hospital in January 1957.
By the time the trial started on 18 March 1957 at the Old Bailey
the charge had been reduced to just Morrell, with Gertrude Hullett held back for a possible second separate trial. Three days later, a new Homicide Act
came into effect; murder by poison became a non-capital offence
. Adams, having been committed before this date, would still face the death penalty if convicted. If, however, the Home Secretary
decided to grant clemency, a conviction on a second count of murder, the Hullett charge, would make it far more difficult politically to sentence Adams to life imprisonment
.
journalist was suspected. The poem finished:
Morrell was a wealthy widow who suffered a brain thrombosis
(a stroke) on 24 June 1948 while visiting her son in Cheshire
. She was partially paralysed
and was admitted to a hospital. Adams, her usual doctor, arrived on the 26th and the following day she was prescribed morphine (¼ grains) for pain. Adams took her back to Eastbourne and continued the morphia, gradually increasing the dose and adding heroin, until she was addicted.
Morrell made several will
s. In some, Adams received large sums of money, Morrell's Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost
(valued at £1,500) and furniture — while in others, he was not mentioned at all. Finally, on 13 September 1950 a codicil
was written cutting Adams out of her will completely. After a year and three months of treatment, she died on 13 November 1950 aged 81. Adams certified the cause of death as "stroke" and on inspecting the body, slit her wrist to ensure she was dead. Despite the last codicil, Adams inherited the Rolls-Royce, a Jacobean court cupboard and an antique chest containing silver cutlery worth £276. After Morrell's death, he also took away an infrared lamp she had bought herself, worth £60. Adams billed Morrell's estate for 1,100 visits, costing ₤1,674 in total. The police however estimated that Adams had visited Morrell a total of 321 times during her treatment. On her cremation form, Adams stated that "as far as I am aware" he had no pecuniary interest in the death of the deceased, thereby avoiding the necessity of a post-mortem.
On 23 July 1956 Gertrude Hullett
, another of Adams' patients, died aged 50. She had been depressed
since the death of her husband four months earlier and had been prescribed large amounts of sodium barbitone and also 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 for £1,000 – to pay for an MG car 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 – to 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 her depression or her barbiturate medication. They decided a cerebral haemorrhage was most likely. On the 21st Dr Shera, a pathologist, was called in to take a spinal fluid sample and immediately asked if her stomach contents should be examined in case of narcotic
poisoning. Adams and Harris both opposed this. After Shera left, Adams visited a colleague 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 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.
The next morning, at 8.30 a.m. on the 22nd, 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 had left, Adams gave 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.
An inquest
was held into Hullett's death on 21 August. The coroner questioned Adams' treatment and in his summing up 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 committed suicide. After the inquest, the cheque for £1,000 disappeared.
Hullett left Adams her Rolls-Royce Silver Dawn
(worth at least £2,900) in a will written five days before her overdose. Adams sold it six days before he was arrested.
. Devlin summed up the tricky nature of the case thus: "It is a most curious situation, perhaps unique in these courts, that the act of murder has to be proved by expert evidence
." Defence counsel Sir Frederick Geoffrey Lawrence
QC
– a "specialist in real estate
and divorce
cases [and] a relative stranger in criminal court", who was defending his first murder trial – convinced the jury that there was no evidence that a murder had been committed, much less that a murder had been committed by Adams. He emphasised that the indictment was based mainly on testimonies from the nurses who tended Morrell — and that none of the witnesses' evidence matched the others'. Then, on the second day of the trial, he produced notebooks written by the nurses, detailing Adams' treatment of Morrell. The prosecution claimed never to have seen these notebooks (even though they are recorded in pretrial lists of evidence). These differed from the nurses' recollection of events, and showed that smaller quantities of drugs were given to the patient than the prosecution had thought, based on Adams' prescriptions. Furthermore, the prosecution's two expert medical witnesses gave differing opinions. Dr Arthur Douthwaite
was prepared to say that murder had definitely been committed (though he changed his mind in the middle of his testimony regarding the exact date), but Dr Michael Ashby
was more reticent. Defence witness Dr John Harman
, however, was adamant that Adams' treatment, though unusual, was not reckless. Finally, the prosecution was wrong-footed by the defence not calling the loquacious Adams to give evidence, and thereby avoiding him "chatting himself to the gallows
". This was totally unexpected, shocking the prosecution and the press, and even surprising the judge.
When the jury retired to discuss the verdict, Lord Chief Justice Rayner Goddard phoned Devlin to urge him, if Adams were found not guilty, to grant Adams bail
before he was to be tried on a second count of murdering Gertrude Hullett. Devlin was taken aback at this since a person accused of murder had never been given bail before in English legal history. During the committal hearing prior to the trial, Goddard had been seen dining with Sir Roland Gwynne at the White Hart hotel in Lewes
. Goddard, as Lord Chief Justice, had by then already appointed Devlin to try Adams' case.
On 9 April 1957, the jury returned after just 44 minutes to find Adams not guilty.
(A joke then circulating in legal circles referring to the chief prosecutor Reginald Manningham-Buller was that this was not 'homicide' but 'regicide')
, witness
es and others involved in the case. The files were opened to the public only after special permission was granted in 2003.
:
Hannam also discovered that 4 members of Adams' household staff had been prescribed either morphine, heroin or pethidine by Adams. Adams obtained these on the NHS, leading Hannam to conclude that he was merely using their names and keeping the drugs for his own supplies – an act of fraud.
and was convicted in Lewes Crown Court
on 26 July 1957, on 8 counts of forging prescriptions, four counts of making false statements on cremation forms, and three offences under the Dangerous Drugs Act, 1951 and fined £2,400 plus costs of £457. His licence to prescribe dangerous drugs was revoked on 4 September and on 27 November he was struck off the Medical Register by the GMC
. Adams continued to see some of his more loyal patients, and prescribed over the counter medicine to them.
Right after the trial, Percy Hoskins
, chief crime reporter for the Daily Express
, whisked Adams off to a safehouse in Westgate-on-Sea
, where he spent the next 2 weeks recounting his life story. Hoskins had befriended Adams during the trial and was the only major journalist to doubt his guilt. Adams was paid £10,000 for the interview, though he never spent the proceeds – the notes were found in a bank vault after his death, untouched. Adams then successfully sued several newspapers for libel. He returned to Eastbourne, where he continued to practise privately despite the common belief in the town that he had murdered people. This belief was not, however, shared by his friends and patients in general. One exception was Roland Gwynne
, who distanced himself considerably from Adams after the trial.
Adams was reinstated as a general practitioner on 22 November 1961 after two failed applications, and his authority to prescribe dangerous drugs was restored the following July. He continued to practise as a sole practitioner, not resuming his partnership with the town's "Red House" practice. In August 1962 Adams applied for a visa to America but was refused because of his dangerous drug convictions.
Adams later became President (and Honorary Medical Officer) of the British Clay Pigeon Shooting Association
.
Roland Gwynne died on 15 November 1971. Adams signed his death certificate.
, East Sussex
. He was taken to Eastbourne hospital but developed a chest infection and died on 4 July of left ventricular failure. He left an estate of £402,970 and bequeathed £1000 to Percy Hoskins
. Hoskins gave the money to charity. Adams had been receiving legacies until the end. In 1986, The Good Doctor Bodkin Adams, a TV docudrama based on his trial, was produced starring Timothy West
.
, present at Adams's trial, was adamant that he was not guilty. Many publications, however, were sued for libel during Adams's lifetime, showing the prevalence of the rumours that surrounded him. The 1961 film Victim, meanwhile, alludes to Adams when it is mentioned that the main character, barrister Melville Farr, defended a "Dr Porchester". "He should have hung, you know," Farr is told by Calloway, an actor who was present in court; he replies "There was a moment when we thought he would. We were all very relieved."
After Adams's death, writers were more free to speculate. In 1983 Rodney Hallworth
and Mark Williams concluded Adams was a serial killer and probably schizophrenic: "In the opinion of many experts Adams died an unconvicted mass-murderer".Percy Hoskins
, writing in 1984, was of the opposite opinion, adamant that Adams was not guilty but merely "naive" and "avaricious". In 1985 Sir Patrick Devlin, the judge, stated that Adams may have been a "mercenary
mercy killer" but, though compassionate, he was at the same time greedy and "prepared to sell death" : 'He did not think of himself as a murderer but a dispenser of death [...] According to his lights, he had done nothing wrong. There was nothing wrong in a doctor getting a legacy, nor in his bestowing in return [...] a death as happy as heroin could make it.' He also "could be convinced that Dr Adams had helped to end Mrs Hullett's life". In 2000, Surtees, a former colleague of Adams, wrote a more sympathetic account of him as being the victim of a police vendetta
.
John Emsley
, writing in 2008, concurs with Cullen saying "It now seems almost certain that over a 30-year period he killed 160 of his patients". Katherine Ramsland
records that despite the outcome of the trial, Adams "is nevertheless believed to have repeatedly committed what the law regards as murder". Herbert G Kinnell, writing in the British Medical Journal
, speculates that Adams "possibly provided the role model for Shipman
".
