Arthur Gooch (criminal)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Arthur Gooch (died June 19, 1936^[1]) was a American criminal, who is notable for being the only person ever be executed under the federal Lindbergh kidnapping law.

Gooch was the only person sentenced to death and executed by the United States Federal Government^[2] for kidnapping, while a victims remained unharmed. Gooch participated in kidnapping two policemen in Texas and released them in Oklahoma^[3]. In contrast Victor Geuger, the last federal inmate executed before 2001 (1963 in Iowa) was charged for kidnapping, but his victim died. President Franklin D. Roosevelt declined to commute the sentence^[4].

Although electric chair was an only method of executions in Oklahoma at this time, Gooch was executed by hanging. Like Gooch, another federal inmate James Alderman, executed in Florida on August 17, 1929, was also hanged, despite Florida State law authorized electrocution as a sole method^[5].

The sentence was carried out by Oklahoma's state electrician Richard Earnest Owen. According to the witnesses Gooch's hanging was performed by a botched way and his death lasted 15 minutes. Many blamed Owen for this failure, because this was the only hanging he ever performed^[6].

His last words: It's kind of funny--dying. I think I know what it will be like. I'll be standing there, and all of a sudden everything will be black, then there'll be a light again. There's got to be a light again--there's got to be.^[7].

Gooch was 27-year old at time of his execution^[8].