, stood trial for murder arising from treatment. Arthur was tried in November 1981 at Leicester
Crown Court for the attempted murder of John Pearson, a newborn child with Downs Syndrome. Like Adams, on the advice of his legal team he did not give evidence in his defence, relying instead on expert witnesses. He was acquitted.
In 2000, Harold Shipman
became the only British doctor to be successfully prosecuted for the murder of his patients. He was found guilty on 15 counts and The Shipman Inquiry
concluded in 2002 that he had murdered a further 200.
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
-born British
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
general practitioner
General practitioner
A general practitioner is a medical practitioner who treats acute and chronic illnesses and provides preventive care and health education for all ages and both sexes. They have particular skills in treating people with multiple health issues and comorbidities...
, convicted fraudster and 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...
. 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
Will (law)
A will or testament is a legal declaration by which a person, the testator, names one or more persons to manage his/her estate and provides for the transfer of his/her property at death...
. He was tried and acquitted for the murder of one patient in 1957. Another count of murder was withdrawn by the prosecution in what was later described as "an abuse of process" 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...
, causing questions to be asked in Parliament
Parliament
A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
about the prosecution's handling of events. The trial featured in headlines around the world and was described at the time as "one of the greatest murder trials of all time" and "murder trial of the century". It was also described at the time as "unique" because, in the words of the judge, "the act of murder" had "to be proved by expert evidence."
The trial had several important legal ramifications. It established the doctrine of double effect, whereby a doctor giving treatment with the aim of relieving pain may, as an unintentional result, shorten life. Secondly, because of the publicity surrounding Adams's committal hearing, the law was changed to allow defendants to ask for such hearings to be held in private. Finally, though a defendant had never been required to give evidence in his own defence
Right to silence in England and Wales
The right to silence in England and Wales is the protection given to a person during criminal proceedings from adverse consequences of remaining silent. It is sometimes referred to as the privilege against self-incrimination...
, the judge underlined in his summing-up that no prejudice should be attached by the jury
Jury
A jury is a sworn body of people convened to render an impartial verdict officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a penalty or judgment. Modern juries tend to be found in courts to ascertain the guilt, or lack thereof, in a crime. In Anglophone jurisdictions, the verdict may be guilty,...
to Adams not doing so.
Adams was found guilty in a subsequent trial of 13 offences of prescription fraud, lying on cremation forms, obstructing a police search and failing to keep a dangerous drugs register. He was removed from the Medical Register in 1957 and reinstated in 1961 after two failed applications.
Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard is a metonym for the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Service of London, UK. It derives from the location of the original Metropolitan Police headquarters at 4 Whitehall Place, which had a rear entrance on a street called Great Scotland Yard. The Scotland Yard entrance became...
's files on the case were initially closed to the public for 75 years, until 2033. Special permission was granted in 2003 to reopen the files.
Early years
Adams was born into a deeply religious family of Plymouth BrethrenPlymouth Brethren
The Plymouth Brethren is a conservative, Evangelical Christian movement, whose history can be traced to Dublin, Ireland, in the late 1820s. Although the group is notable for not taking any official "church name" to itself, and not having an official clergy or liturgy, the title "The Brethren," is...
, an austere Protestant sect of which he remained a member for his entire life. His father, Samuel, was a preacher in the local congregation, though by profession he was a watchmaker. He also had a passionate interest in cars, which he would pass on to John. Samuel was 39 years old when he married Ellen Bodkin, 30, in Randalstown
Randalstown
Randalstown is a small town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, located between the towns of Antrim and Toome. It had a population of 4,956 people in the 2001 Census. It has a very prominent disused railway viaduct and lies beside Lough Neagh and the Shane's Castle estate...
, Ireland, in 1896. John was their first son, followed by a brother, William Samuel, in 1903. In 1914, Adams's father died of a stroke
Stroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
. Four years later, William died in the 1918 influenza pandemic
Spanish flu
The 1918 flu pandemic was an influenza pandemic, and the first of the two pandemics involving H1N1 influenza virus . It was an unusually severe and deadly pandemic that spread across the world. Historical and epidemiological data are inadequate to identify the geographic origin...
.
After attending Coleraine Academical Institution
Coleraine Academical Institution
Coleraine Academical Institution , styled locally as Coleraine Inst, is a voluntary grammar school for boys, situated in Coleraine, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland....
for a number of years, Adams matriculated
Matriculation
Matriculation, in the broadest sense, means to be registered or added to a list, from the Latin matricula – little list. In Scottish heraldry, for instance, a matriculation is a registration of armorial bearings...
at Queen's University Belfast, at the age of 17. There he was seen as a "plodder" and "lone wolf" by his lecturers and, partly because of an illness (probably tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
), he missed a year of studies. He graduated in 1921 having failed to qualify for honours.
In 1921, surgeon Arthur Rendle Short
Arthur Rendle Short
Arthur Rendle Short was a professor of surgery at Bristol University and author. During that time, he briefly employed the suspected serial killer John Bodkin Adams.-Biography:...
offered him a position as assistant houseman
Houseman
Houseman may refer to:*House officer, a junior doctor in a British hospital*Useful man, a grade of domestic servant below footmanPeople whose surname is or was Houseman include:*Edward Houseman , English cricketer...
at Bristol Royal Infirmary
Bristol Royal Infirmary
The Bristol Royal Infirmary, also known as the BRI, is a large teaching hospital situated in the centre of Bristol, England. It has links with the medical faculty of the nearby University of Bristol, and the Faculty of Health and Social Care at the University of the West of England, also in...
. Adams spent a year there but did not prove a success. On Short's advice, Adams applied for a job as a general practitioner in a Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
practice in Eastbourne
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...
.
Eastbourne
Gossip regarding Adams's unconventional methods had started by the mid 1930s. In 1935 Adams inherited £7,385 from a patient, Matilda Whitton. This is equivalent to £ today. The will
Will (law)
A will or testament is a legal declaration by which a person, the testator, names one or more persons to manage his/her estate and provides for the transfer of his/her property at death...
was contested by her relatives but upheld in court, though a codicil
Codicil (will)
A codicil is a document that amends, rather than replaces, a previously executed will. Amendments made by a codicil may add or revoke small provisions , or may completely change the majority, or all, of the gifts under the will...
giving Adams's mother £100 was overturned. Adams then began receiving "anonymous postcards" about him "bumping off" patients, as he admitted in a newspaper interview in 1957. These were received at a rate of 3 or 4 a year until the war, and then commenced again in 1945.
Adams stayed in Eastbourne throughout the war, though he was "furious" at not being deemed desirable by other doctors to be selected for a "pool system" where GPs would treat the patients of colleagues who had been called up. In 1941 he gained a diploma in anaesthetics and worked in a local hospital one day a week, where he acquired a reputation as a bungler. He would fall asleep during operations, eat cakes, count money, and even mix up the anaesthetic gas tubes, leading to patients waking up or turning blue
Cyanosis
Cyanosis is the appearance of a blue or purple coloration of the skin or mucous membranes due to the tissues near the skin surface being low on oxygen. The onset of cyanosis is 2.5 g/dL of deoxyhemoglobin. The bluish color is more readily apparent in those with high hemoglobin counts than it is...
. In 1943, his mother died and in 1952 his cousin Sarah developed cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
. Adams gave her an injection half an hour before she died and according to Cullen, this is the only "case where it can be considered that the Doctor was 'easing the passing
Euthanasia
Euthanasia refers to the practice of intentionally ending a life in order to relieve pain and suffering....
'".
Adams's career was very successful, and by 1956 "he was probably the wealthiest GP in England". He attended some of the most famous and influential people in the region, including MP and Olympic
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
medal winner Lord Burghley
David Cecil, 6th Marquess of Exeter
David George Brownlow Cecil, 6th Marquess of Exeter KCMG , styled Lord Burghley before 1956 and also known as David Burghley, was an English athlete, sports official and Conservative Party politician...
, society painter Oswald Birley
Oswald Birley
Sir Oswald Hornby Joseph Birley, MC, RA was an English portrait painter in the early part of the 20th century.-Biography:...
, Admiral Robert Prendergast
Robert Prendergast
Admiral Sir Robert John Prendergast KCB was a British Royal Navy officer.-Career:Prendergast entered the Royal Navy as a Cadet in 1877. He served in the Anglo-Egyptian War of 1882 as a Midshipman aboard the broadside ironclad HMS Achilles. In 1885 he transferred to the gunboat HMS Grappler at...
, industrialist Sir Alexander Maguire
Alexander Maguire
Sir Alexander Maguire was a British industrialist who made his fortune from match manufacturing, producing the Maguire & Patterson brand amongst others.-Life:...
, the 10th Duke of Devonshire
Edward Cavendish, 10th Duke of Devonshire
Edward 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...
, Eastbourne's Chief Constable Richard Walker and a host of businessmen. However, after years of rumours, and Adams's having been mentioned in at least 132 wills of his patients, on 23 July 1956 Eastbourne police received an anonymous call about a death. It was from Leslie Henson
Leslie Henson
Leslie Lincoln Henson was an English comedian, actor, producer for films and theatre, and film director. He initially worked in silent films and Edwardian musical comedy and became a popular music hall comedian who enjoyed a long stage career...
, the music hall performer, whose friend Gertrude Hullett
Gertrude Hullett
Gertrude "Bobby" Hullett , 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.-Jack Hullett:...
had died unexpectedly while being treated by Adams.
The police investigation
The investigation was taken over from Eastbourne police on 17 August by two officers from the Metropolitan Police's Murder Squad. The senior officer, Detective Superintendent Herbert HannamHerbert Hannam
Detective Superintendent Herbert Hannam was a British policeman who worked for Scotland Yard.-Career:Hannam became famous for solving the infamous Teddington Towpath Murders in 1953....
of Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard is a metonym for the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Service of London, UK. It derives from the location of the original Metropolitan Police headquarters at 4 Whitehall Place, which had a rear entrance on a street called Great Scotland Yard. The Scotland Yard entrance became...
was known for having solved the infamous Teddington Towpath Murders in 1953. He was assisted by a junior officer, Detective Sergeant Charles Hewett.
The investigation decided to focus on cases from 1946 to 1956 only. Of the 310 death certificates examined by Home Office
Home Office
The Home Office is the United Kingdom government department responsible for immigration control, security, and order. As such it is responsible for the police, UK Border Agency, and the Security Service . It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs,...
pathologist Francis Camps
Francis Camps
Francis Edward Camps, FRCP, FRCpath was a famous English pathologist notable for his work on the cases of serial killer John Christie and suspected serial killer John Bodkin Adams.-Early life and training:...
, 163 were deemed to be suspicious. Many had been given "special injections" of substances Adams refused to describe to the nurses caring for his patients. Furthermore, it emerged that his habit was to ask the nurses to leave the room before injections were given. He would also isolate patients from their relatives, hindering contact between them.
Obstruction
On 24 August, in an "extraordinary move" the British Medical AssociationBritish Medical Association
The British Medical Association is the professional association and registered trade union for doctors in the United Kingdom. The association does not regulate or certify doctors, a responsibility which lies with the General Medical Council. The association’s headquarters are located in BMA House,...
(BMA) sent a letter to all doctors in Eastbourne reminding them of "Professional Secrecy" (i.e. patient confidentiality) if interviewed by the police. Hannam was not impressed, especially since any information gleaned would relate to dead patients. He, and the Attorney-General, Sir Reginald Manningham-Buller (who prosecuted all cases of poisoning), wrote to the BMA secretary, Dr Macrae, "to try to get him to remove the ban". The impasse continued until on 8 November Manningham-Buller met with Dr Macrae to convince him of the importance of the case. During this meeting, in a highly unusual move, he passed Hannam's confidential 187 page report on Adams to Dr Macrae. Dr Macrae took the report to the President of the BMA and returned it the next day. In all likelihood, he also copied it and passed it on to the defence. Convinced of the seriousness of the accusations, Dr Macrae dropped his opposition to doctors talking to the police. In the end though, only two Eastbourne doctors ever gave evidence to the police.
On 28 November 1956, opposition Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
MPs
MPS
MPS may refer to:* Robinson List, aka Mail Preference Service, direct mail opt-out system* Malmin Palloseura, association football club from Helsinki, Finland.* Marginal propensity to save* Master Production Schedule...
Stephen Swingler
Stephen Swingler
Stephen Thomas Swingler, PC was a Labour Party politician in the United Kingdom. He was a Member of Parliament from 1945 to 1950, and from 1951 to 1969....
and Hugh Delargy
Hugh Delargy
Hugh James Delargy was an Irish British Labour Party politician and MP.He was born in County Antrim.Delargy was educated in England, Paris and Rome and worked as a teacher, journalist, labourer and insurance official...
gave notice of two questions to be asked in the House of Commons regarding the affair, one asking what "reports [the Attorney-General] has sent" to the General Medical Council
General Medical Council
The General Medical Council registers and regulates doctors practising in the United Kingdom. It has the power to revoke or restrict a doctor's registration if it deems them unfit to practise...
(GMC) of the BMA in the "past six months". Manningham-Buller replied that he had "had no communications" with the GMC, but only with an officer of it. He did not mention the report. Instead, he instigated an investigation into a leak
Leak
A leak is a hole or other opening, usually unintended and therefore undesired, in a container or fluid-containing system, such as a tank or a ship's hull, through which the contents of the container can escape or outside matter can enter the container...
, later concluding that Hannam himself had passed information regarding the meeting with Dr Macrae to a journalist, probably Rodney Hallworth
Rodney Hallworth
-Journalism:Hallworth worked as a crime reporter for the Daily Mail. He reported on many cases but most famously on that of suspected serial killer Dr John Bodkin Adams in 1956...
of the Daily Mail
Daily Mail
The Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. First published in 1896 by Lord Northcliffe, it is the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling daily newspaper after The Sun. Its sister paper The Mail on Sunday was launched in 1982...
.
The meeting
On 1 October 1956 Hannam bumped into Adams and Adams asked "You are finding all these rumours untrue, aren't you?" Hannam mentioned a prescriptionMedical prescription
A prescription is a health-care program implemented by a physician or other medical practitioner in the form of instructions that govern the plan of care for an individual patient. Prescriptions may include orders to be performed by a patient, caretaker, nurse, pharmacist or other therapist....
Adams had forged: "That was very wrong [...] I have had God's forgiveness for it", Adams replied. Hannam brought up the deaths of Adams' patients and his receipt of legacies from them. Adams answered: "A lot of those were instead of fees, I don't want money. What use is it? I paid £1100 super tax
Surtax
A surtax may be a tax levied upon a tax, or a tax levied upon income.-United Kingdom:In 1929, Supertax was renamed Sur-tax...
last year" Hannam later mentioned, "Mr Hullett left you £500". Adams replied, "Now, now, he was a life-long friend [...] I even thought it would be more than it was." Finally, when asked why he had stated untruthfully on cremation forms that he was not to inherit from the deceased, Adams said:
Search
On 24 November, Hannam, Hewett and the head of Eastbourne CID, Detective Inspector Pugh, searched Adams' house with a warrantWarrant (law)
Most often, the term warrant refers to a specific type of authorization; a writ issued by a competent officer, usually a judge or magistrate, which permits an otherwise illegal act that would violate individual rights and affords the person executing the writ protection from damages if the act is...
issued (in Pugh's name) under the Dangerous Drugs Act 1951. When told they were looking for "Morphine, Heroin, Pethidine and the like" Adams was surprised, "Oh, that group. You will find none here. I haven't any. I very seldom ever use them" he said. When Hannam asked for Adams' Dangerous Drugs Register – the record of those ordered and used – Adams responded: "I don't know what you mean. I keep no register." He hadn't kept one in fact since 1949. When shown a list of dangerous drugs he had prescribed Morrell, and asked who administered them, Adams said, "I did nearly all. Perhaps the nurses gave some but mostly me" – contradicting what the nurses' notebooks would show during his trial. Hannam then observed, "Doctor, you prescribed for her 75 – 1/6 grains heroin tablets the day before she died." Adams replied, "Poor soul, she was in terrible agony. It was all used. I used them myself [...] Do you think it is too much?"
Adams opened a cupboard for the police: amongst medicine bottles were "chocolates – slabs stuck – butter, margarine, sugar". While the officers inspected it Adams walked to another cupboard and slipped two objects into his jacket pocket. Hannam and Pugh challenged him and Adams showed them two bottles of morphine
Morphine
Morphine is a potent opiate analgesic medication and is considered to be the prototypical opioid. It was first isolated in 1804 by Friedrich Sertürner, first distributed by same in 1817, and first commercially sold by Merck in 1827, which at the time was a single small chemists' shop. It was more...
; one he said was for Annie Sharpe, a patient and major witness who had died nine days earlier under his care; the other said "Mr Soden". He had died on 17 September 1956 but pharmacy records later showed Soden had never been prescribed morphine. Adams was later (after his main trial in 1957) convicted of obstructing the search, concealing the bottles and for failing to keep a Dangerous Drugs register.
Later at the police station, Adams told Hannam:
In the basement of Adams's house, the police found, "a lot of unused china and silverware. In one room there were 20 new motor car tyres still in their wrappings and several new motor car leaf springs. Wines and spirits were stored in quantity." Hallworth reports that Adams was stockpiling in case of another World War
World war
A world war is a war affecting the majority of the world's most powerful and populous nations. World wars span multiple countries on multiple continents, with battles fought in multiple theaters....
. On the second floor, "one room was given over to an armoury [:] six guns in a glass-fronted display case, several automatic pistols". He had permits for these. Another room was used "wholly for photographic equipment. A dozen very expensive cameras in leather cases" lay around.
Sexuality
In December the police acquired a memorandum belonging to a Daily MailDaily Mail
The Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. First published in 1896 by Lord Northcliffe, it is the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling daily newspaper after The Sun. Its sister paper The Mail on Sunday was launched in 1982...
journalist, concerning rumours of homosexuality
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
between "a police officer, a magistrate, and a doctor". The latter directly implied Adams. This information had come, according to the reporter, directly from Hannam. The 'magistrate' was Sir Roland Gwynne
Roland Gwynne
Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Roland Vaughan Gwynne, DSO, DL, JP was Mayor of Eastbourne, Sussex, from 1928 to 1931. He was also a patient and close friend of the suspected serial killer Dr John Bodkin Adams.-Childhood:...
, Mayor of Eastbourne from 1929 to 1931 and brother of Rupert Gwynne
Rupert Gwynne
Rupert Sackville Gwynne , was a British Conservative politician. He was Member of Parliament for Eastbourne from 1910 to 1924.-Early years:...
, MP for Eastbourne from 1910 to 1924. Gwynne was Adams's patient and known to visit every day at 9am. They went on frequent holidays together and had just spent three weeks in Scotland that September. The 'police officer' was the Deputy Chief Constable of Eastbourne, Alexander Seekings. Hannam however ignored this line of inquiry (despite homosexual acts being an offence in 1956) and the police instead gave the journalist a dressing-down. The memo is, however, testament to Adams's close connections to those of power in Eastbourne at the time.
There were rumours of Adams having three "mistresses" but these were probably just "covers" to avoid suspicion. Adams became engaged in around 1933 to Norah O'Hara but called it off in 1935 after her father had bought them a house and furnished it. Various explanations have been suggested: Surtees suggests that it was because Adams's mother didn't want him to marry "trade" though he also quotes a rumour that Adams wanted O'Hara's father to change his will to favour his daughters. Cullen suggests that, apart from being homosexual, Adams also didn't want his being married to interfere with his relationship with his elderly female patients. Adams remained friends with O'Hara his whole life and remembered her in his will.
The arrest
Adams was arrested on 19 December 1956. When told of the charges he said:Then while he was being taken away from Kent Lodge, he gripped his receptionist's hand and told her: "I will see you in heaven."
Hannam collected enough evidence in at least four of the cases for prosecution to be warranted: regarding Clara Neil Miller, Julia Bradnum, Edith Alice Morrell
Edith 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...
, and Gertrude Hullett
Gertrude Hullett
Gertrude "Bobby" Hullett , 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.-Jack Hullett:...
. Of these, Adams was charged on one count: the murder of Morrell, but with the murder of Hullett (and also of her husband) being used to prove 'system'.
Committal hearing
The committal hearing took place in LewesLewes
Lewes is the county town of East Sussex, England and historically of all of Sussex. It is a civil parish and is the centre of the Lewes local government district. The settlement has a history as a bridging point and as a market town, and today as a communications hub and tourist-oriented town...
on 14 January 1957. The Chairman of the magistrates was Sir Roland Gwynne, but he stepped down because of his close friendship with Adams. The hearing concluded on 24 January and after a five-minute deliberation, Adams was committed for trial. A vital piece of evidence, a cheque written out for ₤1000, went missing after the hearing, instigating a further police investigation. While the culprit was not found, Scotland Yard suspected the local Deputy Chief Constable of Eastbourne, Seekings, of having misplaced it to help Adams. Seekings was known to have taken holidays with Adams and Gwynne, and even looked after Gwynne's finances while he was in hospital in January 1957.
By the time the trial started on 18 March 1957 at the Old Bailey
Old Bailey
The Central Criminal Court in England and Wales, commonly known as the Old Bailey from the street in which it stands, is a court building in central London, one of a number of buildings housing the Crown Court...
the charge had been reduced to just Morrell, with Gertrude Hullett held back for a possible second separate trial. Three days later, a new Homicide Act
Homicide Act 1957
The Homicide Act 1957 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was enacted as a partial reform of the common law offence of murder in English law by abolishing the doctrine of constructive malice , reforming the partial defence of provocation, and by introducing the partial defences...
came into effect; murder by poison became a non-capital offence
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
. Adams, having been committed before this date, would still face the death penalty if convicted. If, however, the Home Secretary
Home Secretary
The Secretary of State for the Home Department, commonly known as the Home Secretary, is the minister in charge of the Home Office of the United Kingdom, and one of the country's four Great Offices of State...
decided to grant clemency, a conviction on a second count of murder, the Hullett charge, would make it far more difficult politically to sentence Adams to life imprisonment
Life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is a sentence of imprisonment for a serious crime under which the convicted person is to remain in jail for the rest of his or her life...
.
Adams and Eves
On 22 February 1957 the police were notified of a libellous and potentially prejudicial poem about the case titled Adams and Eves. It had been read at the Cavendish Hotel on the 13th by the manager in front of 150 guests. An officer spent ten days investigating and discovered a chain of hands through which the poem had passed and been recopied in order to be redistributed. The original author was not discovered, however, although an unnamed Fleet StreetFleet Street
Fleet Street is a street in central London, United Kingdom, named after the River Fleet, a stream that now flows underground. It was the home of the British press until the 1980s...
journalist was suspected. The poem finished:
[...]
It’s the mortuary chapel
If they touch an Adam’s apple
After parting with a BentleyBentleyBentley Motors Limited is a British manufacturer of automobiles founded on 18 January 1919 by Walter Owen Bentley known as W.O. Bentley or just "W O". Bentley had been previously known for his range of rotary aero-engines in World War I, the most famous being the Bentley BR1 as used in later...
as a fee
So to liquidate your odd kinKin-Places:* Kin, Okinawa, a town in Okinawa, Japan* Kin, Pakistan, a village along the Indus in Pakistan* Kin, Mogok, a village in Mogok Township, Burma * Kin, Ye, a village in Ye Township, Burma...
By the needle of the bodkin
Send them down to sunny Eastbourne by the sea.
Edith Alice Morrell
For more information see 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...
Morrell was a wealthy widow who suffered a brain thrombosis
Thrombosis
Thrombosis is the formation of a blood clot inside a blood vessel, obstructing the flow of blood through the circulatory system. When a blood vessel is injured, the body uses platelets and fibrin to form a blood clot to prevent blood loss...
(a stroke) on 24 June 1948 while visiting her son in Cheshire
Cheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
. She was partially paralysed
Paralysis
Paralysis is loss of muscle function for one or more muscles. Paralysis can be accompanied by a loss of feeling in the affected area if there is sensory damage as well as motor. A study conducted by the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, suggests that about 1 in 50 people have been diagnosed...
and was admitted to a hospital. Adams, her usual doctor, arrived on the 26th and the following day she was prescribed morphine (¼ grains) for pain. Adams took her back to Eastbourne and continued the morphia, gradually increasing the dose and adding heroin, until she was addicted.
Morrell made several will
Will (law)
A will or testament is a legal declaration by which a person, the testator, names one or more persons to manage his/her estate and provides for the transfer of his/her property at death...
s. In some, Adams received large sums of money, Morrell's Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost
Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost
The Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost refers both to a car model and to one specific car from that series.Originally named the "40/50 h.p." the chassis was originally produced at Royce's Manchester works, before moving to Derby in July 1908 and also, between 1921 and 1926, in Springfield, Massachusetts....
(valued at £1,500) and furniture — while in others, he was not mentioned at all. Finally, on 13 September 1950 a codicil
Codicil (will)
A codicil is a document that amends, rather than replaces, a previously executed will. Amendments made by a codicil may add or revoke small provisions , or may completely change the majority, or all, of the gifts under the will...
was written cutting Adams out of her will completely. After a year and three months of treatment, she died on 13 November 1950 aged 81. Adams certified the cause of death as "stroke" and on inspecting the body, slit her wrist to ensure she was dead. Despite the last codicil, Adams inherited the Rolls-Royce, a Jacobean court cupboard and an antique chest containing silver cutlery worth £276. After Morrell's death, he also took away an infrared lamp she had bought herself, worth £60. Adams billed Morrell's estate for 1,100 visits, costing ₤1,674 in total. The police however estimated that Adams had visited Morrell a total of 321 times during her treatment. On her cremation form, Adams stated that "as far as I am aware" he had no pecuniary interest in the death of the deceased, thereby avoiding the necessity of a post-mortem.
Gertrude Hullett
For more information see Gertrude HullettGertrude Hullett
Gertrude "Bobby" Hullett , 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.-Jack Hullett:...
On 23 July 1956 Gertrude Hullett
Gertrude Hullett
Gertrude "Bobby" Hullett , 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.-Jack Hullett:...
, another of Adams' patients, died aged 50. She had been depressed
Clinical 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...
since the death of her husband four months earlier and had been prescribed large amounts of sodium barbitone and also 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 for £1,000 – to pay for an MG car 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 – to 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 her depression or her barbiturate medication. They decided a cerebral haemorrhage was most likely. On the 21st Dr Shera, a pathologist, 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. Adams and Harris both opposed this. After Shera left, Adams visited a colleague 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 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.
The next morning, at 8.30 a.m. on the 22nd, 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 had left, Adams gave 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.
An inquest
Inquest
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 questioned Adams' treatment and in his summing up 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 committed suicide. After the inquest, the cheque for £1,000 disappeared.
Hullett left Adams her Rolls-Royce Silver Dawn
Rolls-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) in a will written five days before her overdose. Adams sold it six days before he was arrested.
The trial
Adams was first tried for the murder of Morrell, with the Hullett charge to be prosecuted afterwards. The trial lasted 17 days, the longest murder trial in Britain up to that point. It was presided over by Mr Justice Patrick DevlinPatrick 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...
. Devlin summed up the tricky nature of the case thus: "It is a most curious situation, perhaps unique in these courts, that the act of murder has to be proved by expert evidence
Expert witness
An expert witness, professional witness or judicial expert is a witness, who by virtue of education, training, skill, or experience, is believed to have expertise and specialised knowledge in a particular subject beyond that of the average person, sufficient that others may officially and legally...
." Defence counsel Sir Frederick Geoffrey Lawrence
Frederick Geoffrey Lawrence
Sir Frederick Geoffrey Lawrence QC was a British lawyer, High Court Judge, Chairman of the Bar Council and Chairman of the National Incomes Commission. He first came to prominence when he defended suspected serial killer Dr John Bodkin Adams in 1957, the first murder case he handled...
QC
Queen's Counsel
Queen's Counsel , known as King's Counsel during the reign of a male sovereign, are lawyers appointed by letters patent to be one of Her [or His] Majesty's Counsel learned in the law...
– a "specialist in real estate
Real estate
In general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
and divorce
Divorce
Divorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
cases [and] a relative stranger in criminal court", who was defending his first murder trial – convinced the jury that there was no evidence that a murder had been committed, much less that a murder had been committed by Adams. He emphasised that the indictment was based mainly on testimonies from the nurses who tended Morrell — and that none of the witnesses' evidence matched the others'. Then, on the second day of the trial, he produced notebooks written by the nurses, detailing Adams' treatment of Morrell. The prosecution claimed never to have seen these notebooks (even though they are recorded in pretrial lists of evidence). These differed from the nurses' recollection of events, and showed that smaller quantities of drugs were given to the patient than the prosecution had thought, based on Adams' prescriptions. Furthermore, the prosecution's two expert medical witnesses gave differing opinions. Dr Arthur Douthwaite
Arthur Henry Douthwaite
Arthur Henry Douthwaite was a British doctor, Vice President of the Royal College of Physicians and a prolific medical textbook writer. He was the foremost expert on heroin in Britain in the 1950s, leading to him being called as an expert witness in the trial of suspected serial killer Dr John...
was prepared to say that murder had definitely been committed (though he changed his mind in the middle of his testimony regarding the exact date), but Dr Michael Ashby
Michael Ashby
Michael George Corbett Ashby, M.A., M.B., M.R.C.P., F.R.C.P. was a consultant neurologist at the Whittington Hospital, London and an expert witness for the prosecution in the failed trial of suspected serial killer John Bodkin Adams.-Life:Ashby was born in London, the son of Arthur Brian Ashby, a...
was more reticent. Defence witness Dr John Harman
John B. Harman
John Bishop Harman, FRCS, FRCP was a British physician, president of the Medical Defence Union and chairman of the British National Formulary. He was also notable as a medical expert witness for the defence in the trial of suspected serial killer John Bodkin Adams...
, however, was adamant that Adams' treatment, though unusual, was not reckless. Finally, the prosecution was wrong-footed by the defence not calling the loquacious Adams to give evidence, and thereby avoiding him "chatting himself to the gallows
Gallows
A gallows is a frame, typically wooden, used for execution by hanging, or by means to torture before execution, as was used when being hanged, drawn and quartered...
". This was totally unexpected, shocking the prosecution and the press, and even surprising the judge.
When the jury retired to discuss the verdict, Lord Chief Justice Rayner Goddard phoned Devlin to urge him, if Adams were found not guilty, to grant Adams bail
Bail
Traditionally, bail is some form of property deposited or pledged to a court to persuade it to release a suspect from jail, on the understanding that the suspect will return for trial or forfeit the bail...
before he was to be tried on a second count of murdering Gertrude Hullett. Devlin was taken aback at this since a person accused of murder had never been given bail before in English legal history. During the committal hearing prior to the trial, Goddard had been seen dining with Sir Roland Gwynne at the White Hart hotel in Lewes
Lewes
Lewes is the county town of East Sussex, England and historically of all of Sussex. It is a civil parish and is the centre of the Lewes local government district. The settlement has a history as a bridging point and as a market town, and today as a communications hub and tourist-oriented town...
. Goddard, as Lord Chief Justice, had by then already appointed Devlin to try Adams' case.
On 9 April 1957, the jury returned after just 44 minutes to find Adams not guilty.
(A joke then circulating in legal circles referring to the chief prosecutor Reginald Manningham-Buller was that this was not 'homicide' but 'regicide')
Concerns of prejudice in the trial
There is considerable evidence to suggest that the trial was "interfered with" by those "at the highest level".- The loss of the nurses' notebooks: Eight books of records made by nurses who had worked under Adams were recorded in pre-trial police records but disappeared before the trial started, depriving Sir Reginald Manningham-Buller, of the chance to familiarise himself with them. He was presented with only a copy of them by the defence on the second day of the trial. These books were then used by the fully prepared defence to counter evidence given against Adams by the nurses, who had originally written the notes. Six years after the event, the notes could be said to be more reliable than the nurses' own memories. The defence was not required to explain how the books came into their hands, and the Attorney-General made no effort to pursue this matter, despite his nicknameNicknameA nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....
of "Sir Bullying Manner". He also failed to ask for an adjournment to acquaint himself with the new evidence – despite the fact that the judge would have been sure to grant it.
- Adams himself gave three conflicting explanations for how the defence came to have the note books: they were given to him by Morrell's son when he found them among her effects and filed away at his surgery; they were delivered anonymously to his door after she died; they were found in the air raid shelter at the back of his garden. His solicitor, meanwhile, claimed later that they were found by the defence team in Adams's surgery shortly before trial. All versions however differ from the police records: in the list of exhibits for the Committal Hearing given to the DPP'sDirector of Public ProsecutionsThe Director of Public Prosecutions is the officer charged with the prosecution of criminal offences in several criminal jurisdictions around the world...
office, the notes are clearly mentioned. The Attorney General therefore must have known they existed. According to Cullen, this shows "that there was a will at the highest of levels to undermine the case against Dr Adams".
- Disclosure of evidence to the BMABritish Medical AssociationThe British Medical Association is the professional association and registered trade union for doctors in the United Kingdom. The association does not regulate or certify doctors, a responsibility which lies with the General Medical Council. The association’s headquarters are located in BMA House,...
: On 8 November 1956, the Attorney-General handed a copy of Hannam's 187-page report to the President of the British Medical AssociationBritish Medical AssociationThe British Medical Association is the professional association and registered trade union for doctors in the United Kingdom. The association does not regulate or certify doctors, a responsibility which lies with the General Medical Council. The association’s headquarters are located in BMA House,...
, effectively the doctors' trade union in Britain. This document – the prosecution's most valuable document – was in the hands of the defence, a situation that led the Home Secretary, Gwilym Lloyd George, to reprimand Manningham-Buller, stating that such documents should not even be shown to "Parliament or to individual Members". "I can only hope that no harm will result" since "the disclosure of this document is likely to cause me considerable embarrassment". - Use of the Nolle prosequiNolle prosequiNolle 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...
: after the not guilty verdict on the count of murdering Morrell, the Attorney-General had the power to prosecute Adams for the death of Hullett. However, he chose to offer no evidence by entering a nolle prosequi — historically a power only used on compassionate grounds when the accused is too ill to be tried. This was not the case with Adams. Devlin in his post-trial book even went as far as terming this "an abuse of process". - Wrong case chosen: Charles Hewett, Hannam's assistant, described how both officers were astounded at Manningham-Buller's decision to charge Adams with the murder of Morrell, since her body had been cremated and therefore there was no evidence to present before a jury. He believed that there were other cases against the doctor, where traces of drugs had been found in exhumed remains, which were more compelling as proof. Cullen also describes Morrell as "the weakest" case of the four the police deemed most suspicious.
Possible reasons that have been suggested for interference
- NHS situation: The case was "very important for the medical profession". The NHSNational Health ServiceThe National Health Service is the shared name of three of the four publicly funded healthcare systems in the United Kingdom. They provide a comprehensive range of health services, the vast majority of which are free at the point of use to residents of the United Kingdom...
had been founded in 1948 but by 1956 was stretched financially to breaking point and doctors were disaffected. Indeed, a Royal CommissionRoyal CommissionIn Commonwealth realms and other monarchies a Royal Commission is a major ad-hoc formal public inquiry into a defined issue. They have been held in various countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and Saudi Arabia...
was set up in February 1957 to consider doctors' pay. A doctor sentenced to death would have led to "mass defections" from the service for fear of being hangedHangingHanging is the lethal suspension of a person by a ligature. The Oxford English Dictionary states that hanging in this sense is "specifically to put to death by suspension by the neck", though it formerly also referred to crucifixion and death by impalement in which the body would remain...
for simply prescribing medication. Moreover, it would have shaken public confidence in the service and in the government of the time as well. - The Suez Crisis: On 26 July 1956 President NasserGamal Abdel NasserGamal Abdel Nasser Hussein was the second President of Egypt from 1956 until his death. A colonel in the Egyptian army, Nasser led the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 along with Muhammad Naguib, the first president, which overthrew the monarchy of Egypt and Sudan, and heralded a new period of...
of EgyptEgyptEgypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
announced the nationalisation of the Suez CanalSuez CanalThe Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
. This was opposed by Britain and France and an ultimatum was issued on 30 October. Bombardment began the next day. On 5 November, Britain and France invaded. Political and financial pressure from the US and NATO led to a withdrawal by 24 December. In January 1957 Prime Minister Anthony EdenAnthony EdenRobert Anthony Eden, 1st Earl of Avon, KG, MC, PC was a British Conservative politician, who was Prime Minister from 1955 to 1957...
resigned and was succeeded by Harold MacmillanHarold MacmillanMaurice Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton, OM, PC was Conservative Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 10 January 1957 to 18 October 1963....
. The situation was such that when Harold MacmillanHarold MacmillanMaurice Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton, OM, PC was Conservative Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 10 January 1957 to 18 October 1963....
became Prime MinisterPrime ministerA prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
on 10 January 1957, he told the Queen he could not guarantee his government would last "six weeks". Adams' fate was therefore entwined with that of the reeling government. - Harold Macmillan link: On 26 November 1950 the 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...
had a heart attack. Adams tended him and was by his side when he died, 13 days after the death of Morrell. The coroner should have been notified, since the Duke had not seen a doctor in the 14 days before his death. However, because of a loophole in the law, Adams, though present at death, could sign the death certificate to state that the Duke died naturally. The Duke's sister was married to Harold MacmillanHarold MacmillanMaurice Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton, OM, PC was Conservative Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 10 January 1957 to 18 October 1963....
, and some have argued that Macmillan, who became Prime Minister during preparations for the trial, might not have wanted this case to be investigated further: The Attorney-General, Manningham-Buller, attended CabinetCabinet (government)A Cabinet is a body of high ranking government officials, typically representing the executive branch. It can also sometimes be referred to as the Council of Ministers, an Executive Council, or an Executive Committee.- Overview :...
meetings regularly.
Police archives
Scotland Yard's files on the case and also those of the DPP, were closed until 2033. This was an unusual decision, considering the advanced age of the suspectSuspect
In the parlance of criminal justice, a suspect is a known person suspected of committing a crime.Police and reporters often incorrectly use the word suspect when referring to the...
, witness
Witness
A witness is someone who has firsthand knowledge about an event, or in the criminal justice systems usually a crime, through his or her senses and can help certify important considerations about the crime or event. A witness who has seen the event first hand is known as an eyewitness...
es and others involved in the case. The files were opened to the public only after special permission was granted in 2003.
Suspicious cases
It is worth quoting some of the evidence from testimonies gathered by Hannam during the investigation, but which was never aired in court. Taken together, they suggest a certain modus operandiModus operandi
Modus operandi is a Latin phrase, approximately translated as "mode of operation". The term is used to describe someone's habits or manner of working, their method of operating or functioning...
:
- August 1939 – Adams was treating Agnes Pike. Her solicitors however were concerned at the amount of hypnotic drugs he was giving her and asked another doctor, Dr. Mathew, to take over treatment. Dr Mathew examined her in Adams's presence but could find no disease present. Moreover, the patient was "deeply under the influence of drugs", incoherent and gave her age as 200 years. Later during the examination Adams stepped forward unexpectedly and gave Pike an injection of morphia. Asked why he did this, Adams replied "because she might be violent". Dr Mathew discovered that Adams had banned all relatives from seeing her. Dr Mathew withdrew Adams's medication and after eight weeks of his care, Pike was able to do her own shopping and had regained her full faculties.
- 24 December 1946 – Emily Louise Mortimer died aged 75. Afterwards, Adams took a bottle of brandy and a clock from her room. He claimed to the police that the clock had been loaned by him and that it wasn't 'right to leave spirits in a nursing home'. Adams received the residue from Mortimer's will and by 1957 had earned £1,950 in dividends from the shares he inherited.
- 23 February 1950 – Amy Ware died aged 76. Adams had banned her from seeing relatives prior to her death. She left Adams £1000 of her total estate of £8,993, yet Adams stated on the cremation form that he was not a beneficiary of the will. He was charged and convicted for this in 1957.
- 28 December 1950 – Annabelle Kilgour died aged 89. She had been attended by Adams since July when she had had a stroke. She went into a coma on 23 December, immediately after Adams started giving her sedatives. The nurse involved later told the police she was 'quite certain Adams either gave the wrong injection or of far too concentrated a type". Kilgour left Adams £200 and a clock.
- 3 January 1952 – Adams purchased 5,000 phenobarbitone tablets. By the time his house was searched four years later, none were left.
- 11 May 1952 – Julia Bradnum died aged 85. The previous year Adams asked her if her will was in order and offered to accompany her to the bank to check it. On examining it, he pointed out that she hadn't given her beneficiaries "addresses" and that it should be rewritten. She had wanted to leave her house to her adopted daughter but Adams suggested it would be best to sell the house and then give money to whomever she wanted. This she did. Adams eventually received £661. While Adams attended this patient, he was often seen holding her hand and chatting to her on one knee.
- The day before Bradnum died, she had been doing housework and going for walks. The next morning she woke up feeling unwell. Adams was called and saw her. He gave her an injection and stated "It will be over in three minutes". It was. Adams then confirmed "I'm afraid she's gone" and left the room.
- Bradnum was exhumed on 21 December 1956. Adams had said on the death certificate that Bradnum died of a cerebral haemorrhage. Francis Camps however examined her brain and excluded this possibility. The rest of the body however was not in a state to deduce the real cause of death. Furthermore it was noticed that Adams, the executor, had put a plate on Bradnum's coffin stating she died on 27 May 1952. This was the date her body was in fact interred.
- 22 November 1952 – Julia Thomas, 72, was being treated by Adams (she called him "Bobbums") for depression after her cat died in early November. On the 19th, Adams gave sedatives so she would feel "better for it in the morning". The next day, after more tablets, she went into a coma. On the 21st he told Thomas' cook; "Mrs. Thomas has promised me her typewriter, I'll take it now". She died at 3 am the next morning.
- 15 January 1953 – Hilda Neil Miller, 86, died in a guest house where she lived with her sister Clara. They had not been receiving their post for many months previously and were cut off from their relatives. When Hilda's long-standing friend Dolly Wallis asked Adams about her health, he answered her with medical terms she "did not understand". While visiting Hilda, Adams was seen by her nurse, Phyllis Owen, to pick up articles in the room, examine them and slip them in his pocket. Adams arranged Hilda's funeral and burial site himself.
- 22 February 1954 – Clara Neil Miller, died aged 87. Adams often locked the door when he saw her – for up to twenty minutes at a time. When Dolly Wallis asked about this, Clara said he was assisting her in "personal matters": pinning on brooches, adjusting her dress. His fat hands were "comforting" to her. She also appeared to be under the influence of drugs.
- Early that February, the coldest for many years, Adams had sat with her in her room for forty minutes. A nurse entered, unnoticed, and saw Clara's "bed clothes all off... and over the foot rail of the bed, her night gown up around her chest and the window in the room open top and bottom", while Adams read to her from the BibleBibleThe Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
. When later confronted by Hannam regarding this, Adams said "The person who told you that doesn't know why I did it". - Clara left Adams £1,275 and he charged her estate a further £700 after her death. He was the sole executorExecutorAn executor, in the broadest sense, is one who carries something out .-Overview:...
. Her funeral was arranged by Adams and only he and Annie Sharpe, the guest house owner, were present. She received £200 in Clara's will. Adams tipped the vicar a guineaGuinea (British coin)The guinea is a coin that was minted in the Kingdom of England and later in the Kingdom of Great Britain and the United Kingdom between 1663 and 1813...
after the ceremony. Clara was one of the two bodies exhumed during the police investigation on 21 December 1956. Francis Camps concluded that she had had bronchopneumoniaBronchopneumoniaBronchopneumonia or bronchial pneumonia or "Bronchogenic pneumonia" is the acute inflammation of the walls of the bronchioles...
possibly brought about by high drug doses – not a heart problem as Adams had said on the death certificate. According to prescription records, Adams had not prescribed anything to treat the bronchopneumonia.
- Early that February, the coldest for many years, Adams had sat with her in her room for forty minutes. A nurse entered, unnoticed, and saw Clara's "bed clothes all off... and over the foot rail of the bed, her night gown up around her chest and the window in the room open top and bottom", while Adams read to her from the Bible
- 30 May 1955 – James Downs, brother-in-law of Amy Ware (see above), died aged 88. He had entered a nursing home with a broken ankleAnkleThe ankle joint is formed where the foot and the leg meet. The ankle, or talocrural joint, is a synovial hinge joint that connects the distal ends of the tibia and fibula in the lower limb with the proximal end of the talus bone in the foot...
four months earlier. Adams had treated him with a sedativeSedativeA sedative or tranquilizer is a substance that induces sedation by reducing irritability or excitement....
containing morphia, which made him forgetful. On 7 April Adams gave his nurse, Sister Miller, a tablet to make him more alert. Two hours later, a solicitor arrived for him to amend his will. Adams told the solicitor he was to be made a legateeLegateeA legatee, in the law of wills, is any individual or organization bequeathed any portion of a testator's estate.-Usage:Depending upon local custom, legatees may be called "devisees." Traditionally, "legatees" took personal property under will and "devisees" took land under will. Brooker v....
to inherit £1000. The solicitor amended the will and returned two hours later with another doctor, Dr Barkworth, who declared the patient to be alert. Dr Barkworth was paid 3 guineas for his time. Nurse Miller later told police she had heard Adams earlier that April tell the "senile" Downs; "Now look Jimmy, you promised me... you would look after me and I see you haven't even mentioned me in your will." "I have never charged you a fee". Downs died after a 36 hour coma, 12 hours after Adams's last visit. Adams charged his estate £216 for his services and signed Downs' cremation form, stating he had "no pecuniary interest in the death of the deceased". - 14 March 1956 – Alfred John Hullett died, aged 71. He was the husband of Gertrude HullettGertrude HullettGertrude "Bobby" Hullett , 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.-Jack Hullett:...
. Shortly after his death, Adams went to a chemists to get a 10 cc hypodermic morphine solution in the name of Mr Hullett containing 5 grains of morphine, and for the prescription to be back dated to the previous day. The police presumed this was to cover morphine Adams had given him from his own private supplies. Mr Hullett left Adams £500 in his will. - 15 November 1956 – Annie Sharpe, owner of the guest house where the Neil Millers died – and therefore a major witness – died suddenly of "carcinomaCarcinomaCarcinoma is the medical term for the most common type of cancer occurring in humans. Put simply, a carcinoma is a cancer that begins in a tissue that lines the inner or outer surfaces of the body, and that generally arises from cells originating in the endodermal or ectodermal germ layer during...
tosis of the peritoneal cavityPeritoneal cavityThe peritoneal cavity is a potential space between the parietal peritoneum and visceral peritoneum, that is, the two membranes that separate the organs in the abdominal cavity from the abdominal wall...
" while Hannam and Hewett were in London meeting with the DPP. Adams had diagnosed cancer five days earlier and made a prescription for Sharpe for hyperduric morphineMorphineMorphine is a potent opiate analgesic medication and is considered to be the prototypical opioid. It was first isolated in 1804 by Friedrich Sertürner, first distributed by same in 1817, and first commercially sold by Merck in 1827, which at the time was a single small chemists' shop. It was more...
and 36 pethidinePethidinePethidine or meperidine Pethidine (INN) or meperidine (USAN) Pethidine (INN) or meperidine (USAN) (commonly referred to as Demerol but also referred to as: isonipecaine; lidol; pethanol; piridosal; Algil; Alodan; Centralgin; Dispadol; Dolantin; Mialgin (in Indonesia); Petidin Dolargan (in Poland);...
tablets. The police were very disappointed: they had had two chances to interview her, and Hannam and Hewett felt she had been about to "crack". She was cremated hastily, precluding an investigation into her death.
Hannam also discovered that 4 members of Adams' household staff had been prescribed either morphine, heroin or pethidine by Adams. Adams obtained these on the NHS, leading Hannam to conclude that he was merely using their names and keeping the drugs for his own supplies – an act of fraud.
After the acquittal
In the aftermath of the trial Adams resigned from the National Health ServiceNational Health Service
The National Health Service is the shared name of three of the four publicly funded healthcare systems in the United Kingdom. They provide a comprehensive range of health services, the vast majority of which are free at the point of use to residents of the United Kingdom...
and was convicted in Lewes Crown Court
Lewes Crown Court
Lewes Crown Court is a Crown Court in Lewes, East Sussex, England. It is housed in the Lewes Combined Court Centre which it shares with Lewes County Court in the Lewes High Street...
on 26 July 1957, on 8 counts of forging prescriptions, four counts of making false statements on cremation forms, and three offences under the Dangerous Drugs Act, 1951 and fined £2,400 plus costs of £457. His licence to prescribe dangerous drugs was revoked on 4 September and on 27 November he was struck off the Medical Register by the GMC
General Medical Council
The General Medical Council registers and regulates doctors practising in the United Kingdom. It has the power to revoke or restrict a doctor's registration if it deems them unfit to practise...
. Adams continued to see some of his more loyal patients, and prescribed over the counter medicine to them.
Right after the trial, Percy Hoskins
Percy Hoskins
Percy Kellick Hoskins was the chief crime reporter for British newspaper the Daily Express in the 1950s. He also provided stories for radio and television crime shows such as Whitehall 1212....
, chief crime reporter for the Daily Express
Daily Express
The Daily Express switched from broadsheet to tabloid in 1977 and was bought by the construction company Trafalgar House in the same year. Its publishing company, Beaverbrook Newspapers, was renamed Express Newspapers...
, whisked Adams off to a safehouse in Westgate-on-Sea
Westgate-on-Sea
Westgate-on-Sea is a seaside town in northeast Kent, England, with a population of 6,600. It is within the Thanet local government district and borders the larger seaside resort of Margate...
, where he spent the next 2 weeks recounting his life story. Hoskins had befriended Adams during the trial and was the only major journalist to doubt his guilt. Adams was paid £10,000 for the interview, though he never spent the proceeds – the notes were found in a bank vault after his death, untouched. Adams then successfully sued several newspapers for libel. He returned to Eastbourne, where he continued to practise privately despite the common belief in the town that he had murdered people. This belief was not, however, shared by his friends and patients in general. One exception was Roland Gwynne
Roland Gwynne
Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Roland Vaughan Gwynne, DSO, DL, JP was Mayor of Eastbourne, Sussex, from 1928 to 1931. He was also a patient and close friend of the suspected serial killer Dr John Bodkin Adams.-Childhood:...
, who distanced himself considerably from Adams after the trial.
Adams was reinstated as a general practitioner on 22 November 1961 after two failed applications, and his authority to prescribe dangerous drugs was restored the following July. He continued to practise as a sole practitioner, not resuming his partnership with the town's "Red House" practice. In August 1962 Adams applied for a visa to America but was refused because of his dangerous drug convictions.
Adams later became President (and Honorary Medical Officer) of the British Clay Pigeon Shooting Association
Clay Pigeon Shooting Association
The Clay Pigeon Shooting Association is the National Governing Body for Clay Target Shooting in England.Founded in 1928, it is recognised by Sports England, the Department of the Environment, the Home Office, the Police etc...
.
Roland Gwynne died on 15 November 1971. Adams signed his death certificate.
Death
Adams slipped and fractured his hip on 30 June 1983 while shooting in BattleBattle, East Sussex
Battle is a small town and civil parish in the local government district of Rother in East Sussex, England. It lies south southeast of London, east of Brighton and east of the county town of Lewes...
, 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:...
. He was taken to Eastbourne hospital but developed a chest infection and died on 4 July of left ventricular failure. He left an estate of £402,970 and bequeathed £1000 to Percy Hoskins
Percy Hoskins
Percy Kellick Hoskins was the chief crime reporter for British newspaper the Daily Express in the 1950s. He also provided stories for radio and television crime shows such as Whitehall 1212....
. Hoskins gave the money to charity. Adams had been receiving legacies until the end. In 1986, The Good Doctor Bodkin Adams, a TV docudrama based on his trial, was produced starring Timothy West
Timothy West
Timothy Lancaster West, CBE is an English film, stage and television actor.-Career:West's craggy looks ensured a career as a character actor rather than a leading man. He began his career as an Assistant Stage Manager at the Wimbledon Theatre in 1956, and followed this with several seasons of...
.
Pre-2003
Opinion regarding Adams has been divided, though in recent years has tended to the view that he was a killer. Sybille BedfordSybille Bedford
Sybille Bedford, OBE was a German-born English writer. Many of her works are partly autobiographical. Julia Neuberger proclaimed her "the finest woman writer of the 20th century" while Bruce Chatwin saw her as "one of the most dazzling practitioners of modern English prose".-Early life:She was...
, present at Adams's trial, was adamant that he was not guilty. Many publications, however, were sued for libel during Adams's lifetime, showing the prevalence of the rumours that surrounded him. The 1961 film Victim, meanwhile, alludes to Adams when it is mentioned that the main character, barrister Melville Farr, defended a "Dr Porchester". "He should have hung, you know," Farr is told by Calloway, an actor who was present in court; he replies "There was a moment when we thought he would. We were all very relieved."
After Adams's death, writers were more free to speculate. In 1983 Rodney Hallworth
Rodney Hallworth
-Journalism:Hallworth worked as a crime reporter for the Daily Mail. He reported on many cases but most famously on that of suspected serial killer Dr John Bodkin Adams in 1956...
and Mark Williams concluded Adams was a serial killer and probably schizophrenic: "In the opinion of many experts Adams died an unconvicted mass-murderer".Percy Hoskins
Percy Hoskins
Percy Kellick Hoskins was the chief crime reporter for British newspaper the Daily Express in the 1950s. He also provided stories for radio and television crime shows such as Whitehall 1212....
, writing in 1984, was of the opposite opinion, adamant that Adams was not guilty but merely "naive" and "avaricious". In 1985 Sir Patrick Devlin, the judge, stated that Adams may have been a "mercenary
Mercenary
A mercenary, is a person who takes part in an armed conflict based on the promise of material compensation rather than having a direct interest in, or a legal obligation to, the conflict itself. A non-conscript professional member of a regular army is not considered to be a mercenary although he...
mercy killer" but, though compassionate, he was at the same time greedy and "prepared to sell death" : 'He did not think of himself as a murderer but a dispenser of death [...] According to his lights, he had done nothing wrong. There was nothing wrong in a doctor getting a legacy, nor in his bestowing in return [...] a death as happy as heroin could make it.' He also "could be convinced that Dr Adams had helped to end Mrs Hullett's life". In 2000, Surtees, a former colleague of Adams, wrote a more sympathetic account of him as being the victim of a police vendetta
Feud
A feud , referred to in more extreme cases as a blood feud, vendetta, faida, or private war, is a long-running argument or fight between parties—often groups of people, especially families or clans. Feuds begin because one party perceives itself to have been attacked, insulted or wronged by another...
.
Post-2003
These writers based their opinions almost entirely on the evidence given in court regarding Morrell. The police archives were opened in 2003 at the request of historian Pamela Cullen, who writes that Adams "may have had more victims than Shipman". In her view, Adams was acquitted more due to the way the case "was presented than [to] Doctor Adams' lack of guilt". She also highlights the fact that Hannam's investigation was "blinkered" from the perspective of motive: Hannam assumed monetary gain was the driving force because during the 1950s, little was known of what really motivated serial killers, i.e. "physical needs, emotions and often bizarre interpretations of reality".John Emsley
John Emsley
Dr John Emsley is a British writer, broadcaster and academic specialising in chemistry. He lectured at Cambridge University, England.-Newspaper column:For six years Emsley wrote a column on chemistry for the Independent called "Molecule of the Month"....
, writing in 2008, concurs with Cullen saying "It now seems almost certain that over a 30-year period he killed 160 of his patients". Katherine Ramsland
Katherine Ramsland
Katherine Ramsland is an author who has published 37 books and over 900 articles, most of which are in the genres of crime, forensic science, and the supernatural. She holds graduate degrees in forensic psychology, clinical psychology, and philosophy, and teaches forensic psychology at DeSales...
records that despite the outcome of the trial, Adams "is nevertheless believed to have repeatedly committed what the law regards as murder". Herbert G Kinnell, writing in the British Medical Journal
British Medical Journal
BMJ is a partially open-access peer-reviewed medical journal. Originally called the British Medical Journal, the title was officially shortened to BMJ in 1988. The journal is published by the BMJ Group, a wholly owned subsidiary of the British Medical Association...
, speculates that Adams "possibly provided the role model for Shipman
Harold Shipman
Harold Fredrick Shipman was an English doctor and one of the most prolific serial killers in recorded history with 218 murders being positively ascribed to him....
".
Legal legacy
Adams's trial had many effects on the English legal system.- The first was establishing the principle of double effectPrinciple of double effectThe principle of double effect; also known as the rule of double effect; the doctrine of double effect, often abbreviated as DDE or PDE; double-effect reasoning; or simply double effect, is a set of ethical criteria for evaluating the permissibility of acting when one's otherwise legitimate act...
that if a doctor "gave treatment to a seriously ill patient with the aim of relieving pain or distress, as a result of which that person's life was inadvertently shortened, the doctor was not guilty of murder." - Owing to the potentially prejudicial evidence that was mentioned in the committal hearing (regarding Hullett – evidence that would then not be used in Adams's first trial for murdering Morrell) the Tucker Committee was held, which led to the law being changed in the subsequent Criminal Justice Act 1967 to restrict what might be published about committal hearings to avoid pretrial publicity.
- Though a defendant had never been required to give evidence in his own defence, Judge Devlin underlined in his summing-up that no prejudice should be attached by the juryJuryA jury is a sworn body of people convened to render an impartial verdict officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a penalty or judgment. Modern juries tend to be found in courts to ascertain the guilt, or lack thereof, in a crime. In Anglophone jurisdictions, the verdict may be guilty,...
to Adams not doing so. - The case also led to changes in Dangerous Drugs Regulations, meaning that Schedule IV poisons required a signed and dated record of patient details and the total dose used.
Subsequent cases
It was 25 years before another doctor in Britain, Dr Leonard ArthurLeonard Arthur
Dr Leonard John Henry Arthur MB, BChir, MRCP, D Obst RCOG was a British doctor tried in 1981 for the attempted murder of John Pearson, a newborn child with Down's Syndrome. He was acquitted....
, stood trial for murder arising from treatment. Arthur was tried in November 1981 at Leicester
Leicester
Leicester is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest...
Crown Court for the attempted murder of John Pearson, a newborn child with Downs Syndrome. Like Adams, on the advice of his legal team he did not give evidence in his defence, relying instead on expert witnesses. He was acquitted.
In 2000, Harold Shipman
Harold Shipman
Harold Fredrick Shipman was an English doctor and one of the most prolific serial killers in recorded history with 218 murders being positively ascribed to him....
became the only British doctor to be successfully prosecuted for the murder of his patients. He was found guilty on 15 counts and The Shipman Inquiry
The Shipman Inquiry
The Shipman Inquiry was the report produced by a British governmental investigation into the activities of general practitioner and serial killer Harold Shipman. Shipman was caught in 1998 and the inquiry commenced after his trial in 2000. It released its findings in various stages, with its sixth...
concluded in 2002 that he had murdered a further 200.
See also
- Beverley Allitt
- Arnfinn NessetArnfinn NessetArnfinn Nesset is a Norwegian serial killer.Nesset, a former nursing home manager, was convicted in March 1983 of poisoning 22 patients with Curacit, a muscle relaxing drug. He was also convicted of one count of attempted murder and acquitted on two other counts...
- Maxim PetrovMaxim PetrovMaxim Vladimirovich Petrov is a Russian doctor and serial killer. He is currently serving a life sentence for killing 12 patients. The Russian media nicknamed him "Doctor Killer" and "Doctor Death".-Crimes:...
- Michael SwangoMichael SwangoJoseph Michael Swango is an American serial killer and former licensed physician. It is estimated that Swango has been involved in as many as 60 fatal poisonings of patients and colleagues, though he admitted to only causing four deaths...
- Dorothea WaddinghamDorothea WaddinghamDorothea Nancy Waddingham was a nursing home matron and convicted murderer in the United Kingdom.-Life:Dorothea Waddingham is usually referred to as "Nurse" Waddingham, because the two murders she was accused and convicted of were committed in a nursing home she ran near Nottingham England. In...
- John George HaighJohn George HaighJohn George Haigh , commonly known as the "Acid Bath Murderer" , was an English serial killer during the 1940s. He was convicted of the murders of six people, although he claimed to have killed nine...
– the 'Acid Bath Murderer' and also Plymouth BrethrenPlymouth BrethrenThe Plymouth Brethren is a conservative, Evangelical Christian movement, whose history can be traced to Dublin, Ireland, in the late 1820s. Although the group is notable for not taking any official "church name" to itself, and not having an official clergy or liturgy, the title "The Brethren," is...
member - Most prolific murderers by number of victimsMost prolific murderers by number of victims*For serial killers see: List of serial killers by number of victims*For mass murderers and spree killers see: List of rampage killers...
Sources
- Bedford, SybilleSybille BedfordSybille Bedford, OBE was a German-born English writer. Many of her works are partly autobiographical. Julia Neuberger proclaimed her "the finest woman writer of the 20th century" while Bruce Chatwin saw her as "one of the most dazzling practitioners of modern English prose".-Early life:She was...
. The Best We Can Do. London, Penguin, 1989. ISBN 0140115579 - Cullen, Pamela V. A Stranger in Blood: The Case Files on Dr John Bodkin Adams. London, Elliott & Thompson, 2006. ISBN 1-904027-19-9
- Devlin, PatrickPatrick Devlin, Baron DevlinPatrick Arthur Devlin, Baron Devlin, PC was a British lawyer, judge and jurist. He wrote a report on Britain's involvement in Nyasaland in 1959...
. Easing the passing: The trial of Doctor John Bodkin Adams. London, The Bodley Head, 1985. ISBN 0571139930 - Hoskins, PercyPercy HoskinsPercy Kellick Hoskins was the chief crime reporter for British newspaper the Daily Express in the 1950s. He also provided stories for radio and television crime shows such as Whitehall 1212....
. Two men were acquitted: The trial and acquittal of Doctor John Bodkin Adams. London, Secker & Warburg, 1984. ISBN 0436201615 - Hallworth, Rodney and Mark Williams, Where there's a will... The sensational life of Dr John Bodkin Adams. Capstan Press, Jersey, 1983. ISBN 0946797005
- Surtees, John. The Strange Case of Dr. Bodkin Adams: The Life and Murder Trial of Eastbourne's Infamous Doctor and the Views of Those Who Knew Him. Seaford, 2000. ISBN 1857701089
Further reading
- Cavendish, Marshall. Murder Casebook 40 Eastbourne's Doctor Death, 1990.
- Gaute, J.H.H. and Robin Odell, The New Murderer's Who's Who, Harrap Books, London, 1996.
- Ambler, Eric, The Ability to Kill, 1963 (promotional edition with chapter on Adams only – subsequent editions had it removed due to libel fears)
External links
- "An Intruder at Eastbourne", Time, New York, 28 January 1957 (Account of the initial trial, which because of libel and contempt laws could not have been published in Britain at the time).